How to be Wise opens with an unexpectedly entertaining survey of the philosophical and religious roots of wisdom. The author then considers how literature can enable us to discover more about ourselves; he probes the spiritual dimension of music, and the significance of silence.
Ned and Nina are trying to conceive, so when Ned jets off with no notice to the funeral of Douglas, a mysterious friend from his student days, Nina follows him so they can have sex on time. Douglas was the ringleader of a fellowship of chums at NYU and Nina is baffled by the extraordinary hold the group ...