The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life - Softcover

Manson, Mark

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0062457721 ISBN 13: 9780062457721

Publisher: Harper Paperbacks, 2026

Synopsis

#1 New York Times Bestseller

Over 2 million copies sold

In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be "positive" all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people.

For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "F**k positivity," Mark Manson says. "Let’s be honest, shit is f**ked and we have to live with it." In his wildly popular Internet blog, Manson doesn’t sugarcoat or equivocate. He tells it like it is—a dose of raw, refreshing, honest truth that is sorely lacking today. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is his antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.

Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited—"not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault." Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.

There are only so many things we can give a f**k about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.

About this title

From the Back Cover

New York Times Bestseller

In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger shows us that the key to being happier is to stop trying to be “positive” all the time and instead to become better at handling adversity.

For decades we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life.
But those days are over. “Fuck positivity,” Mark Manson says. “Let’s be honest; sometimes things are fucked up and we have to live with it.” For the past few years, Manson—via his wildly popular blog—has been working on correcting our delusional expectations for ourselves and for the world. He now brings his hard-fought wisdom to this groundbreaking book.

Manson makes the argument—backed by both academic research and well-timed poop jokes—that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to better stomach lemons. Human beings are flawed and limited—as he writes, “Not everybody can be extraordinary—there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault.” Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. This, he says, is the real source of empowerment. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties—once we stop running from and avoiding, and start confronting painful truths—we can begin to find the courage and confidence we desperately seek.

“In life, we have a limited amount of fucks to give. So you must choose your fucks wisely.” Manson brings a much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor. This manifesto is a refreshing slap in the face for all of us so that we can start to lead more contented, grounded lives.

About the Author

MARK MANSON is the New York Times bestselling author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck (with over 3 million in sales in the US alone) and a star blogger. Manson sold more than 50,000 copies of his self-published book, Models: Attract Women Through Honesty. Before long, his off-the-cuff voice was resonating with a much broader audience via his brilliantly counterintuitive essays on happiness. With titles like “The Most Important Question of Your Life,” “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck,” and “No, You Can’t Have It All” his work was being reposted by the likes of Elizabeth Gilbert and Loveline, and his site—markmanson.net—is read by over 2 million unique visitors per month. He has over 426K Facebook followers, and 91.8K followers on Twitter (@IAmMarkManson). Manson lives in New York City.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks
• Publication date: 2026
• ISBN 10: 0062457721
• ISBN 13: 9780062457721
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 224