Rise Above - by Matthew Schnipper (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

An unforgettable memoir of fatherhood, grief, and the life-saving power of love and art in the wake of unimaginable loss

Renzo Rollins Schnipper was born in February 2020, a split second before the beginning of the pandemic. To his parents, he was the reason for the universe's existence at a time when there was little hope to be found in the world. Then, on Christmas Eve 2021, a rare medical event suddenly took Renzo from them. Rise Above begins with an account of Renzo's short, but blazingly full, life from his father's perspective. Even as it is an account of grief, Matthew Schnipper's memoir is about resilience in the face of the unexpected turns life takes, and how to chart a path forward.

Schnipper chronicles the tragic, frustrating, and sometimes dumb ways that grief manifests, and how he tried to rise above the pain: friendships, text messages, carbs, a trip to Miami, phone calls with a rabbi, selling vintage clothing--and, perhaps most indelibly, his ever-changing relationship to music, his lifelong passion.

Rise Above follows this journey--from the shock and freefall following his son's death, to the desperate struggle to remember and honor Renzo's life. Schnipper's candid prose and clear-eyed storytelling tackles the darkest, most unfathomable elements of living, but also the miracle of love and the shimmering moments that ultimately give life meaning.

Review Quotes

"Self-actualization is possible for each of us, and there we find a better, happier future. But that means avoiding the traps and barriers we set for ourselves. Scott Barry Kaufman's brilliant new book Rise Above is the evidence-based manual we need to be free."
--Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard Professor and bestselling author of From Strength to Strength and Build the Life You Want

"Rise Above is a welcome and necessary antidote to the victim narrative that plagues our time. Part memoir, part case study, part scientific toolkit, this book provides both inspiration and practical guidance. A must-read for anyone who wants to move from grievance to gratitude for a more fulfilling life."
- Anna Lembke, MD, author of Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence

"Rise Above is a call to action for anyone who feels stuck in a pattern of anger and blame. We always have another choice - to recognize the ownership we have over our own lives, every day -- and Scott Barry Kaufman provides an accessible roadmap for doing just that. It isn't easy work, but it can be life-changing."
--Lori Gottlieb, bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone

"Few things would perplex people from the past -- or hopefully the future -- more than people today exaggerating their victimhood and thinking of it as what makes them special. RISE ABOVE gently but firmly takes us back to the normality of forward-looking resilience."
--John McWhorter, New York Times columnist and bestselling author of Nine Nasty Words and Pronoun Trouble

"A big part of success in business and life is learning how to deal effectively with things that are beyond your control. The secret is called resilience and Scott Barry Kaufman's Rise Above is an excellent practical guide for anybody working to build their resilience muscles."
- Scott Galloway, Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern, co-host of the Pivot Podcast, and author of The Algebra of Wealth

"Rise Above is a brilliant blend of science and soul, offering urgent insights for turning life's challenges into opportunities for growth. Scott Barry Kaufman has written the masterful guide we all need to navigate the chaos."
-Tasha Eurich, organizational psychologist and bestselling author of Insight and Shatterproof

"Scott Barry Kaufman reminds us all of our innate capacity to grow from the challenges we face, even big ones. Rise Above leads us beyond our constricted self-perceptions to a far more expansive and empowered sense of possibility that could be ours."
--Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Life

"A message that needs to be heard today more than ever. No matter how difficult things get, we always have the power to rise above."
--Mark Manson, bestselling author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

"The perfect book for our times. The victimhood mindset is everywhere, but leading cognitive scientist Scott Barry Kaufman gives us insights and actionable strategies to successfully rise above this pernicious mentality."
--Kurt Gray, Professor of Psychology at UNC Chapel Hill and author of Outraged

About the Author

Matthew Schnipper is a New York City-based writer, editor, and Depop dealer. He writes the newsletter Deep Voices.