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Dr Johnson wrote that "every man is, or hopes to be, an idler". Being idle brings untold benefits both to individuals and to the planet. Tom Hodgkinson brings you 24 easy ways to do nothing, from keeping a diary to sitting on a bench. These idling tricks can be done here and now, by nearly anyone, and for little or no cost.

A meditation on why life has been a dreadful mistake ever since the Reformation brought us paid jobs and the work ethic.

Reflects on 75 simple pastimes and proves that the best things in life really are free: lighting fires, skimming stones, catching falling leaves, whittling, staring out of the window, dreaming, doodling or taking a nap.

Modern life is absurd. How can we be free? If you've ever wondered why you bother to go to work, or why so much of consumer culture is crap, then this book is for you. Looking to history, literature and philosophy for inspiration, Tom Hodgkinson provides a joyful blueprint for a simpler and freer way of life. Filled with practical tips as well as inspiring reflections, here you can learn how to throw off the shackles of anxiety, bureaucracy, debt, governments, housework, supermarkets, waste and much else besides.

As Oscar Wilde said, doing nothing is hard work. The Protestant work ethic has most of us in its thrall, and the idlers of this world have the odds stacked against them. But here, at last, is a book that can help. From Tom Hodgkinson, editor of the Idler, comes HOW TO BE IDLE, an antidote to the work-obsessed culture which puts so many obstacles between ourselves and our dreams. Hodgkinson presents us with a laid-back argument for a new contract between routine and chaos, an argument for experiencing life to the full and living in the moment. Ranging across a host of issues that may affect the modern idler � sleep, the world of work, pleasure and hedonism, relationships, bohemian living, revolution � he draws on the writings of such well-known apologists for idleness as Dr Johnson, Oscar Wilde, Robert Louis Stevenson and Nietzsche. His message is clear: take control of your life and reclaim your right to be idle.

"Tom Hodgkinson combines practical advice with laugh-out-loud anecdote to create a refreshingly candid guidebook for all of us who aspire to a greater degree of freedom in our working lives. Whether you dream of launching your own startup or profiting from your creativity in your spare time, Business for Bohemians will equip you with the tools to turn your talents into a profitable and enjoyable business. Accounting need no longer be a dark art. You will become au fait with business plans and a friend of the spreadsheet. You will discover that laziness can be a virtue. Above all, you will realise that freedom from the nine-to-five life is achievable - and, with Hodgkinson's comforting, pragmatic and extremely funny advice at hand, you might even enjoy yourself along the way"--Publisher's website.

In The Idle Parent Tom Hodgkinson provides a revolutionary and wholly sensible approach to childcare, based on the idea of D.H. Lawrence and many others that the best thing we can do for children is to leave them alone. Of course, this doesn�t mean that we should completely neglect them, but rather that we should provide them with the space and time to grow up self-reliant, confident, happy and free. To do so we need to stop worrying and start nurturing the natural instincts towards creativity and independence in every child. And in so doing we will find ourselves becoming happier and better parents. This is the perfect guide for anyone grappling with parenthood and wondering why the existing manuals are so dispiriting.

A pocket-sized seasonal guide to country life from the Sunday Times bestselling author of How to be Idle, featuring a foreword by Dominic West