
The Well-Gardened Mind
The Restorative Power of Nature
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Narrated by:
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Sue Stuart-Smith
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By:
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Sue Stuart-Smith
A distinguished psychiatrist and avid gardener presents “a truly uplifting book on the power of gardening - and how it can change people’s lives” (Stylist, UK).
The garden is often seen as a refuge, a place to forget worldly cares, removed from the “real” life that lies outside. When we get our hands in the Earth we connect with the cycle of life in nature through which destruction and decay are followed by regrowth and renewal. Gardening is one of the quintessential nurturing activities and yet we understand so little about it. The Well-Gardened Mind provides a new perspective on the power of gardening to change people’s lives. Here, Sue Stuart-Smith investigates the many ways in which mind and garden can interact and explores how the process of tending a plot can be a way of sustaining an innermost self.
Stuart-Smith’s own love of gardening developed as she studied to become a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. From her grandfather’s return from World War I to Freud’s obsession with flowers to case histories with her own patients to progressive gardening programs in such places as Rikers Island prison in New York City, Stuart-Smith weaves thoughtful yet powerful examples to argue that gardening is much more important to our cognition than we think. Recent research is showing how green nature has direct antidepressant effects on humans. “The most original gardening book ever [that] combines observation, horticulture, literature and history” (Sunday Times, UK), The Well-Gardened Mind is a book for gardeners and non-gardeners alike, and the perfect solace for people seeking healthier mental lives.
©2020 Sue Stuart-Smith. Originally published in Great Britain in 2020 by William Collins. Excerpt from “The Garden” in Chapter 9 is reproduced with permission of Curtis Brown Group Ltd, London, on behalf of The Beneficiaries of the Estate of Vita Sackville-West. © Vita Sackville-West 1946. Excerpt from “Hold out your arms” in Chapter 10 is reproduced with permission. Helen Dunmore, Counting Backwards: Poems 1975–2017 (Bloodaxe Books, 2019). © Helen Dunmore 2017. (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...




















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truly loved it!
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Loved it!
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Amazing!
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Great View if Gardening From a Mental Perspective
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A Worthy Read for a Lifetime of Reading
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Loved it! Great integration of gardening, healing trauma, and literature.
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The author writes about the men in WWI who were stuck for long periods of time at the front lines. Some of them grew flowers or vegetables when they had the chance. It was something to help them keep a hold on their sanity.
It turns out that both Freud and Jung enjoyed being outdoors and working in a garden. Freud was very fond of orchids.
I was very interested in the discussion of prehistoric gardening. Researchers believe that some very ancient gardening was intended to produce especially desirable foods, such as figs. They also believe that ancient people grew gourds simply to make them into musical instruments. In other words, our remote ancestors enjoyed growing things. It wasn't all the drudgery of survival.
If you feel restored and energized by gardening, you will find much that explains the value of it in this book.
Wonderful Book for Gardeners
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You will flourish from it.
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The stories, success, and insight along with the excellent narration, made the book more than anticipated. I highly recommend this book.
Tremendous insight into the power of gardening
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I strongly recommend to everyone who wants to heal yourself and why not other people's minds.
The Well-Gardened Mind
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