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Bittersweet
- How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole
- Narrated by: Susan Cain
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
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Bittersweet
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Publisher's Summary
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK • Sadness is your superpower. In her new masterpiece, the author of the bestselling phenomenon Quiet explores the power of the bittersweet personality, revealing a misunderstood side of mental health and creativity while offering a road map to facing grief in order to live life to the fullest.
“Bittersweet grabs you by the heart and doesn’t let go.”—BRENÉ BROWN, author of Atlas of the Heart
“Susan Cain has described and validated my existence once again!”—GLENNON DOYLE, author of Untamed
“The perfect cure for toxic positivity.”—ADAM GRANT, author of Think Again
LONGLISTED FOR THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD • ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Wall Street Journal, Mashable
Bittersweetness is a tendency to states of longing, poignancy, and sorrow; an acute awareness of passing time; and a curiously piercing joy at the beauty of the world. It recognizes that light and dark, birth and death—bitter and sweet—are forever paired.
If you’ve ever wondered why you like sad music . . .
If you find comfort or inspiration in a rainy day . . .
If you react intensely to music, art, nature, and beauty . . .
Then you probably identify with the bittersweet state of mind.
With Quiet, Susan Cain urged our society to cultivate space for the undervalued, indispensable introverts among us, thereby revealing an untapped power hidden in plain sight. Now she employs the same mix of research, storytelling, and memoir to explore why we experience sorrow and longing, and how embracing the bittersweetness at the heart of life is the true path to creativity, connection, and transcendence.
Cain shows how a bittersweet state of mind is the quiet force that helps us transcend our personal and collective pain, whether from a death or breakup, addiction or illness. If we don’t acknowledge our own heartache, she says, we can end up inflicting it on others via abuse, domination, or neglect. But if we realize that all humans know—or will know—loss and suffering, we can turn toward one another.
At a time of profound discord and personal anxiety, Bittersweet brings us together in deep and unexpected ways.
*Includes a downloadable PDF containing a Bittersweet quiz from the book
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
What the critics say
2022, Porchlight Business Book Awards - Big Ideas and New Perspectives, Long-listed
“A thoughtful examination of the melancholic disposition . . . a unique blend of psychology, biography, spirituality, musical references and pop culture. For those feeling sorrowful or dealing with a loss, the idea of transforming pain into creativity, transcendence and love is a compelling one. Cain does an excellent job of using research, case studies and personal stories to justify her argument. It is a unique view in a culture that tends to medicate strong feelings rather than welcome them.”—The Wall Street Journal
“Bittersweet is astonishing—one of the most gracefully written, palpably human books I’ve read in years. Its powerful case will reshape how you think about yourself and those you love. Its sheer beauty will linger in your heart long after you turn the final page.”—Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of When, Drive, and A Whole New Mind
“Susan Cain does it again! As the author of the worldwide phenomenon Quiet, she changed how the world sees introverts. Now she has written a book that will change how the world sees sorrow and longing. This book is an absolute triumph: It’s for anyone who has ever really lived, loved, or lost.”—Greg McKeown, host of the What’s Essential podcast and the author of the New York Times bestsellers Effortless and Essentialism
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What listeners say about Bittersweet
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- ADAM
- 2022-06-26
The best book ever!
This is the book I have been longing for all my life. It puts everything in our life and the true meaning of our existence in the right perspective. I have always felt the same about our existence and meaning but can never have put it with such comprehensive research, and a life time of dedication put in such an eloquent book. I recommend this book to every thinking human.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- jennifer j chic
- 2022-06-12
Loved it
I loved listening to Susan read this book. And if you’re a bittersweet like me, you’ll cry more than once listening to all. It feels so good to be seen. And through the tears and the beautiful and sad and funny stories I came to see my “sadness” as something that can move through me and once it does to release joy. Through the bitter and the sweet I am whole.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2023-07-11
Heartfelt and wise
There is so much wisdom here for life with love. Grief is love. Living with grief is living with love.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2022-10-19
So glad I listened to this book
Susan Cain’s writing about the Bittersweet is perfection. She has found story and language for so much that is felt but never spoken. She has teased out the thread of beauty and pain that runs through life and love and art and human experience and shaped her thoughts and observations with proof and wisdom from ancient traditions and modern parables. This book made my heart ache because it expressed so many feelings that have dwelt within that I could never articulate. Having lost my father to gun violence when I was 17 and then losing my husband at 42 to brain cancer I am no stranger to the bittersweet. This is where I live and Susan Cain clearly has the map to this beautiful, uncomfortable and authentic spot.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2022-11-08
Our permission to feel bittersweet
Absolutely lovely. A fitting book to listen to when you are in a bittersweet mood. It was really good to explore the topic and hear about the author’s journey of learning the connections between bittersweetness and life experiences, and discovering the gifts of healing and belonging it offers. I really enjoyed hearing it read by the author; her voice is perfect for this work.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Agnieszka Babcia
- 2023-01-21
The deep beauty of inevitable sadness
For those who feel the pain so deeply, who sense the hurts of everybody this book provides an explanation why these feelings are valuable and beautiful.
Highly recommend for HSP individuals.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Daniel
- 2022-04-29
good
I enjoyed it until towards the end on grief and generational pain. relatable ideas in general. very calming.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ken Williams
- 2022-06-09
The message in this book touched my heart
This is an amazing book I instantly felt connected to the message and teaching in many ways it felt like she was writing about my life and experiences. I highly recommend this book.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Nancy Huus
- 2023-09-06
Great writer, wise and useful.
This was a great way of looking at sorrow, depression and grief, in a helpful manner. You can’t have the highs without the lows, and this was explained in such an artful way.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2023-11-07
Loved it!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It’s thoughtful and beautifully written and spoken… I highly recommend it.
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