New York Times Bestseller“What, What? is a welcome—and joyful—reminder that true wisdom comes from asking the right questions. Should you read this book? Absolutely.”—Clayton Christensen, bestselling author of How Will You Measure Your Life?Based on the wildly popular commencement address, this guide to the art of asking (and answering) good questions comes from the former Dean of Harvard ...

The organization of Shakespeare's plays has challenged, even baffled audiences and critics since the 17th century. Cymbeline has been dismissed as "incoherent." Hamlet "is of no clear shape." And Antony and Cleopatra "bewilders the mind."These judgments result from an incomplete understanding of Shakespeare's constructive practice. It is not the narrative arc alone that organizes the plays but a complex structure of interwoven narrative and thematic actio...

How is it that, half a century after Brown v. Board of Education, educational opportunities remain so unequal for black and white students, not to mention poor and wealthy ones? In his important new book, Five Miles Away, A World Apart, James E. Ryan answers this question by tracing the fortunes of two schools in Richmond, Virginia--one in the city and the other in the suburbs. Ryan shows how court rulings in the 1970s, limiting the scope of desegregation, laid the ground...

Joining the ranks of Tina Seelig’s What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20, Clayton Christensen’s How Will You Measure Your Life, Mary Karr’s Now Go Out There, and George Saunders’ Congratulations, By the Way comes an insightful guide that reveals the secret to pursuing a rich, fulfilling life: the art of asking (and answering) good questions.In his commencement address to the graduating class of 2016, James E. Ryan, dean of the Harvard University Gradu...

A groundbreaking, practical three-week program to help you cope with life’s tough moments, overcome misfortune, build habitual resiliency, and ultimately boost your overall happiness.Truly happy and successful people share a common trait: resilience. Not only do they know how to rebound from setbacks, they are strengthened by challenges, gaining the emotional toughness to persevere, whether facing a professional crisis, a personal tragedy—or just an ordinary bad day. The good news ...

A sterling roster of natural and social scientists in conversation with top-flight journalist Stefan Klein—shedding new light on their work, their lives, and what they still hope to discoverWhen acclaimed science writer Stefan Klein asks Nobel Prize–winning chemist Roald Hoffmann what sets scientists apart, Hoffmann says, “First and foremost, curiosity.” In this collection of intimate conversations with nineteen of the world’s best-known scientists (including three Nobel Laureates)...

The journey of a lifetime exploring the question of whether life is inevitable or a one-off fluke, and how it got kick-started.How did we get here? All cultures have a creation story, but a little over 150 years ago Charles Darwin introduced a revolutionary new one. We, and all living things, exist because of the action of evolution on the first simple life form and its descendants.We now know that it has taken 3.8 billions of years of work by the forces of...

The brain’s superpowers have been discovered by neuroscience. Your genius mind knows how to make your brain dissolve worry and stay in your best internal states longer. The result is a life full of possibility.The Worry-Free Mind shows you how to decipher the architecture of your model of reality, shift it to a newer version, and overcome your tendency to worry every day. With the powerful tools it offers, you can access your inner resources, lower stress, calm your reacti...

Imagine being able to fly. Walk through walls. Shape-shift. Breathe underwater. Conjure loved ones—or total strangers—out of thin air. Imagine experiencing your nighttime dreams with the same awareness you possess right now—fully functioning memory, imagination, and self-awareness. Imagine being able to use this power to be more creative, solve problems, and discover a deep sense of well-being.This is lucid dreaming—the ability to know you are dreaming while you are in a dream, and...

From a top wellness coach and a Harvard Medical School professor, comes this revolutionary book that will show you how to identify and decode your nine most basic emotional needs—and coach yourself to a calmer, healthier, and happier life.The more you thrive, the better your brain functions, and you’re able to perform at the best level. Your health improves. You enjoy life more. When you’re thriving, your stress level is down, your confidence is up, and the internal frenzy is tamed...

You Are Here is a dazzling exploration of the universe and our relationship to it.It is the story of how something evolved from nothing, and how something became everything. It is the story of science: the greatest story ever told.Here, for the first time in a single span, is the life of the universe, from quarks to galaxy super-clusters, and from slime to Homo sapiens.The universe was once a moment of perfect symmetry, and is now 13.7 bil...

The classic study of the creative process from the national bestselling author of FlowCreativity is about capturing those moments that make life worth living. Legendary psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi reveals what leads to these moments—be it the excitement of the artist at the easel or the scientist in the lab—so that this knowledge can be used to enrich people's lives. Drawing on nearly one hundred interviews with exceptional people, from biologists and physicists, to politi...