Quit Your Worrying!

James, George Wharton, 1858-1923Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.7

Word count: 288K words
Chapters: 29

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Quit Your Worrying! by George Wharton JamesAuthor: James, George Wharton, 1858-1923,Language: English, Class: BF: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Psychology, Philosophy, Psychoanalysis, Release Date: Jul 4, 2004

Editor's review

This is a popular psychological book by George Wharton James centered on "worry," inheriting the tradition of mass-market self-help writing from the late nineteenth to early twentieth century. Its value lies not in offering rigorous clinical solutions, but in using plain, reassuring language to help readers recognize how worry drains mental energy and to try loosening that drain through shifts in mindset and changes in daily habits. A common approach in the book is: break vague fears into concrete problems, replace rumination with action, and soothe emotions through nature, reading, and daily rhythms. Its highlights are a friendly tone and light, concise length, suitable for fragmented reading during commutes or before bed, and also as a sample for observing early mass psychological self-help discourse. It is best read as a mirror of its era: many of its suggestions still serve as reminders today, but for serious troubles involving physical and mental health, professional help should still be sought.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Ordinary readers prone to rumination who hope for simple emotional guidance
Readers interested in early self-help psychological books and the ideas of the era
People who need short reassuring texts to read in fragmented time
Learners who want to practice reading with the English original and prefer plain style

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting systematic psychological theory or clinical treatment plans
People currently experiencing severe anxiety and needing professional medical support
Readers who prefer rigorous argumentation and contemporary empirical research

Reading tips

Read a small section each day, then write down in one or two sentences the advice that struck you most.
Compare the book's reassuring claims with your own actual situation, and pick one small action you can carry out that day.
If reading the English original, skip old-fashioned expressions at first and grasp the overall reassuring thread.
When emotional distress is obvious, treat this book as supplementary reading while also seeking reliable professional support.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Can this book replace psychological counseling or treatment?

No. It is a popular reassuring read that offers shifts in mindset and life advice, not diagnosis or treatment plans. If worry is clearly affecting sleep, work, or relationships, professional psychological or medical help should come first, with this book as supplementary reading.

If my English is average, will it be hard to read?

The book was written long ago, and some expressions have an old-fashioned tone, but it is generally aimed at ordinary readers and the sentences are not very difficult. You can first read for the general meaning without scrutinizing every word; skipping unfamiliar words will not prevent you from understanding the main reassuring thread.

Are the book's suggestions still applicable today?

Ideas such as making worry concrete, replacing idle brooding with action, and soothing emotions through daily rhythms still have reference value today. But it bears clear marks of its era and lacks support from contemporary psychological evidence, so it should be read with discernment and its usable parts taken.

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About the author

James, George Wharton, 1858-1923 Author

George Wharton James (1858–1923) was an American writer active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries; eleven of his works are held in this collection. Public information about his life is limited, and biographical details are difficult to verify, but his subjects show a lasting interest in the natural landscapes and Native cultures of the American Southwest. Representative works such as The Indians of the Painted Desert Region describe the lives of the Hopi, Navajo and related peoples, while The Grand Canyon of Arizona: How to See It and The Lake of the Sky introduce the Grand Canyon and surrounding scenery to visitors. He also wrote on California's missions and local places, as in The Old Franciscan Missions of California and Picturesque Pala, and produced the animal story The Story of Scraggles. His writing combines travel guide and humanistic record in plain prose, leaving popular accounts through which later readers can approach the region's life and landscape.