Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics

October 16, 2017
Harris (10% Happier), an ABC Nightline coanchor, teams up with Warren, a meditation teacher, in this entertaining and useful guide for the beginning meditator. Following Harris’s on-air panic attack in 2004, he embarked on a quest for an effective antianxiety cure, eventually hitting on meditation due to the studies testifying to its effectiveness and his realization that there is nothing “weird” about mindfulness meditation, a “simple, secular exercise for your brain.” This book offers a number of carefully crafted meditation practices explained in detail by Warren (such as the “Walking Meditation” and the “Giving a Shit About Yourself Meditation”). Harris’s first-person narrative also follows him and Warren on the 11-day cross-country 10% Happier Meditation Tour as they pay calls on folks who might particularly benefit from a crash course in mindfulness (e.g., former prison inmates, cops, military trainees). Throughout, Harris also ponders the nature and value of meditation, sharing with readers, among other things, his fear of losing his edge at his highly competitive job. Meditation newbies will particularly benefit from the topics covered: how to find time, how to sit, how to overcome self-judgment, and other FAQs about the powerful, life-changing practice the authors strive to unpack and promote in this clever guide. Agent: Luke Janklow, Janklow & Nesbit.

April 23, 2018
Both authors of this practical guide to meditation have experience with public speaking, and it pays off in the excellent audio edition of their book. Harris, an anchor on ABC’s Nightline, sounds clear and affable as he reads his sections, which consist of anecdotes from his time traveling the country and extolling the benefits of meditation to parents, cops, and former prison inmates. Warren, a meditation teacher from Toronto, intervenes intermittently to lead a series of guided meditations designed to address common obstacles—such as a lack of time—that prevent people from pursuing a regular practice. Warren sounds fittingly tranquil and reassuring as he leads listeners through quick and easy exercises. At various points, the authors refer to previous sections, which are difficult to navigate to in the audio edition, but the added benefit of learning the meditations in the audio format with Warren softly imploring “breathe in, breathe out” more than mitigates this problem. Listeners looking for an easy introduction to meditation will be more than satisfied with this audiobook. A Spiegel & Grau hardcover.