On the Power of Touch
Turkey (Iletisim)
The new book by the bestselling author of What We Gain as We Grow Older. On Gelassenheit (more than 600.000 copies sold) and Happiness (more than 200.000 copies sold)
An inspiration on how life can be given more meaning through touch
Wilhelm Schmid puts all levels of touch into focus: sensual, emotional, mental and transcendent.
We see, we hear, we smell, we taste. But what about the sense of touch? Yes, touch can be quite nice. It offers stimulation, encouragement, reassurance, connection with others. It strengthens the physical and social immune system. But the great longing for being touched that many people feel is thwarted by an equally great shyness, by reservations of various kinds. The Me too-debate has created awareness for the occurrences of touch that is undesired and violent, but it would be a great pity...
We see, we hear, we smell, we taste. But what about the sense of touch? Yes, touch can be quite nice. It offers stimulation, encouragement, reassurance, connection with others. It strengthens the physical and social immune system. But the great longing for being touched that many people feel is thwarted by an equally great shyness, by reservations of various kinds. The Me too-debate has created awareness for the occurrences of touch that is undesired and violent, but it would be a great pity to become suspicious of every kind of touch as a response to that. Many of us only know touch from a touchscreen anyway. Wilhelm Schmid makes suggestions as to how a new sensuality can be discovered with analogous touch beyond digital devices. And he demonstrates that the phenomenon of touch far exceeds the physical plane.
»Schmid is not a cultural pessimist, he offers very pragmatic suggestions as to how one can counteract the lack of touch in everyday life.« Christian Berndt, Deutschlandfunk Kultur
»Readers are moved by non-fiction books when issues are developed artfully so that a great pleasure for learning is derived from dry subject matters. This is a very moving read.« Heinrich Lindenmayr, Mittelschwäbische Nachrichten
»Schmid‘s handy pocketbook is suited as a true alternative to the smartphone in every jacket pocket. This enables us to pick it up over and over for mental stimulation.« Wismar Büttner, Ärzteblatt Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
»Schmid is not a cultural pessimist, he offers very pragmatic suggestions as to how one can counteract the lack of touch in everyday life.« Christian Berndt, Deutschlandfunk Kultur
»Readers are moved by non-fiction books when issues are developed artfully so that a great pleasure for learning is derived from dry subject matters. This is a very moving read.« Heinrich Lindenmayr, Mittelschwäbische Nachrichten
»Schmid‘s handy pocketbook is suited as a...
Persons
Wilhelm Schmid
Wilhelm Schmid was born in 1953 and lives in Berlin. For many years, he taught philosophy at the University of Erfurt, was a visiting professor in Riga, Latvia, and Tbilisi, Georgia, and worked as a »philosophical counsellor« at a hospital near Zurich, Switzerland. He is a popular guest speaker and has been giving lectures in China and South Korea since 2010. He was awarded the Meckatzer Prize for Philosophy in 2012 and the Egnér Prize in 2013. His works have been translated into 25 languages, and his bestselling book Gelassenheit has sold over 600,000 copies.
Wilhelm Schmid was born in 1953 and lives in Berlin. For many years, he taught philosophy at the University of Erfurt, was a...
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
The Search for Cohesion
Everyone in our society wants to be seen and understood, but very few want to see and understand – a glaring imbalance. Everyone claims to be »unique«, but society is not founded on self-realisation but on the creation of relationships.
In his new book, Wilhelm Schmid explores the question of what values society needs. What holds it (delicately) together? Does it need an...
Surviving Death
Spanish world rights (Espasa), Turkey (Iletisim)
On the Swing Set
Joie de vivre is an art that can be learned. Talent is helpful, but practice is crucial. This also includes practising restraint. So that we can draw breath more easily for new upswings...
Korea (Fika Book), Turkey (Iletisim)
Finding a Place to Call Home
More and more, people are on the search for a place to call home in a world that seems uncertain and within a life that changes faster than it can be understood. More than ever even those who normally have a comfortable home find themselves faced with the lack thereof. Home becomes a fleeting commodity in an era in which people and things are becoming global.
People themselves...
Self-Acceptance
In his new book, Wilhelm Schmid builds on the reflections of his bestseller What We Gain As We Grow Older and leads the way to genuine self-acceptance: The basis for equanimity is...
France (Piranha), Turkey (Iletisim)
Domestic Rights Sales: German Audiobook (DAV)
Giving And Receiving Gifts
Giving gifts is not as easy as it looks. People often ask themselves: What shall I give to whom and why? A few thoughts on the subject guarantee that giving can make both parties happy. The...
Turkey (Iletisim)
Understanding Life
Wilhelm Schmid, best-selling author of Happiness and What We Gain As We Grow Older, was given the opportunity to apply his ideas on founding a philosophical art of living over the course of ten years at a hospital near Zurich, where he discussed the following questions with the patients: What meaning do touches, habits, longings, beauty have? What is happiness? Does one’s own...
On the Joy of Being a Parent and Grandparent
Wilhelm Schmid, best-selling author of Happiness and What We Gain As We Grow Older, shows how much life with children can contribute to a meaningful existence. Furthermore, he offers suggestions as to how the children’s resilience, their ability to be self-assertive, can be nurtured.
On the Joy of Being a Parent and Grandparent consists...
Sexout
Netherlands (De Bezige Bij), Turkey (Iletisim)
Previously published in the respective language / territory; rights available again: Italy (Fazi)
Domestic Rights Sales: German Audiobook (DAV)
What We Gain as We Grow Older
English world rights (Upper Westside Philosophers), Russia (Directmedia), Portuguese rights (Penguin Random House/Objectiva), France (Piranha), Netherlands (De Bezige Bij), Denmark (Informations Forlag), Danish audio book rights (Lindhardt & Ringhof), Sweden (Lind & Co.), Norway (Gyldendal Norsk), Finland (Aula & Co.), Korea (Chaek Se Sang), Japan (Mikasa Shobo), Poland (W.A.B.), Czech Republic (Euromedia), Serbia (Laguna), Latvia (Zvaigzne), Turkey (Iletisim), Ukraine (Knihy XXI), India (Malayalam, Sahitya Pravarthaka), Israel (Modan)
Previously published in the respective language / territory; rights available again: Spanish world rights (Kairos), Catalan rights (Angle), Chinese complex rights (Emily Publishing Co.), Italy (Fazi), Slovenia (Narava)
Domestic Rights Sales: German Audiobook (DAV), German Book Club (Club Bertelsmann)
Giving Life Meaning
In Giving Life Meaning, Wilhelm Schmid shows how humans need meaning in order to live, and that they find it above all in the interpersonal sphere, in the establishment, maintenance, and protection of relationships.
»An immense potential for meaning and hence energy is to be found in...
Unhappiness
English world rights (Upper West Side Philosophers), Netherlands (Ambo/Anthos), Turkey (Iletisim)
Domestic Rights Sales: German Audiobook (Komplett Media)
Love
Netherlands (Ambo/Anthos), Denmark (Informations Forlag), Danish Audiobook Rights (Lindhardt & Ringhof), Latvia (Zvaigzne), Turkey (Iletisim)
Re-inventing Love
Chinese simplex rights (Shanghai Translation Publishing House), Netherlands (Ambo/Anthos)
Happiness
Chinese simplex rights (Shanghai Translation Publishing), France (Autrement), Danish Audiobook Rights (Lindhardt & Ringhof), Sweden (Lind & Co.)
Previously published in the respective language / territory; rights available again: Spanish world rights (Pre-Textos), Italy (Fazi), Netherlands (Ambo|Anthos), Denmark (Informations Forlag), Finland (Ajatus), Korea (Bookstory), Estonia (Olion), Latvia (Zvaigzne ABC), Serbia (Laguna)
Domestic Rights Sales: German Audiobook (Lindhardt & Ringhof / Saga Egmont)
Beautiful Life?
The author's aim is not to bemoan this state...
Italy (Apogeo), Netherlands (Ambo|Anthos), Korea (Chaek Se Sang), Latvia (Zvaigzne), Georgia (Akolasia)
Previously published in the respective language / territory; rights available again: Serbia (Svetovi)
The Art of Balance
Italy (Fazi), Netherlands (Ambo/Anthos), Latvia (Zvaigzne Abc)
Domestic Rights Sales: German Audiobook (Lindhardt & Ringhof / Saga Egmont)
To Be Friends With Ourselves
The...
Previously published in the respective language / territory; rights available again: Italy (Fazi), Netherlands (Ambo|Anthos)
Philosophie der Lebenskunst
Spanish world rights (Pre-Textos), Italy (Fazi), Netherlands (Ambo/Anthos)