Many of today's teenagers are tired of the pressure to compete and consume-and are looking for a different way to live their lives. This book offers an alternative: the 2,500-year old practice of Buddhism. Written in a style that will have immediate appeal to young "seekers" and those wanting to understand the ancient teachings, this book addresses such relevant topics as peer pressure, emotional difficulties, stress, fostering peace, and even protecting the environment. For everyone looking for self-help, self-esteem, and self-awareness, this book offers advice on: a?Discovering truth in a world of hype a?Finding peace amid the ups and downs of life a?Accepting ourselves a?Working with difficult emotions a?How to meditate a?Dealing with temptations and making the right decisions about sex and drugs a?Advice on volunteering, working for peace, and protecting the environment

Diana Winston is the Director of Mindfulness Education at UCLA Semel Institute’s Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC) (www.marc.ucla.edu), author of The Little Book of Being, and the co-author, with Susan Smalley PhD, of Fully Present, the Science, Art and Practice of Mindfulness. Called by the LA Times “one of the nation’s best-known teachers of mindfulness,” she has taught mindfulness since 1993 in a variety of settings including hospitals, universities, businesses, non profits, and schools in the US and Asia.

A sought-after speaker, she developed the evidence-based Mindful Awareness Practices (MAPS) curriculum and the Training in Mindfulness Facilitation, which trains mindfulness teachers worldwide. She is a founding board member of the International Mindfulness Teachers Association.

Her work has been mentioned in the New York Times, O Magazine, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, Allure, Women’s Health, and in a variety of magazines, books, and journals. She is also the author of Wide Awake for teens, and has published numerous articles on mindfulness. Diana is a member of the Teacher's Council at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Northern California. She has been practicing mindfulness meditation since 1989, including a year as a Buddhist nun in Burma. Currently Diana’s most challenging and rewarding practice involves trying to mindfully parent a nine -year-old. www.dianawinston.com