We all want to be happy but what is happiness? Haim Shapira navigates the terrain of happiness, exploring and contemplating an eclectic range of theories and insights into the conflicts we face on our journey to creating our own happiness. What is your happiest moment? How can you know it? Do we waste time or does time waste us? Are questions about meaning truly meaningful? What’s really important? Drawing on literary and philosophical sources ranging from Alice in Wonderland and The Little Prince to Leo Tolstoy, King Solomon and Friedrich Nietzsche, Haim Shapira invites us to challenge our perspectives on happiness and provides us with alternative ways to appreciate what is important. As Haim concludes it is in the spaces between the possible paths that we might take that we are able to find a place of grace, and where the things that matter to us will light our way. The choice is ours.

Told in a positive, no-nonsense tone, this is the ultimate tour of philosophers, artists and academics throughout the ages by philosopher Haim Shapira. Notes on the Art of Life is Haim Shapira's version of Sei Shonagon's Pillow Book – a discursive and intensely personal collection of thoughts on life; a tribute to the importance of the here and now; the value of the moment and of paying attention to it. This is a personal, cheerful and idiosyncratic tour through the thoughts and experiences of philosophers, artists and academics, finding a path through the contradictions of philosophy and the intractable challenges of life (both existential and mundane). Content includes: Exploring a wide range of philosophies, from Aristotle to Zhuang Zhu and Epicurus to Socrates Tour the arts and thoughts of Abd al-Rahman III to Tolstoy, via Chekhov and Goethe Examine a myriad of essential topics, from silence and regret to happiness and other small things of absolute importance. And arriving finally at love. This book is like having a chatty and quite excitable friend guide you round a library of good books and different schools of thought. A companion who aims to comfort and reassure you about the complexities and challenges of life and of thinking about life.

Thousands of people have told me the one thing they're searching for in life is happiness. So, I set out on a dragon-free quest to prove if 'happy' is, actually, an attainable goal, and not just a ridiculous aspiration. In this book, with her characteristic humour and gutsy intelligence, Turia Pitt goes on a quest to answer the question, Is it possible to be happier? What does she discover on her journey? Well, look, that's why we want you to buy the bloody book, but we can tell you that it entails, among other things, practising gratitude, working on kindness, self-love, strengthening your relationships and accepting the hard times and bad days. Turia unpacks all of the above with easy-to-implement tips and strategies, hilarious insights into her own life and relationships, and introduces us to some of the world's most fabulous people along the way, including Leigh Sales, Scott Pape, Zoë Foster Blake, Maria Forleo and Mick Fanning.

A quirky and darkly comic take on domestic life in southern India. The PEN Open Book Award called Manu Joseph "that rare bird who can wildly entertain his readers as forcefully as he moves them." In The Illicit Happiness of Other People, Joseph brilliantly brings his talents to the story of an Indian Christian family living far afield in south India. It has been three years since seventeen-year-old Unni Chacko mysteriously fell from a balcony to his death. His family—journalist father Ousep, who smokes two cigarettes at once “because three is too much”; mother Mariamma, who fantasizes gleefully about murdering her husband; and twelve-year-old love-struck brother Thoma with zero self-esteem, have coped by not coping. When the post office delivers a comic drawn by Unni that had been lost in the mail, Ousep, shocked out of his stupor, ventures on a quest to understand his son and rewrite his family’s story. Combining family drama with philosophy, social satire with satisfying storytelling, The Illicit Happiness of Other People reminds us that the greatest mystery of all—the one most worth our time and energy—is understanding the people we love.

“Heartfelt and ever-endearing—equal parts information and inspiration. This is a book to keep by your bedside and return to often.”—Amy Dickinson, nationally syndicated advice columnist "Ask Amy" More than one thousand extraordinary Americans share their stories and the wisdom they have gained on living, loving, and finding happiness. After a chance encounter with an extraordinary ninety-year-old woman, renowned gerontologist Karl Pillemer began to wonder what older people know about life that the rest of us don't. His quest led him to interview more than one thousand Americans over the age of sixty-five to seek their counsel on all the big issues: children, marriage, money, career, aging. Their moving stories and uncompromisingly honest answers often surprised him. And he found that he consistently heard advice that pointed to these thirty lessons for living. Here he weaves their personal recollections of difficulties overcome and lives well lived into a timeless book filled with the hard-won advice these older Americans wish someone had given them when they were young. Like This I Believe, StoryCorps's Listening Is an Act of Love, and Tuesdays with Morrie, 30 Lessons for Living is a book to keep and to give. Offering clear advice toward a more fulfilling life, it is as useful as it is inspiring.

"One of the best Decision Making and Game Theory books of all time." —Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn founder) and Nassim Nicholas Taleb (author of Black Swan), BookAuthority An accessible, light-hearted exploration of Game Theory—what it is, why it’s important, and how it can help us in our daily lives Game Theory is the mathematical formalization of interactive decision-making—it assumes that each player's goal is to maximize his/her benefit, whatever it may be. Players may be friends, foes, political parties, states, or any entity that behaves interactively, whether collectively or individually. One of the problems with game analysis is the fact that, as a player, it’s very hard to know what would benefit each of the other players. Some of us are not even clear about our own goals or what might actually benefit us. In Gladiators, Pirates, and Games of Trust, Haim Shapira shares humorous anecdotes and insightful examples to explain Game Theory, how it affects our daily lives, and how the different interactions between decision-makers can play out. In this book, you will: • Meet Nobel Laureate John F. Nash and familiarize yourself with Nash equilibrium • Learn the basic ideas of the art of negotiation • Visit the gladiators’ ring and apply for a coaching position • Build an airport and divide inheritance • Issue ultimatums and learn to trust • Review every aspect of the prisoner’s dilemma and learn about the importance of cooperation • Learn how statistics bolster lies • And much more

In the Book of Ecclesiastes the main character, already rich in material wealth, seeks wisdom and looks upon the lessons of his own life. Inspired by that search, bestselling philosopher Haim Shapira muses on the perennial questions most relevant to our lives. Ecclesiastes is among the most poetic books of the Old Testament, full of famous and resonant verses: 'Vanity of vanities, all is vanity'; 'A time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance'; 'I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind'. It is traditionally attributed to King Solomon (r. 970-930 BC), who advises us to avoid seeking happiness in worldly things and focus instead on the eternal truths. The book poses many vital questions: Is life nonsense and suffering or bliss? Is there any meaning to our actions under the sun? What will happen at the end? Is there any advantage to wisdom? Why can't a just regime be established? What are the relationships between happiness and wealth? What is the source of emotions and what do we know about desires? Can knowledge of death serve as a guide to life? King Solomon does not instruct us to think like him, nor does he guide us towards a particular path. Ecclesiastes sends us on a journey into The Valley of Great Questions: Abel, man, world, labor, advantage, sun, goodness, time, light, evil spirit, wisdom, love, fear of God, death, and more... Haim Shapira's rich and rigorously informed analysis allows King Solomon's voice to speak to us across the millennia, offering remarkably up-to-the-minute insights for people of all faiths and none. If you want advice about living a better life (and to learn about the meaning of life), would it not be wise to receive it from King Solomon – the wisest man of all time?