4 BOOKS TO CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON LIFE
As part of the Trouble team, it’s vital for us to read many books (sometimes weekly) in order to interview the wonderful female speakers we host at the club. If, like us, the usual beach reads just aren’t cutting it this summer, here are 4 books from this year’s roster that changed our total perspective on life itself. Think we’re being dramatic? Have a read for yourself…
JENNY KLEEMAN’S THE PRICE OF LIFE
Have you ever sat in a diner across from a confirmed serial killer? Jenny Kleeman has, and she can tell you just how much it’d cost to hire his services! Not only that, she challenged high ranking medics, the big dogs at Silicone Valley and - of course - life insurance brokers. Her book The Price of Life: In Search of What We're Worth and Who Decides takes an uncomfortable look into the roles of those responsible for deciding how much a human life is worth, the debate of giving to charity and, if so, which ones are worth our investment. Not to mention how old a child must be to be considered of optimal value to society and, therefore, worth saving above others during a medical crisis. This work is one of the most fascinating books that has been brought to Trouble in its living history, and one you simply must read.
[Our full conversation with Jenny Kleeman can be found via the Member’s Podcast!]
2. HILKE SCHELLMANN’S THE ALGORITHM
AI seems to be all we are discussing - with deep fakes, AI generated videos and Chat GPT flooding our social media. But, what is actually going on in our corporate lives and how long has it been affecting us day to day without us noticing? Enter Hilke Schellmann’s book The Algorithm: How AI Can Hijack Your Career and Steal Your Future! Her book uncovers the research done into major companies, such as Amazon and other leading industry titans, and their fatally-flawed hiring processes. It’s no wonder the job market is in the state it is, when fundamentally broken servers and programmes are being used to make life altering decisions. Our favourite part of the book might be the software that decided all successful candidates were called Thomas, and so screened out everyone else. Yeah, that happened.
[Our full conversation with Hilke Schellmann can be found via the Member’s Podcast!]
3. LUCY WEBSTER’S THE VIEW FROM DOWN HERE
Whether it be the shocking statistic of how few London tube stations are totally wheelchair accessible (only 32 of a whopping 272), or the heartbreaking, maddening and sickening treatment of disabled women in the face of motherhood - Former Guardian and BBC journalist, Lucy Webster’s poignant memoir The View From Down Here: Life as a Young, Disabled Woman truly altered my perception of life. Her first-hand account of the intersectionality of gendered violence, sexism, misogyny and disability will leave you looking up from the book every few seconds saying, ‘Did you know…’ - and honestly, you won’t have known. And we all should know. Read it, pass it to a friend, a sister, a father, a colleague. We all must do better.
[Our full conversation with Lucy Webster can be found via the Member’s Podcast!]
4. BONNIE WAN’S THE LIFE BRIEF
Are you always trying to shake off your ‘work persona’ in order to switch gears and be more accommodating in your personal life? You need Bonnie' Wan’s book The Life Brief: A Playbook for No-Regrets Living! Never had I considered that I could harness my corporate personality to further my home life. This book teaches you how to create detailed blueprints (the kind you might submit for a corporate creative project at the office) in order to progress your personal life. The way you manage your daily affairs will never be the same again. Who would have guessed that the analytical thinking we use in the office every day could be directly applied to bettering all of the separate moving parts of our home lives? Marriage, finances, parenting, mental health - you name it, there’s a life brief for it. This book is especially helpful for those who cannot, for the life of them, find solace while meditating and find the word ‘manifestation’ akin to ‘unicorn’. This works, we promise.
[Our full conversation with Bonnie Wan can be found via the Member’s Podcast!]