Reddit reviews Meditations: with selected correspondence (Oxford World's Classics)
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Oxford University Press, USA
There is no "one size fits all" answer. The /r/Stoicism FAQ has a starting points for newcomers question, which gives a rundown of different options.
Repeating a summary of the FAQ entry, good options are:
Moses Hadas's The Stoic Philosophy of Seneca is a good printed source for these and other writing by Seneca.
Popular modern accounts include Stoicism and the Art of Happiness by Donald Robertson and A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William Irvine. The later is notable for being popular, easy to read, and controversial; some (including myself) find that he departs significantly from several fundamental elements of Stoicism (see here, here and here).
I also like The Stoics: A Guide for the Perplexed by Andrew Holowchak as an introduction. Holowchak retains much of the "practical" emphasis of the Robertson and Irvine, is better covering the historically important theoretical aspects, and modern non-Stoic influences are less pervasive in Holowchak than in either Robertson or Irvine.
I think any of these can be a good starting point, and any of them can be valuable on its own, but each only offers a partial glimpse of Stoicism as a whole.
Most of the ancient sources above are good for browsing, picking random pages and reading a little bit here and there. Each has its own distinct character. A good approach may be to find copies of the Enchiridion, Meditations, and a selections of Seneca, and spend a little time browsing through each, and then focusing on the one that appeals most. Then, pursue supporting material to help give context, unpack references, and otherwise improve interpretation. For the Enchiridion, the best source for this would be the Discourses, and Long's Epictetus: A Stoic and Socratic Guide to Life is also helpful, in different ways. For the Meditations, Stephens' Marcus Aurelius does a good job of explaining context, references, and interpretation.
The two best translations in my opinion are
Robin Hard & Gregory Hays.
Jim?
Hays tr.: https://www.amazon.com/Meditations-New-Translation-Marcus-Aurelius/dp/0812968255
Hard tr.: https://www.amazon.com/Meditations-selected-correspondence-Oxford-Classics/dp/0199573204
Links go to the American Amazon store.
There are several good translations, but I'll suggest the translation by Robin Hard, which includes selected correspondence with Marcus' rhetoric teacher Fronto and good footnotes.
I also think it's helpful to have more than one translation to compare phrasing. There are older translations you can find for free online. They are a little less readable than a more modern translation, but for comparison they're useful. The best two free ones are by George Long and by George Chrystal.
https://www.amazon.com/Meditations-selected-correspondence-Oxford-Classics/dp/0199573204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1542245874&sr=8-1&keywords=meditations+marcus+aurelius+oxford+press
Also look into the Hard/Gill translation. I find it to be perfectly readable while being more precise in translation than Hays.
I'm very happy that I was able to help :)
And yes, a lot of people will blame everything around them for the misery of themselves. This seems to be the easy way out, but you must ask yourself what good it does in the end. There are things which are outside of your control. What people might do to you, say to you, and so on. However no matter what harsh things you go through in life it is ultimately you that decide how to respond to them. You decide what to do with it. It is as Epictetus once said:
> "Man is affected not by events, but by the view he takes of them."
Usually I do not actually like to talk openly about the philosophy I follow, for the simple reason that I just try to live by it. Use actions, not words. Also for many people it might seem that you try to push something on to them. However I felt in this case I was justified to give an explanation of what exactly helped me :-)
Anyways, if you are interested in the principles I explained, then what you seek is reading on Stoicism. The book that has especially helped me is this one:
Stoicism and the art of happiness
It has eye-opening/life-changing wisdoms and perspectives on everything that has to do with you. How to deal with emotions, what they are, and what is essential to life a good life. Another interesting fact is that many of the mental exercises and perspectives the stoics used is now today amongst some of the most scientifically well-documented practices used by cognitive behavioural therapy (also with a quick google search, you will find that even the founder of CBT was inspired by the stoic teachings), which deals with practically all kinds of mental sufferings you can imagine.
It's a practical book on the life philosophy of Stoicism, and it is written by a credible psychotherapist who also takes interest in the study of Stoicism (hence the book!). It's not academic in any way, it's meant to be easily approachable and easy to implement into your life. Here's a quick breakdown of it all:
Stoicism is a life philosophy that was founded by the ancient greeks around 301 BCE. It's not a religion, or any kind of weird cult. It is a collection of principles that is meant to guide you towards happiness (in greek context meaning something more along the lines of inner well-being and tranquility).
I would suggest you read the book :-) Maybe you will come to pick up on everything stoicism has to offer, maybe you will only pick up whatever principles and wisdoms that you think are right, or maybe you won't find much agreement with it at all, all which is fine. However I think you will find some wisdoms you will definitely find to your liking, as you sound intrigued by the principles. The important thing is that no matter what, it will most certainly set you out on your way to think more about yourself and how to control your life and achieve your own understanding of well-being.
If Stoicism comes to your liking (start with the above book first, though), I could recommend books by some of the most famous ancient Stoics through time. I will leave some here for future reference for you:
Meditations - Marcus Aurelius - This is one of the most famous stoic texts.
Enchiridion - Epictetus
Dialogues and Essays - Seneca
These books read as manuals, not to be read in one sitting. They are huge collections of letters, essays and short passages from these excellent people about everything that has to do with achieving inner well-being, and how to view the world around you. They are remarkable ancient works, and it is truly inspiring and motivating to open them and just read a few of the lines from time to time.
As with anything, it's a learning process to change mindset. But it slowly comes when you study it. You learn the wisdoms and principles they had, you think about them and if they make sense, you apply them and live them, revisit them and so on, until they really become a part of you. It is truly worth the time though, and I think you see that too from what I could understand in your reply.
Best of luck to you! If you have any questions feel free to PM me as well, I'd be happy to help.