The Booktopia Book Guru asks

Kerri Sackville

author of
When My Husband Does the Dishes,
and now,
The Little Book Of Anxiety

Six Sharp Questions

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1. Congratulations, you have a new book. What is it about and what does it mean to you?

The Little Book Of Anxiety was meant to be a series of humorous anecdotes about living with anxiety, but it turned out to be far deeper. It’s still pretty funny, because my anxiety gets me into absurd situations (think ‘needing to be forcibly pulled off the alarm button in a stalled lift’), but it also contains a lot of insights. I hope it helps other worriers to feel less alone, and to break down the stigma associated with having an anxiety disorder.

We now have a limited number of SIGNED copies of The Little Book Of Anxiety – these will not last

The Little Book Of Anxiety is due for release on 1st of May

Click here to order The Little Book of Anxiety from Booktopia,
Australia’s No.1 Online Book Shop

2. Time passes. Things change. What are the best and worst moments that you have experienced in the past year or so?

The best? Finding out that Simon Baker had Googled me (see ).

And the worst? Putting unleaded fuel in my diesel car for the second time in a year was a pretty low point. But in totally unrelated news, did I tell you that Simon Baker Googled me?

3. Do you have a favourite quote or passage you would be happy to share with us? It doesn’t need to be deep but it would be great if it meant something to you.

“There are times when you can only take the next step. And then another.” William Gibson, Pattern Recognition.

This quote has got me through many a hard time. I fall back on that advice constantly.

4. Writers have often been described as being difficult to live with. Do you conform to the stereotype or defy it? Please tell us a little about the day to day of your writing life.

Ha! Once you’ve read my book, you won’t need to ask that question. I’m what my husband refers to as a ‘nightmare’. I worry incessantly. I obsess endlessly. I spend a great deal of time running around in circles. But I find writing to be very calming, so I spend huge amounts of time on the computer neglecting the laundry, cleaning, bills etc. Strangely, this does not help endear me to my husband.

5. Some writers claim not to be influenced by the needs of the marketplace, while others seem obsessed by it. Would you please describe how the marketplace affects your writing (come on, tell the truth!).

Well, of course I’m influenced by the marketplace, because I want my books to be read. But mainly, I want to write books that will resonate with people, and affect them in positive ways. I believe that many, many people will relate to this book, and that it will help them to understand and accept themselves, and better manage their anxious lives.

6. Unlikely Scenario: You’ve been charged with civilising twenty ill-educated adolescents but you may take only five books with you. What do you take and why?

Wow. Okay….

1. Catch 22, by Joseph Heller. It is still the most brilliantly clever and hysterically funny novel ever written about war, or anything else.

2. Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte – The kids need a classic, and this has it all: passion, death, ghosts, despair, and a soundtrack by Kate Bush. Perfect.

3. The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell – Firstly, it’s utterly fascinating stuff. Secondly, you simply cannot read Gladwell’s essays without your brain massively expanding.

4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams – It’s an obvious choice, but it is by far the best introduction out there to the fantastic world of science fiction.

5. A Short History Of Nearly Everything, by Bill Bryson – Kids these days are really smart. Maybe they could read it and summarise it for me?

Kerri, thank you for playing.

Click here to order The Little Book of Anxiety from Booktopia,
Australia’s No.1 Online Book Shop

Kerri has also answered the Booktopia Book Guru’s Ten Terrifying Questions, click here

As well as the Five Facetious Questions, click here

Check out Kerri’s incredibly popular blog here.

Or on Facebook, here.

Or Twitter, here, if you please.

Publisher’s blurb:

Popular author and blogger Kerri Sackville’s very funny take on her life with anxiety. This is an insight into anxiety that only Kerri could give!

The Little Book Of Anxiety is for anyone who has experienced anxiety – which is pretty much everyone. It is a funny book about a serious subject – the ways in which anxiety can impact on your life, and the lives of those around you.

From relationship anxiety to professional anxiety, claustrophobia to travelling phobia, pregnancy fears, panic attacks to nail biting and more. Oh, and so much more.

Kerri Sackville relates episodes in which anxiety has got the better of her as only she can, some tragically humorous, and some just utterly absurd.

Desperate struggles with insomnia, trying meditation to learn how to fall asleep, and drinking hideous herbal potions (which were completely ineffective, and yes very expensive).

Kerri talks about panic attacks, and what they actually feel like. What anxiety does to us at a subconscious level. Kerri discusses therapy and the various techniques she has used to try to manage her anxiety. And the ways in which her fears affect all those around her (particularly her long suffering husband – who has, however, been known to make things worse).

Click here to order The Little Book of Anxiety from Booktopia,
Australia’s No.1 Online Book Shop

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About the Contributor

John Purcell

While still in his twenties, John Purcell opened a second-hand bookshop in Mosman, Sydney, in which he sat for ten years reading, ranting and writing. Since then he has written, under a pseudonym, a series of very successful novels, interviewed hundreds of writers about their work, appeared at writers’ festivals, on TV (most bizarrely in comedian Luke McGregor’s documentary Luke Warm Sex) and has been featured in prominent newspapers and magazines. ​Now, as the Director of Books at booktopia.com.au, Australia’s largest online bookseller, he supports Australian writing in all its forms. He lives in Sydney with his wife, two children, three dogs, five cats, unnumbered gold fish and his overlarge book collection. His novel, The Girl on the Page, was published by HarperCollins Australia in October, 2018.

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