The "Psychology Today" blogger and therapist shares insights into the complicated landscape of women's friendships, drawing on the experiences of clients from all walks of life, as well as examples in literature and pop culture to offer counsel on a range of issues.

From his early rise to fame to battles with his health, this revelatory memoir by legendary guitarist Peter Frampton celebrates the life of a rock icon. Do You Feel Like I Do? is the incredible story of Peter Frampton's positively resilient life and career told in his own words for the first time. His monu-mental album Frampton Comes Alive! spawned three top-twenty singles and sold eight million copies the year it was released (more than seventeen million to date), and it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in January 2020. Frampton was on a path to stardom from an early age, first as the lead singer and guitarist of the Herd and then as cofounder—along with Steve Marriott—of one of the first supergroups, Humble Pie. Frampton was part of a tight-knit collective of British '60s musicians with close ties to the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, and the Who. This led to Frampton playing on George Harrison's solo debut, All Things Must Pass, as well as to Ringo Starr and Billy Preston appearing on Frampton's own solo debut. By age twenty-two, Frampton was touring incessantly and finding new sounds with the talk box, which would become his signature guitar effect. Frampton remembers his enduring friendship with David Bowie. Growing up as schoolmates, crossing paths throughout their careers, and playing together on the Glass Spider Tour, the two developed an unshakable bond. Frampton also shares fascinating stories of his collaborative work with Harry Nilsson, Stevie Wonder, B. B. King, and members of Pearl Jam. He reveals both the blessing and curse of Frampton Comes Alive!, opening up about becoming the cover boy he never wanted to be, his overcoming sub-stance abuse, and how he has continued to play and pour his heart into his music despite an inflammatory muscle disease and his retirement from the road. Peppered throughout his narrative is the story of his favorite guitar, the Phenix, which he thought he'd lost in a fiery plane crash in 1980. But in 2011, it mysteriously showed up again—saved from the wreckage. Frampton tells of that unlikely reunion here in full for the first time, and why the miraculous reappearance is emblematic of his life and career as a quintessential artist.

Kids will read and sing along as feelings come to life in The Story of My Feelings. Growing up is a tough job, and it is important to embrace laughing, sighing, crying, and yelling. Fun and engaging illustrations by Caroline Jayne Church accompany the lyrics and add a vibrancy to the CD. You know you'll feel better after you read and sing The Story of My Feelings!

Forget the 10,000 hour rule— what if it’s possible to learn the basics of any new skill in 20 hours or less? Take a moment to consider how many things you want to learn to do. What’s on your list? What’s holding you back from getting started? Are you worried about the time and effort it takes to acquire new skills—time you don’t have and effort you can’t spare? Research suggests it takes 10,000 hours to develop a new skill. In this nonstop world when will you ever find that much time and energy? To make matters worse, the early hours of prac­ticing something new are always the most frustrating. That’s why it’s difficult to learn how to speak a new language, play an instrument, hit a golf ball, or shoot great photos. It’s so much easier to watch TV or surf the web . . . In The First 20 Hours, Josh Kaufman offers a systematic approach to rapid skill acquisition— how to learn any new skill as quickly as possible. His method shows you how to deconstruct com­plex skills, maximize productive practice, and remove common learning barriers. By complet­ing just 20 hours of focused, deliberate practice you’ll go from knowing absolutely nothing to performing noticeably well. Kaufman personally field-tested the meth­ods in this book. You’ll have a front row seat as he develops a personal yoga practice, writes his own web-based computer programs, teaches himself to touch type on a nonstandard key­board, explores the oldest and most complex board game in history, picks up the ukulele, and learns how to windsurf. Here are a few of the sim­ple techniques he teaches: Define your target performance level: Fig­ure out what your desired level of skill looks like, what you’re trying to achieve, and what you’ll be able to do when you’re done. The more specific, the better. Deconstruct the skill: Most of the things we think of as skills are actually bundles of smaller subskills. If you break down the subcompo­nents, it’s easier to figure out which ones are most important and practice those first. Eliminate barriers to practice: Removing common distractions and unnecessary effort makes it much easier to sit down and focus on deliberate practice. Create fast feedback loops: Getting accu­rate, real-time information about how well you’re performing during practice makes it much easier to improve. Whether you want to paint a portrait, launch a start-up, fly an airplane, or juggle flaming chain­saws, The First 20 Hours will help you pick up the basics of any skill in record time . . . and have more fun along the way.

In their book, I Want to Tell You How I Feel, husband and wife psychologists, Deb Brock and Ron Johnson, provide a paradigm for understanding what may be the most important element of human psychology. They suggest that people's feelings can be understood, valued, and utilized in order to enliven them personally and enhance them interpersonally to such a degree that they can find true contentment, meaning, and satisfaction in life. They have dared to unpack the murky waters of "feelings" with precision without falling prey to simplistic ideas of feelings nor complex neurological assessment of feelings. The authors propose that if people grasp how they feel, they will subsequently grasp how other people feel, and in this interchange of feelings, they will profoundly enhance communication and ultimately relationships. Johnson and Brock propose a unique paradigm for understanding feelings by first suggesting that "feelings," while undefined, are the most basic experience and expression of one's core self, sometimes called soul or spirit. The authors immediately admit to the undefined nature of such words as feelings, core self, soul, or spirit but note that such elements of humanity can be understood and utilized just as the equally undefined words love, time, and distance are undefined. While undefined, feelings can be observed in their experience and expression which comes sequentially physically, emotionally, cognitively, and actively. Thus, an important concept that Johnson and Brock propose is that emotion is the second experience one has when experiencing or expressing feelings but not the entirety of one's feelings, and for many people not the most important. They suggest that some people are inclined to express or experience their feelings emotionally while others may be more inclined to physical manifestations, cognition, or activity in experience and expression of feelings. The authors suggest a commensurate four-part paradigm of personality temperament that often reflects one's preference for experiencing and expressing feelings. They further delineate the four basic emotions suggesting that are "love-based" emotions of joy and sadness and two "defense-based" emotions of fear and anger. With the groundwork of the book in this depth understanding of feelings, emotions, and personality temperament, Brock and Johnson present a myriad of scenarios between people demonstrating how to use their basic understanding of feelings. In these later chapters the authors focus on practical, down-to-earth examples of how people fail to communicate their feelings and examples of how they can succeed in feeling communication. They suggest "rules for engagement" in one chapter. They devote another chapter to the concept of emotional hurt which, they suggest, is often at the heart of miscommunication, and suggest ways of understanding, managing, and communicating hurt before it turns to defensive-based emotions of anger or fear. Drs. Johnson and Brock have compiled a valuable book that is grounded in equal measures of science, theory, and their 100 years of experience in the field of psychology. Read this book and you will be compelled to think deeper, feel deeper, and communicate better.

“A compelling look at the ways in which women bond…essential reading for anyone trying to build—or maintain—a strong social circle.”–BookPage Do I have enough friends? Why did my friendship end? What makes a good friendship work? These are questions that F. Diane Barth, a psychotherapist widely recognized for her expertise in women’s relationships, fields all the time. In I Know How You Feel, she shares engaging stories from interviews with a lively and diverse cast of women, many of whom speak about feelings they haven’t shared before. She explores how life changes affect women’s friendships in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Interweaving examples from a range of sources—from classic women’s literature to chick flicks—she provides grounded advice on how to manage betrayal and rejection, how to deal with a narcissistic or bossy friend, what to do when your best friend and your family don’t get along, how to let go of a friendship that has stopped working, and much more. This is a timely, empathetic guide for women in their twenties to their sixties and beyond. “A lively and compassionate guide that defines what is meant by ‘friend’ in the 21st century…engaging.”–Library Journal “A smart, perceptive, and complex study of women’s friendships and how they enhance, color in, and shape our lives.”—Susan Shapiro, author of Lighting Up

Have you ever heard of an empath? “I Know How You Fee!” tells of the unusual experiences in the most extraordinary year of the author’s life. It led to her discovery that she is an empath. At nearly 60, this was a surprising revelation. It not only explained the strange, preceding events, but also threw light on her past life. Different episodes brought varying emotions and reactions. She delved deeply into her past, including recalling times of depression. Her fight to maintain a positive outlook wasn’t easy, but sometimes she would receive unexpected help. Sometimes she became overwhelmed and for a long spell compulsively wrote poetry. The twelve months culminated in two beneficial, life-changing events. This is a book of parts including her story, her poems, aspects of depression, plus information and advice about being an empath.