The last year was full of fear, anxiety and uncertainties for everyone across the world. India being one of the worst hit countries of the pandemic, the toll on our mental health was gruesome. Good news is, now we have a few effective vaccines and hence, its time to relax and heal our mental health.
Just like our economy, our mind also needs to recover from the traumatic battery of 2020. The best way to start would be reading a book that can make you feel good and help in rejuvenating your mind and soul. Here are a few picks from the list of books recommended by UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center (a research institute that works around positive psychology) that can reignite hope for our collective future and enable you to bounce back happier in 2021.
- Friendship by Lydia Denworth
Are you close with a bunch of friends but feel guilty after spending hours in their company for not being productive enough? Then this book is the perfect for you. In this book, the author – Lydia Denworth, a journalist by profession reveals the science that demonstrates how friendship offers an array of physical and mental benefits. If you want to find out exactly why hanging out with your friends is healthy and you must do it often, read this book.
- Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman
If you want to feel hopeful and better about the human race, then this the book for you. The bestselling author Bregman relooks at some of the world’s most eminent studies and events to provide a fresh perspective on the human history spanning 200,000 years. Bregman shows that believing in altruism and human kindness, cultivates a new way of thinking which enables bringing positive changes in society.
- Perception by Dennis Proffitt and Drake Baer
“Embodied cognition” is a branch of psychology that says along with our brains, we think with our bodies too! Our perception of the world is shaped by our capabilities, physical shape and present states of being. In this book, the authors explain the science behind this theory.
“If we are going to have a better understanding of ourselves and our fellow human beings, we need to appreciate the startling individuality of everyone’s experience,” write Proffitt and Baer
- The Upswing by Robert Putnam and Shaylyn Romney Garrett
Today, America is fighting political polarization, accelerating inequality, a disintegrating social fabric and the list goes on to draw grim picture. The authors of this book say that there is a parallel to be found in the Gilded Age (1870 – 1900) and the current time. While comparing the two similar times, in actuality centuries apart, Putnam and Garrett draw positive conclusions about the possible ways to come out of this mess.
- Time Smart by Ashley Whillans
This book presents a magnificent explanation of time and draws an exact opposite picture of the popular belief – “time is money”. The author explains the researches on time, money and well-being, to make a robust case that we would be much happier, more connected socially and amply satisfied with the work we do, if we attached less value to wealth and more value to time by prioritizing the need for free time in our daily routine.
