The Examined Life

Grosz’s vignettes are so brilliantly put together that they read like pieces of bare, illuminating fiction. . . utterly captivating - Sunday Times

Marvellous… After reading [Grosz’s] absorbing accounts of his patients’ journeys you might feel that The Examined Life ought to be given out free at birth - The Times

Crystal-clear and completely magical…The Examined Life is a book full of troubles, but also of wonders - Mail on Sunday

Engaging, frank, and with many penetrating insights. His short, succinct chapters have both the tension and the satisfaction of miniature detective or mystery stories - The Spectator

By turns edifying and moving…Grosz offers astute insights into the perplexities of everyday life - Financial Times

[Grosz's accounts] are shaped like short stories, but true and moving in ways that fiction cannot be […] distilled through long examination into finely crafted literary form… - Observer

Grosz’s message is always affirming…it is possible to change - The Scotsman

Excellent… Every one of these case histories bears repeating. All offer worthwhile insights - Guardian

Intelligent, human and deeply moving - Sunday Express

'Grosz] writes lucidly and with sensitivity… sprinkled with wise reflections… A gem… highly recommended - The Independent

[A] fine and moving book… It is a true literary work and a very modern one… - Jewish Chronicle

That rarest of pleasures: a book I loved, and could recommend to almost anyone - Asylum blog

Enlightening…full of wisdom and insight - Metro

Beautifully unadorned writing... He paints a vivid portrait of his patients - Sunday Business Post

A rare insight into the life of the psychoanalyst… succeeds in making complex behavioural issues accessible for any reader - Irish Times

Exquisitely written casebook - Vantage NW Magazine

The suspense in each chapter is so expert that I had to double check that this wasn’t a work of fiction. Best of all, Grosz manages to give a jargon-free account of how psychoanalysis works - The Week

By turns edifying and moving… Grosz offers astute insights into the perplexities of everyday life - Financial Times

Grosz's vignettes are so brilliantly put together that they read like pieces of bare illuminating fiction... It is this combination of tenacious detective work, remarkable compassion and sheer, unending curiosity for the oddities of the human heart that makes these stories utterly captivating. - Sunday Times

Brilliant…. Grosz is a superb writer, yes, but it is the stories his patients tell him that really make you marvel. An elegant, jargon-free expedition into the secret business of our minds written with such wisdom and kindness… After reading [Grosz’s] absorbing accounts of his patients’ journeys you might feel that The Examined Life out to be given out free at birth - The Times

A fine and moving book... The tact, patience and understatement, which are particular components of Grosz’s wisdom, remind the reader that this writer’s insights and empathy result from thousand of hours with patients. This book is not polemical literature… nor is it an academic work or a popular self-help book. It is a true literary work and a very modern one. - Jewish Chronicle

Crystal-clear and completely magical...The Examined Life is a book full of troubles, but also of wonders: it shows people trapped by their own mysterious impulses, searching for an escape hatch, and often finding it - Daily Mail

Five star review - an intelligent, human and deeply moving book… Grosz is listening for the unspoken and the gaps in between. His book celebrates change and the triumphs and tragedies of humanity - Sunday Express

Excellent… this book arrives like a box of chocolates. Thirty-one elegantly presented chapters which, when you bite into them, each reveals something sweet, rich or crunchy. Every one of these case histories bears repeating. All offer worthwhile insights. - The Guardian

Engaging, frank, and with many penetrating insights. His short, succinct chapters have both the tension and the satisfaction of miniature detective or mystery stories… A stimulating book. - The Spectator

Grosz writes lucidly and with sensitivity, treating his patients with respect. The cases are sprinkled with wise reflections... highly recommended - Independent

There are many sage lessons here, backed up by research where necessary…fascinating… Grosz writes lucidly and with sensitivity, treating his patients with respect. The cases are sprinkled with wise reflections…highly recommended - Independent

Intensely readable… As a reminder of the strangeness of human existence, the myriad ways we find of making ourselves unhappy and the perplexing resourcefulness of the unconscious mind, Grosz’s book is a worthwhile addition to the literature of the examined life. - New Statesman

Written with real elegance and a strong sense of structure… several chapters read like powerful short stories - Readers Digest

Elegantly structured and written… Grosz’s book is intensely readable - New Statesmen

That rarest of pleasures: a book I loved, and could recommend to almost anyone - Asylum

Shaped like short stories, but true and moving in ways that fiction cannot be... Gradually accumulating through his book, Grosz provides, not a definition, but an enactment of the purpose of psychoanalysis, which is both modest and profound. - Observer

Grosz is an able writer, engaging, frank and with many penetrating insights. His short, succinct chapters have both the tension and the satisfaction of miniature detective or mystery stories… a stimulating book - Spectator

[These] interpretations make fascinating reading, leave you marvelling at the ingenuity of the human subconscious. Grosz’s message is always affirming: if a person can work out what it is that’s driving them, it is possible to change - The Scotsman

Grosz’s narrative is by turns edifying and moving...tempered by his engaging prose and moments of humour - The Financial Times

I couldn't put this down—I read about other people, but learned about myself at the same time. Real stories can be so much more fascinating than fictional ones, especially with Stephen Grosz. No preaching, no clichés—just wisdom.

Modest and profound - Observer

A Sunday Times bestseller

Longlisted for the Guardian first book award

A Radio 4 Book of the Week

The hardback has so far sold over 30,000 copies

Paperback will be published on 'Black Monday' and will be backed by a twelve month digital campaign called 'Shelf Help' designed to keep The Examined Life in the public eye throughout 2014

Eloquent and exquisitely written, these psychoanalytical case studies guide us through some of the big questions and conundrums of everyday life: but in a style that is inviting and compelling -- think Calvino and Carver, not Lacan and Freud

These are perfectly honed stories about people, not psychoanalysis, and that is what makes this book different from other psychoanalytic books. The Examined Life tells stories – not theory.

As enlightening as Sarah Bakewell's How to Live: this is perfect for readers of Oliver Sacks, Alain de Botton, Adam Philips and Andrew Solomon

How can a lost wallet be a unconscious attempt at self-sabotage? How can a fear of loss cause us to lose everything? The Examined Life reveals how the art of insight can illuminate the most complicated, confounding, and human of experiences.