How To Hold a Cockroach - by Matthew Maxwell (Paperback)

About the Book

In this tale for all ages, a suffering boy begins a life-changing journey when a menacing guest disturbs his dinner. Confronted one-by-one by the sources of his torment, the boy eventually discovers a way to freedom and joy.

Book Synopsis

How to Hold a Cockroach is about discovering and freeing ourselves from the beliefs that cause us to suffer. With a message both surprising and simple, it is a love letter to humankind, a book for those who are free and don't know it.

In this story for all ages, a struggling boy begins a life-changing journey when a disgusting guest disturbs his dinner. Continuing to encounter sources of suffering, the boy must investigate fundamental truths he has believed about himself, love, and life. He confronts some of life's most persistent questions:

• What am I?

• What causes me to suffer?

• How can I be at peace with the traumas of the past and the uncertainty of the future?

• What determines how I experience life?

Described as "a children's book for adults," How to Hold a Cockroach was written for adults but is suitable for thoughtful teenagers and children.

✓ Looking for contemplative and inspirational books about philosophy, spirituality, or psychology.

✓ Facing challenging circumstances, heartbreak, low self-esteem, or resentment towards others.

✓ Finding it difficult to accept the past or fearing what the future will bring.

✓ Fans of the works of Paulo Coelho, Kobi Yamada, or Charlie Mackesy; books like The Alchemist, The Tao of Pooh, The Little Prince, and The Untethered Soul; or spiritual teachers like Tara Brach, Thich Nhat Hanh, Eckhart Tolle, and Cheri Huber.

Regardless of your birthplace, background, or spiritual beliefs -- Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, Muslim, Jewish, Latter-day Saint, or anything else - this book invites you to explore how you see yourself and the world, re-examine your perspectives, and free yourself to experience more joy, peace, and love.

The hardcover edition is 7x10 inches and contains full-color illustrations.
The paperback edition is 6x9 inches and contains black-and-white illustrations.
The Kindle edition contains full-color illustrations (or black-and-white if your device does not support color).
The Audible edition includes original music, sound effects, and the voice of award-winning narrator Simon Vance.

Review Quotes

"A wide-eyed allegory.... Maxwell effectively uses these vignettes to reflect on self-criticism, love, overcoming one's past, and embracing unknowns. Focusing on philosophical concepts from a childlike perspective, this sunny rumination on self-worth will primarily appeal to new adult readers." - Publishers Weekly

"A thoughtful illustrated work about a boy gaining wisdom about the world around him... The simple, overarching message of these stories and images is one of empathy and self-examination, and their execution in these pages will make it appealing to both adults and younger readers." - Kirkus Reviews

"This book touched my heart the way few books have. I found myself laughing out loud, smiling to myself, and thinking, 'Brilliant!' again and again as I turned the page. The illustrations are magical-a vision come to life-and the story is a beautiful reminder that we are wildly, unabashedly, monumentally free to experience the world around us (and within us) any way we like-by simply choosing how we hold it. How to Hold a Cockroach is an invitation to look deeper at how we hold everything in our lives-our relationships, our emotions, our past, our future-and to notice that how we hold each thing is a choice; a choice that either empowers us or disempowers us, depending upon what we do with it. After reading this book, I choose to hold all of my life as dear, sacred, precious, and adored. There is not one thing I would wish away. I now see all of it as an invitation to be even freer, to love even deeper, and to be even more at peace." - Hope Koppelman, creative director and editor at TUT.com and author of The Gifts of Writing

"How to Hold a Cockroach is a magical and soul shaking read! It is profound and awakening in its simplicity and depth. I have already gifted this book to a dozen people who have also been deeply impacted. Thank you, Matt, for illuminating how to shift the pain of the human journey into growth and beauty." - Shana James, M.A., host of the Man Alive podcast, leadership coach, and author of Honest Sex and Power and Pleasure

"Although I'm still unable to hold a cockroach, this book has some wonderful things to teach all of us about the beliefs that hold us back in different areas of our lives, and the choices we all make to be happy. This book is a real gem, with some truly beautiful illustrations, and you're likely to get something new out of it each time you read it. Highly recommend!" - Marc Fienberg, author of the Dad's Great Advice book series.

"I was moved to tears and a renewed sense of self-forgiveness and self-love in reading How to Hold a Cockroach. In Maxwell's first book, he simultaneously reaches down to lovingly see and hold the depths of his readers' pain and hurt and fills them with newfound hope and wonder. The book instills the life-changing gift of choice into the hands and hearts of the reader and at once fills them with a transformation that can change in an instant the trajectory of their entire lives. I wholeheartedly recommend this book!" - Catherine A. Wood, MCC, author of Belonging: Overcome Your Inner Critic and Reclaim Your Joy.