Check out these words of wisdom for a happier, healthier life
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SOCIAL CHEMISTRY: DECODING PATTERNS OF HUMAN CONNECTION
By Marissa King, Hodder & Stoughton-Hachette UK
While conventional wisdom tells us to mingle and connect to expand our social network as much as possible, the author argues otherwise in her book based on social science research. She says the quality and structure of our relationships have greater impact on our personal and professional lives. Our relationships with friends, family, co-workers, neighbours, and collaborators are our greatest asset and yet we leave them to chance. The professor of Organizational Behaviour at Yale says everyone needs a science-based strategy to alter or build meaningful and productive relationships for a happier and more fulfilling life.
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INDIAN SEX LIFE: Sexuality and the Colonial Origins of Modern Social Thought
By Durba Mitra,Princeton University Press and distributed by Penguin Random House India
During the colonial period in India, scholars, intellectuals, philologists, administrators, doctors, ethnologists, sociologists, and social critics deployed ideas about sexuality to apparently understand modern Indian society. In the book, Durba Mitra tells how ‘deviant female sexuality’, particularly the concept of the prostitute, became the foundation upon which Indian society was thought and written about. The Harvard professor puts together archival material from diverse disciplines and overturns long-established notions and opens up new approaches for the global history of sexuality.
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NO STRAIGHT THING WAS EVER MADE: ESSAYS ON MENTAL HEALTH
By Urvashi Bahuguna, Penguin Random House
Having survived the struggles of the teen years and boldly seeking help for a mental illness, Urvashi Bahuguna is candid in sharing her life story. In this compilation of essays on mental health, she talks about her challenges and setbacks and the opportunities that came her way after she told her family about her condition. Their reaction impacted her life, her inter-personal relationships, both romantic and familial, and everything else around her. That is when she connected with several things new — from art, literature, poetry to popular culture. As she discovered her talent, she also gathered the courage to bravely discuss her experiences. Her narrative is based on anecdotes, conversations and research, and may help others undergoing similar trauma.
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SPEAK-A-BOO
By Dr Neeraj Suri published by The Writer’s Place
The 50,000 word book, is an attempt to decode a toddler’s brain as they learn to talk, throwing up insights on how the brain of a new born achieves the milestone of being able to communicate through words. ENT surgeon Dr Neeraj Suri has worked extensively with children in the 0-3 years age group to put out what she’s learnt. A child, says the author, uses words as building blocks. The words come from the base of their respective cognitive development and innovative skills. At a time when personal connections have taken a backseat and conversations have mostly gone digital, the author says the book will remind everyone of the importance of communicating, especially with children. It is a part of her long term campaign #Talktoyourchild
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UKEIRERU: HAPPINESS AND ACCEPTANCE THROUGH JAPANESE WISDOM
By Scott Haas, Hachette India
Massachusetts-based clinical psychologist Scott Hass’ practical guide to finding happiness and reducing stress and anxiety is based on the Japanese concept Ukeireru, meaning acceptance. Haas says by learning and practising some basic tenets, you can increase your overall wellbeing. Some of his important suggestions include developing the skill of listening and learning to pause. Scott says if we learn to talk less and focus on listening, we can profoundly improve our relationships, which has a calming effect on life. To be able to show respect to ourselves and others and find our own peace in doing simple things at our own pace, helps to reframe our lives and deal with anger, fear, tension and arguments.
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