Bittersweet

How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole

By: Susan Cain

Narrated by: Susan Cain

Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

From the author of the international mega-seller Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking.

In this inspiring masterpiece, best-selling author Susan Cain shows the power of 'bittersweetness'—a tendency towards sorrow and longing, an acute awareness of passing time and a piercing joy when beholding beauty. But what are the powers of a bittersweet, melancholic outlook?, she asks. And why has our culture been so blind to its value?

Bittersweetness recognises that light and dark, birth and death—bitter and sweet—are forever paired. As Bittersweet shows, our obsession with happiness is not making us happy, healthy or whole. It's only by embracing our darker emotions—as well as the light—that we discover our deepest meaning and connection, love and joy. It can change the way we work, the way we create and the way we love—for it is the hidden source of our love stories, moonshots and masterpieces.

With over four million copies sold worldwide, Susan Cain's Quiet explored the quiet riches of the introverted half of the population. In Bittersweet, Cain employs the same mix of research, storytelling and memoir. Following a trail of centuries-old artistic and wisdom traditions as well as contemporary psychology and management research, and reflecting on the emotional shifts of recent times, Cain reveals how bittersweetness is the key to leading a full and satisfying life. Using examples ranging from music and cinema to parenting and business, she shows how understanding bittersweetness will allow us to weather life's transitions; yet, until now, its power has been hiding in plain sight.

At a time of profound discord and personal anxiety, Bittersweet brings us together in deep and unexpected ways. Most of all, it shows us how to transform our personal and collective pain into creativity, transcendence and connection.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Susan Cain (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Simple, profound, gentle, beautiful

This is profound wisdom written without any trace of presumption. You often hear grumpy reviewers recommend getting hard copy of a book because of some shortcoming in the audio version. This is a sublime counter example: hearing the author’s extraordinary insights into Meaning expressed in the sensitive humility of her own voice was a real privilege. I heartily recommend this book to anyone interested in the roots of Meaning that are so pivotal to a life well lived. Awesome listening and learning - thankyou to everyone and everything that delivered this experience into my world - 🌼

Insightful

There were so many thought provoking questions in this book. Will be listening to it again with a journal in hand.

This book moved me beyond words

I will reread ‘bittersweet’ often.
This book was insightful, it was enchanting, it was researched. I feel it has allowed me to put into words so many of my feelings about bittersweetness. I am sad I’ve finished it, as I’ve been trying to read it slowly, to savour it as much as possible. I felt a deep connection to this, a spiritual one even.
Would (and will!) highly recommend 💌

Great complement to Quiet!

I read “Quiet” many years ago and that was a great revelation and support to me. Now Susan did it again, and I can deeply relate to “Bittersweet” in many ways. Although both subjects are not necessarily dependent, there is a strong connection between them, which made me even more aware of who I am and how to deal with life’s difficult and awesome moments. Give yourself this gift!

Susan Cain left me Speechless...

What an amazing body of work and deep research that have gone into this book to bring healing into my life too. Thank you kindly Susan. Loads of Love from South Africa.

Fabulous Read

Excellent read, insightful and thought provoking read. Questions many dispositions that modern life revolve around. Well worth the time to read and grapple with the information provided.