A New Guide to Rational Living
by Albert Ellis, Robert A. Harper
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Book Reviews of A New Guide to Rational Living
Book Review: One of the best
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is the first book the great psychologist Albert Ellis wrote on Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy ( REBT - later known as "cognitive therapy"). I also think it is one of the best.
REBT is built on the idea that our thoughts cause our emotions and influence our behaviors. Ellis believed that people can change their emotions as well as their behaviors by disputing their irrational thoughts with facts and reason.
In this book he goes through what he believes are the top 10 irrational ideas that cause most people to experience unpleasant emotions needlessly.
Ellis is not known for being a great writer, but in this book he pulls it together. The tone is direct as well as clear, free of psychobabble, and you never doubt that you are being addressed by one of the great psychological minds of the 20th century.
Dr. Ellis views evolved substantially over the decades and many editions of this book. To get a modern view of the concepts that Dr. Ellis considered to be the most important I would recommend starting the book at chapter 20, going to the end and then starting from the beginning.
Beware, there are multiple editions of this book. To get the latest edition with the most content make sure you have the 3rd 1975 (august) edition. For some reason some book sites list this publishing year as 1997. Regardless, the edition you buy should have 23 chapters. Earlier editions do not.
Book Review: A Revolution Begun.
Summary: 5 Stars
The revolution I refer to is the one that followed in the wake of the original publication of this book in 1961. Ellis formally introduced his REBT therapeutic model in 1955, but at the time, few knew and fewer cared. However, this book would change that forever. No longer would we have to settle for self-help pablum like "The Power of Positive Thinking", because now we had a piercing book for the masses that explained both clearly and thoroughly three things that no popular work had ever told us before. First, we don't just "get" upset, we "do" upset. Or, in other words, we make ourselves emotionally disturbed. Second, the authors plainly explain how we make ourselves upset. We create our own emotional disturbances mainly through our irrational (aka, unhealthy, self-defeating) thinking. And third, Ellis and Harper give us many effective techniques to combat these thinking patterns. The techniques suggested are divided into cognitive, emotive and behavioral categories, although in fact there is significant overlap for the simple reason, as the authors point out, that we don't just think or feel or behave in a vacuum. Rather, we are thinking/feeling/behaving beings, and this interplay, luckily enough, offers us many ways to a "profound philosophic change" in our outlook, which is the goal of this work. Easily, the most influential self-help book ever written and rightfully so!Book Review: A Revolution Begun.
Summary: 5 Stars
The revolution I refer to is the one that followed in the wake of the original publication of this book in 1961. Ellis formally introduced his REBT therapeutic model in 1955, but at the time, few knew and fewer cared. However, this book would change that forever. No longer would we have to settle for self-help pablum like "The Power of Positive Thinking", because now we had a piercing book for the masses that explained both clearly and thoroughly three things that no popular work had ever told us before. First, we don't just "get" upset, we "do" upset. Or, in other words, we make ourselves emotionally disturbed. Second, the authors plainly explain how we make ourselves upset. We create our own emotional disturbances mainly through our irrational (aka, unhealthy, self-defeating) thinking. And third, Ellis and Harper give us many effective techniques to combat these thinking patterns. The techniques suggested are divided into cognitive, emotive and behavioral categories, although in fact there is significant overlap for the simple reason, as the authors point out, that we don't just think or feel or behave in a vacuum. Rather, we are thinking/feeling/behaving beings, and this interplay, luckily enough, offers us many ways to a "profound philosophic change", which is the goal of this work. Easily, the most influential self-help book ever written and rightfully so!
Book Review: Good as a self-help book, poor for serious study
Summary: 3 Stars
After reading Ellis' "Reason and Emotion in Psychotherapy," I must say I am disappointed by this book. The flashy, self-helpish cover should have been a clue: this is strictly for the layperson, and even there it is not spectacular.The authors were speak down to the reader. The language is simple and repetitive. In addition, the authors spend far too much time discussing other types of therapies, why rationality does not conflict with emotion, and so forth, rather than on how and why their therapy works.
I suspect, from the cover, language, and design of the book that the authors were primarily motivated by profit. For instance, there is a whole chapter, *the first chapter*, on how one should always seek professional help rather than administer help for oneself. While in extreme cases this is understandable, it is simply insulting to the reader's intelligence to suggest that he or she cannot help themselves properly.
There are more criticisms of the book, but I have a sincere respect for Dr. Ellis and in no way do I wish to dissuade others from using REBT. I merely want to warn those looking for hardcore information to steer clear of this poorly constructed book.
If you want better books on cognitive therapy, read Ellis' more scholarly works or Epictetus' Handbook.
Book Review: Best self-help book available!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is by far Ellis' most classical book about the orígins of emotional disturbances and how to overcome them. I agree with Philip, another reviewer, in that the REBT approach is the most profound and consistent way of cognitively, emotively, and behaviorally disputing your irrational beliefs. It not only urges the reader to ask: Where is the evidence for the validity of my beliefs? (like other Cognitive therapy approaches), but goes one step further by questioning the basic philosphies, e.g.: Even if I fail at very important tasks, does that make ME a failure? The answer: certainly not, because I am not my behavior and I am far too complex to be given any single global rating. In the essence it all comes to this: rate behaviors and deeds, but never the total person. Accept yourself and others unconditionally, even if you don't like certain behaviors, and, finally, achieve high frustration tolerance.This book is the best starting point to get introduced to the fascinating philospohy of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy. If you want, you then can proceed to the book by D. Burns: The new mood therapy. This is also an excellent book and can be a valuable supplement.
So get "a guide to rational living", read it and begin reducing your psychological problems. It certainly helps!