The Practicing Stoic: A Guide to Applying Ancient Philosophical Wisdom to Modern Life

Amazon_CustomerAmazon_Customer: simple and readable take on the stoics, but not necessarily something I’d want to read more than once.

United Kingdom on Sep 14, 2023

Craig Cashman: I was introduced to Stoicism several months ago, and have completely absorbed myself into the philosophy, having read close to 10 books before stumbling on this book. Many of the books I read were more popular introductory books. While I enjoyed and found these books valuable, I felt reading these books gave me more of a piecemeal understanding of the philosophy and I struggled with how to organise all the concepts in a complete framework. Discovering 'The Practicing Stoic' has been invaluable in extending and consolidating my knowledge. It goes beyond an introductory book and presents all the important concepts (as far as I currently understand them) in a logical way. I love how much the author relies on the original source material from the notable stoics, and stays true to their teachings without relying too much on his own views. I intend to study this book deeply over the coming months. I would actually say that for many people this can serve as the first and last book they need on Stoicism before digging deeper into the original texts.

Australia on Aug 29, 2023

Dietmar Allgöwer: I have read 18 books about stoicism and this one is my favourite. Many quotes if the ancient stoics followed by modern analysis/interpretation.

Germany on Jul 17, 2023

Gene Dueber: It’s a great book on the subject.

United States on Jun 26, 2023

Anthony Appleton: The stoic philosophy is for everyone and will benefit all that implement such practices.

United States on Jun 20, 2023

Gabriel Antunes de Oliveira: The author organized very well the book, by topics that are first explained in general, then dissected. The book is full of Quotations by the Stoics, in every single argument, but the reading experience is very easy, very enjoyable.

Brazil on Jun 12, 2023

Rudy Fan: Yes, there is a chapter on 'Desire', but that encompasses all kinds of 'desires'. Love should have it's own chapter. (It is briefly covered in the chapter on 'Virtue'.) I would have liked an Index too. If not for those two things, I would have given this book 5 stars.

Don't get me wrong, this is a wonderful read, especially that chapter on Death! So many times I giggled, yes, laughed at death while reading. Another aspect I really like about this book is the addition of those lovely wide margins for writing notes. That was so very thoughtful of the author.

I think every young person should read this book before graduating from high school, or college at the very latest. I read it at 63 and still gained much knowledge (and hopefully a little wisdom) from it.

*UPDATE: After writing this review, I had to come back to add something. I just got to the quote by Epictetus on page 197. It reads: "If you see a good-looking boy or woman, you'll find that the power for such things is self-control..." In the margin, I immediately wrote, 'Wut?!' Upon research, I found that the original quote in Greek uses a word specifically meaning a beautiful masculine gender and a...

United States on Feb 02, 2023

Uncle Fester: This is an excellent introduction to philosopical stoicism for anyone with a serious interest in the subject.

The author takes the reader through the subject starting with an explanation of the origins of stoicism, revealing that the early Greek adherents are practically lost to us. We know who they are but only fragments of their writings sadly remain.

The book outlines how stoics looked at a range of issues, supporting these comments with quotes from what he calls the later Stoics, Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius. Among the subjects discussed are the key issues of Externals, the opinion of others and valuation. I really liked the explanation of these concepts and how quotations from the three Roman greats were used to clarify what the Stoics were getting at.

I would highly recommend this book as a good starter for the serious student of the subject. The next step would be to read the works of Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius, probably with this book close to hand. As I said, highly recommended.

United Kingdom on Dec 09, 2022

Bob Lewis: This book might have been called something like "the Stoics in their own words," because that's primarily what it is. The author's own writings are limited in this book, and used primarily to introduce and organize a large collection of quotations from thinkers ranging from Seneca to Schopenhauer. The result is that the book is not only an amazing treasury of writings from both the Stoics and (albeit to a lesser extent) their critics, but perhaps the definitive introductory text for readers who want to learn more about Stoic philosophy either to put these teachings into personal practice or just to further their education on the subject.

Admittedly, this is far from a complete work on the subject. That probably couldn't be condensed into a single volume even if one tried, and this book doesn't really try to. It dispenses with many of Stoicism's more "academic" ideas and focuses, as the title might suggest, on the more "practical" ones. Readers already familiar with Stoic thought will find this to be a charming and useful refresher or collection of quotations. Readers less familiar with Stoicism will find it to be a worthy introduction, both readable and...

United States on Apr 23, 2021

Dave: I had never read about Stoicism before reading this book. I am glad that this was the first book that I read. I might not venture on to other Stoic books.

I am a very analytical and detail oriented person. I am also very introspective and can be hard on myself. The way this book is organized and delivers its content was perfect for me. The author has created a system out of the Stoic writings and packaged it into this single book. When I was about three-quarters of the way through the book, I started to add my own personalized Stoic thoughts and actions to my life. By the end of the book, I can say "I get it." This book is now one of my personal treasures. I plan to re-read it in a few months and journal my way through it.

I sought out Stoicism because I had hit a very low point in my life. Years of trying to love a mentally ill family member had finally worn me down to a nub. The experience had uncovered and highlighted my own issues to myself. I was so dismantled that I didn't know what the right word or action was anymore.

I had already read a couple of books on the specific mental illness, talked to a therapist and sought advice from friends. But I found...

United States on Jan 16, 2021