Books
I love, love, love reading. There’s always a pile of books next to my bed that I’m trying to get through. The books I’m going to recommend here may or may not be available for a Kindle or iPad (you’ll have to check it out for yourself because I’m a bit old fashioned, I like the feel and smell of a real book).
My preferred seller is Booktopia. They’re Australian, they ship books really quickly and I’ve yet to find a book that they don’t stock.
Lost Connections – by Johann Hari
This is SUCH a great read. As someone who has been working in the mental health sector for a pretty decent amount of time I’ve felt constantly frustrated that we take such a narrow approach to treating mental health problems, primarily using the medical model. But as you’ll see in Johann’s book, he unpacks some of the most significant underlying causes of depression. I simply cannot recommend this book highly enough. You can read more about this amazing book on its homepage.
Chasing the Scream - by Johann Hari
This is another great read by the same author of Lost Connections. When I read this book I couldn’t put it down and devoured (and defaced) it in a very short period of time.
What if everything you think you know about addiction is wrong? One of Johann Hari’s earliest memories is of trying to wake up one of his relatives and not being able to. As he grew older, he realised he had addiction in his family. Confused, unable to know what to do, he set out on a three-year, 30,000 mile journey to discover what really causes addiction – and what really solves it.
You can read more about this eye opening and thought provoking book here. And if you need to wet your appetite first, listen to his TED talk which is a very brief overview of the book content.
The World’s Fittest Book by Ross Edgley
If you’re interested in exercise and human potential and want to improve your own fitness, this is the place to start. There are so many fad options out there that can confuse and overwhelm you, many of them started by people with minimal, if any decent qualifications.
What I like about Ross’ book is that he is more than qualified to be talking about this topic. He graduated from the world renowned Loughborough University School of Sport and Exercise Science after receiving a 1st class honours for his dissertation on the different strength and power adaptations to various training protocols. And in writing this book he literally travelled the globe meeting and training with some of the fittest, most interesting and amazing people on the planet.
There’s an amazing interview by Rich Roll on his podcast with Ross after he swam around the entire 3,200 km UK coastline. You can read more about Ross from his website and through Men’s Health.
Sexuality: All You Need to Know by Charlie McCann
In a time where we hearing more and more about sexuality and gender, particularly in the context of equality, this is a very good read.
“Humans have always had sex. But look through the keyhole of history and you will see they have not always had sex in the same manner, with the same kinds of people or with the same beliefs about whether what they are doing is right or desirable.”
So writes Charlie McCann in this fascinating study of sex and sexuality through the ages. Beginning with the world of antiquity and ending with the present, she traces our changing attitudes to our bodies and what we do with them, conducting us on a tour which takes in the gymnasiums of ancient Greece, where men seduced boys, to the caves occupied by Christian ascetics, to the fashionable drawing rooms of Georgian London, where libertines hunted for women to prey on, and the clubs of Weimar Berlin, where lesbians debated the nature of their desire.
The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape
In a time where many people are feeling the pinch of job insecurity and wondering if they’ll ever be able to afford to buy their own home, this is a very timely read.
This is the only money guide you’ll ever need.
That’s a bold claim, given there are already thousands of finance books on the shelves.
So what makes this one different?
Well, you won’t be overwhelmed with a bunch of ‘tips’ … or a strict budget (that you won’t follow).
You’ll get a step-by-step formula: open this account, then do this; call this person, and say this; invest money here, and not there. All with a glass of wine in your hand.
This book will show you how to create an entire financial plan that is so simple you can sketch it on the back of a serviette … and you’ll be able to manage your money in 10 minutes a week.