Stop Being Mean to Yourself: A Story About Finding The True Meaning of Self-Love

Using the unlikely backdrop of Northern Africa, Melody Beattie (author of Co-Dependent No More) blends the genres of travel adventure and spiritual quest. Traveling mishaps such as being led unknowingly into the souk of Cairo (rumored to be a clandestine marketplace of no return), become metaphors for learning how to let go of fear while still honoring your instincts. Interrogations at border crossings symbolize the self-examination we must endure before crossing over to a new stage of enlightenment. Fortunately, this is not a U.S.-centric travelogue. In war-ravaged Algiers, Beattie diligently pursues the truth of its people rather than her own reactions to poverty and terrorism. Despite its pop-psychology title, this is a book of impressive depth, exploring the global challenge of loving thy neighbor as well as thy self.