Today we begin the re-read of How To Be A Stoic by Massimo Pigliucci. I bought this book while on a trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan. I was there for a speaking engagement and my wife and I decided to make a weekend of it. My downfall was that the fabulous Literati Bookstore was near our Air B&B  (https://www.literatibookstore.com/). For me, bookstores have the same attractive power as a slab of bacon has to my standard poodle. After selecting a new science fiction book, For some reason, I asked the attendant where philosophy was in the store. Once directed I felt compelled to buy something – support your local bookstore and all that. After reading several end pages of random books, How To Be A Stoic convinced me to legally take it home. The book has had an immediate impact on how I want to live my life (this is a bit of foreshadowing of Chapter 1). The first read which I began in Ann Arbor, was with very little background knowledge of Stoicism, I have more now. Even with more information, I am approaching this re-read with a beginner’s mind; a learner but a learner with just enough knowledge to be dangerous. Heck, I can’t even pronounce the names of many Roman Philosophers and Emperors without risking overriding embarrassment. My Italian friends would be amused. 

I am reading from the 11th printing of the trade paperback edition published in 2018 by Basic Books, an imprint of Perseus Books, LLC, and a subsidiary of Hachette. I almost left out the imprint of and the “subsidiary of” business but the ownership web is amusing. The book has 277 pages comprising 14 chapters, an appendix, notes, and an index. An interesting note, unlike most non-fiction books I have read (and re-read) there is no foreword or introduction. The two chapters of the book act as an introduction and provide a rationale for the book, using an interesting approach. Several times over the years, I have noted that some authors treat their forewords and introductions with great care, including introducing content and ideas. While others don’t, perhaps the majority, leading to readers jumping over the material. I was an adult before I began to read the front matter carefully. Perhaps the author recognizes that many people skim or skip the front matter, therefore crafted it into chapters 1 and 2 to shine a spotlight on the material. 

I intend to re-read this book in 16 installments with the potential for 2 or 3 interrupted weeks — a re-read of 4.5 months-ish. I look forward to learning and interacting with you as we re-read (or just read) How To Be A Stoic. If you are worried that this is straying too far afield from the types of material we have read in the past, be calm. I think you will find that Stoicism is a philosophy that enables change and supports the ideas we recently explored in both Deep Work and Flow. 

Buy a copy of How To Be A Stoic and read along.