The Power of Positive Thinking shows, organized the American Foundation of Religion and Psychiatry, and co-founded the spiritual newsletter "Guideposts" with his wife, Ruth Stafford Peale. "The Power of Positive Thinking" was published in October 1952 and continues to be Peale's most widely read work. It lived on the New York Time's best-sellers list for 186 weeks, 48 of which were spent in the No. 1 nonfiction spot. The book sold more than 5 million copies worldwide — 2.5 million from 1952 to 1956 — and was eventually translated into over 40 languages. Other books published by Peale around 1952 include "The Art of Real
The Power of Positive Thinking also condemned Peale's methods in his book, "Authentic Happiness". He writes that, “positive thinking often involves trying to believe upbeat statements such as 'Every day, in every way, I’m getting better and better,' in the absence of evidence, or even in the face of contrary evidence.” Seligman continues his critique saying, “if you can manage the feat of actually believing these sorts of statements, more power to you. Many educated people, trained in skeptical thinking, cannot manage this kind of boosterism.” Similarly, Donald Meyer, in his book "The Positive Thinkers", critiques the effectiveness of Peale's techniques saying that Peale always