THE NOVEL CURE
THE NOVEL CURE
In 2008, Susan and her friend Ella Berthoud founded the world’s first Bibliotherapy Service at The School of Life in London. Convinced that the answers to all our problems could be found within the pages of a book – and we’re not talking self-help books – they invited their “patients” to visit their chaise longue, describe their current challenges, and sent them away with a new sort of prescription: a list of carefully chosen novels.
Novels cure in many ways. Sometimes there is solace in a character that copes – even thrives – in a similar predicament to you (Struggling with your marriage? No better cure than This Enchanted April). Sometimes it’s watching a character go there that warns us off ever going there ourselves (– apply Brave New World to the temptation to dull the pain with a drug that stops you realising something’s wrong.) Sometimes it’s the rhythm of the prose that cures, offering a soothing balm or an energetic pick-me-up (try being lethargic while reading the opening of Mrs Dalloway!) From Procrastination to PMT, and Shopaholism to Wardrobe Crisis, there is a novel to cure it.
In 2013, Susan and Ella collected their favourite ailments and cures into one big compendium, The Novel Cure: An A-Z of Literary Remedies (Canongate) which was translated into over 20 languages and triggered the global re-birth of bibliotherapy.
Interestingly, the ailments vary according to which edition of The Novel Cure you read. You won’t find Bad Manners or Lack of Seduction Skills in the Brazilian edition, for instance. And the French have a lot more ailments involving love than the Brits… If suffering depends on where in the world we live, it also presumably depends on when. What ailments should we add to an edition facing the challenges we face today..?
For several years, Susan and Ella also wrote a weekly column of ailments and
literary cures in the Independent.
Alex Clark, The Guardian
“A wonderful fusion of the practical and the entertainingly whimsical.”
Kit de Waal
“A great present. Buy it for yourself.”
Kirkus Reviews
'“Eclectic and infectious, The Novel Cure is one of the most revealing and bracing books about books to come along in some time.”
Sydney Morning Herald
“Whimsical and erudite...The Novel Cure remains serious without taking itself too seriously, gives advice without preaching, and advocates, with warmth and humour, the importance of literature as a therapeutic medium.”
S. J. Watson
“I loved this book within moments of dipping in and know I shall be returning to it for a long time to come. It's a wonderful reminder of the restorative power of fiction and ideal for anyone who has ever wondered what on earth to read next.”
Ruby Wax
“I keep this book by my bed.”
www.alifeinbooks.co.uk
“This book is an absolute treat for bibliophiles, guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.”
Damian Barr
“A tonic in itself. It’s tempting to become a hypochondriac just to read more.”
Vogue
“Brilliant…A perfect gift.”
