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The day that 12-year-old James Doty walked in to his local magic shop is the day that changed his life. Once the neglected son of an alcoholic father and a mother with chronic depression, he has gone on to become a leading neurosurgeon, based at Stanford University. He credits Ruth for this incredible turnaround: the remarkable woman who devoted the summer to transforming his mind and opening his heart.
In this uplifting memoir, Jim explains the visualisation techniques Ruth taught him that gave him the self-esteem to imagine a new future for himself. He examines the science behind mindfulness and why the skills he learned - of focus and attention - now help him to think fast and keep calm in the operating theatre. And he shows us what is possible when you start to change your brain and your heart.
Into the Magic Shop imparts some powerful life lessons about how to live better, and inspires us to believe that we all have inside us the capacity to change our own destiny.
Jim did learn the final lesson – opening his heart. He now heads the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education at Stanford. The Dalai Lama is a significant contributor to CCARE.
Into The Magic Shop, by Dr. James Doty, is the amazing story of what happened by that chance encounter. Jim was only 12 years old at the time. For some strange reason, Ruth, the mother of the magic shop owner saw some hidden potential in Jim and agreed to mentor him over the summer. What follows is one of the most remarkable and magical stories you will ever read.

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