“Neal takes you by the hand and leads you out of the thicket and brambles of self-criticism to the shadow of well-being. Let him guide you.” – Jack Kornfield

“If you’re ready to stop being an asshole to yourself and need more than fluffy affirmations, this book is for you.” – Nadia Bolz-Weber

Neal and his wife, the celebrated author and friend of Book Passage Anne Lamott, launch his new book Better Days: Tame Your Inner Critic with what promises to be a heartfelt, funny, and rich conversation about solutions to conflict, marital and otherwise. 

Better Days offers a radically new method to get that snarky or belittling voice out of your head. Author Neal Allen’s practical, simple approach can work for anyone who worries too much, gets hemmed in by bad thoughts, procrastinates out of fear, or generally gets down on themselves a little or a lot. 

The method is simple: First you meet your inner critic. Then you talk to it. Then you speak up whenever it pokes in. Eventually it gets the picture that you don’t need it, and it shuts up. That’s the gist, but there’s a lot more, including a dozen specific techniques anyone can use. 

Join Neal and Anne as they range from self-help to spirituality, from the standpoint of who-forgot-to-replace-the-toilet-paper-roll, in this book-and-author talk, in person and online.

Neal Allen is a spiritual coach and writer whose work centers on removing the obstacles of the ego and offering tools for freedom. He is the author of Better Days: Tame Your Inner Critic, due out December 5, 2023 from Namaste Publishing. He published Shapes of Truth: Discover God Inside You in 2021. A former journalist and corporate executive, he earned a master’s degrees in Political Science from Columbia University and one in Eastern Classics from St. John’s College. He lives with his wife, the writer Anne Lamott, in Northern California.

Anne Lamott is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Hallelujah Anyway; Help, Thanks, Wow; Small Victories; Stitches; Some Assembly Required; Grace (Eventually); Plan B; Traveling Mercies; Bird by Bird; and Operating Instructions. She is also the author of seven novels, including Hard Laughter, Imperfect Birds and Rosie. A past recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and an inductee to the California Hall of Fame, Anne is a longtime friend of the Book Passage family.

Neal Allen  & Anne Lamott photos courtesy of Sam Lamott