Solitude: In Pursuit of a Singular Life in a Crowded World [Paperback] [Apr 06, 2017] Michael Harris

'An elegant, thoughtful book . . . beautifully expresses the importance and experience of liberation from the battery-hen life of constant connection and crowds.' Daily Mail 'A compelling study of the subtle ways in which modern life and technologies have transformed our behaviour and sense of self.' Times Literary Supplement In a world of social media and smartphones, true solitude has become increasingly hard to find. In this timely and important book, award-winning writer Michael Harris reveals why our hyper-connected society makes time alone more crucial than ever. He delves into the latest neuroscience to examine the way innovations like Google Maps and Facebook are eroding our ability to be by ourselves. He tells the stories of the remarkable people – from pioneering computer scientists to great nineteenth-century novelists – who managed to find solitude in the most unexpected of places. And he explores how solitude can bring clarity and creativity to each of our inner lives. Urgent, eloquent and beautifully argued, Solitude might just change the way you think about being alone. 'Speaks to a long-overdue conversation we still haven't properly had in our society.' Vice 'A timely, elegant provocation to daydream and wander.' Nathan Filer, author of The Shock of the Fall 'The leading thinker about technology's corrupting influence on our collective psyche.' Newsweek 'A poetic, contemplative journey into the benefits of solo sojourning.' Elle With a foreword by Nicholas Carr, author of the Pulitzer Prize-finalist The Shallows. Today, society embraces sharing like never before. Fueled by our dependence on mobile devices and social media, we have created an ecosystem of obsessive connection. Many of us now lead lives of strangely crowded isolation: we are always linked, but only shallowly so. The capacity to be alone, properly alone, is one of life's subtlest skills. Real solitude is a powerful resource we can call upon-a crucial ingredient for a rich interior life. It inspires reflection, allows creativity to flourish, and improves our relationships with ourselves and, unexpectedly, with others. Idle hands can, in fact, produce the extraordinary. In living bigger and faster, we have forgotten the joys of silence, and undervalued how profoundly it can revolutionize our lives. This book is about discovering stillness inside the city, inside the crowd, inside our busy lives. With wit and energy, award-winning author Michael Harris weaves captivating true stories with reporting from the world's foremost brain researchers, psychologists, and tech entrepreneurs to guide us toward a state of measured connectivity that balances quiet and companionship. Solitude is a beautiful and convincing statement on the transformative power of being alone Being alone is a rapidly vanishing experience. Our society now embraces sharing like never before: time alone is being forced out of our lives by the constant pings of smartphones and prods of social media. But what if solitude still has something to offer us - something we have forgotten, but that we still desperately need? Here, Michael Harris examines why being alone matters now more than ever before. He reflects on the paradoxical feeling of isolation that emerges from being constantly connected - and on how learning the beauty of solitude can help us escape it Solitude is a rapidly vanishing experience. But what if solitude still has something to offer us - something we have forgotten, but that we still desperately need? In this book, the author reflects on the paradoxical feeling of isolation that emerges from being constantly connected, and on how learning the beauty of solitude can help us escape it. Drawing on the research of the world's leading neuroscientists and behavioural psychologists, this book examines why being alone matters now more than ever before. It reflects on the paradoxical feeling of isolation that emerges from being constantly connected - and on how learning the beauty of solitude can help us escape it. Solitude is a rapidly vanishing experience. Our society now embraces sharing like never before. But what if being alone still has something to offer us - something we have forgotten, but that we still desperately need? The author examines why being alone matters now more than ever before.