A Need To Read
For the curious mind.
Listen on:
Episodes
Tuesday May 03, 2022
Tuesday May 03, 2022
I’m joined by Daisy Harris-Burland and Harriet Bradley for a casual conversation about everything from books we've loved to the Kardashians.
Get your bookmarks from: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/TheBookmarkBoys?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=795580183
Some of the books discussed were;
How to think more about sex, Essays in Love, How Proust Can Change Your Life, and The School of life, all by Alain de Botton
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
The Virgin Suicides by Jeffery Eugenides
Catcher In The Rye by J. D. Salinger
Support
The best thing you can do is share the podcast with a friend, or sign up for my new weekly newsletter.
If you want to learn to understand your behavior or emotions with the help of a professional you can get 10% off your first month of therapy by heading to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
You can get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year's supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: www.aneedtoread.co.uk/contact
Wednesday Apr 27, 2022
Wednesday Apr 27, 2022
In this episode, I review The Consolations of Philosophy by Alain de Botton and The Socrates Express by Eric Weiner. Both books are excellent introductions to some philosophers you may not have come across just yet. In the podcast, I go into what we can learn from; Socrates (How to deal with unpopularity), Michel de Montaigne (How to deal with inadequacy), Arthur Schopenhauer, Gandhi (How to fight), and Epicurus (How to enjoy life).
Support
The best thing you can do is share the podcast with a friend, or sign up for my new weekly newsletter.
If you want to learn to understand your behavior or emotions with the help of a professional you can get 10% off your first month of therapy by heading to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
You can get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year's supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: www.aneedtoread.co.uk/contact
Tuesday Apr 19, 2022
Tuesday Apr 19, 2022
This episode is a review of novels I’ve read recently that you might enjoy over the summer. I also discuss; why you should read classics, the trouble with falling asleep when you’re reading, remembering what you’ve read, thinking you’re insane, reading nihilist novels, and finding comfort in characters.
Books discussed
A Little Life - Hanya Yangaihara
Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse
Siddartha by Herman Hesse
Damned by Chuck Palahniuk
Confederacy of Dunces by John O’Toole
A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
Faking Friends by Jane Fallon
Worst Idea Ever by Jane Fallon
Adults by Emma Jane Umbridge
The Virgin Suicides by Jeffery Eugenides
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Life For Sale by Yukio Mishima
Animal Farm by George Orwell (on Audible)
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
BONUS: Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Support
The best thing you can do is share the podcast with a friend, or sign up for my new weekly newsletter.
If you want to learn to understand your behavior or emotions with the help of a professional you can get 10% off your first month of therapy by heading to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
You can get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year's supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: www.aneedtoread.co.uk/contact
Tuesday Apr 12, 2022
Tuesday Apr 12, 2022
Whitney Goodman is the radically honest psychotherapist behind the hugely popular Instagram account @sitwithwhit, the author of Toxic Positivity, and Runs her own private therapy practice in Miami. Her mission is to help people understand their emotions so they can take control of, and enjoy their life.
Whitney has her own column in Psychology Today and has been featured in dozens of domestic and international publications, including The New York Times, Teen Vogue, and Good Morning America.
She joins me to discuss; how positivity becomes toxic, the role social media plays in spreading toxic positivity, how we can complain effectively, how gratitude is not a cure-all, the problems with being healing obsessed, my experience with pathologising, and how to live well by feeling the full spectrum of emotions.
Support
Please help me by sharing this podcast with a friend, or by signing up for my new weekly newsletter.
If you want to learn to understand your behavior or emotions with the help of a professional you can get 10% off your first month of therapy by heading to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
You can get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year's supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk
Friday Apr 08, 2022
Friday Apr 08, 2022
This episode is a review of Jia Tolentino's collection of essays in her book Trick Mirror. Her essays cover; Internet usage, Fraternities in the US, reality TV, Marriage, the cult of optimization, and a look at the seven major scams of her generation.
These are new topics for me so if I need to balance my perspective please let me know.
Support
Please help me by sharing this podcast with a friend, or by signing up for my new weekly newsletter.
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
Patrick Alley is an author and one of the founders of Global Witness, an organization whose investigations and reports into human rights and environmental abuse have uncovered some of the most shocking corruption cases of our time.
Patrick joins me to chat about; how he and his colleagues took down the Khmer Rouge rebels in Cambodia, the Blood Diamond report, how London is a safe haven for the corrupt, Facebook and their role in hate crimes, and just how corrupt wars are.
Find more on Global Witness here: https://www.globalwitness.org/en/about-us/
Support
Please help me by sharing this podcast with a friend, or by signing up for my new weekly newsletter.
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk
Thursday Mar 31, 2022
Thursday Mar 31, 2022
In this episode, I discuss my thoughts on happiness and why we should drop our obsession with it. I cover: why you should be careful who you admire and listen to, how well we are placed to make rational judgments in our life, the different types of happiness, hedonic adaption, Natural vs Synthetic Happiness, whether we want to be happy all the time, the illusion of control of our minds and life, perfectionism, self-esteem, Stoic and Buddhist views on happiness and what to do when sadness eventually strikes.
If you have any questions please feel free to email me, or message me on Instagram
If you would like to, you can buy me a coffee
Further reading
The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris
The Sweet Spot by Paul Bloom
Selfie By Will Storr
Why Buddhism Is True by Robert Wright
Letters From A Stoic by Seneca
Stumbling On Happiness by Daniel Gilbert
Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman
The Antidote by Oliver Burkeman
A Little History of Philosophy by Nigel Warburton
The Happiness Hypothesis by Jonathon Haidt
Siddhartha by Herman Hesse (Novel set around the time of the Buddha, highlights the troubles of a life dedicated to extremes of spirituality/debauchery)
Support
Please help me by sharing this podcast with a friend, or by signing up for my new weekly newsletter.
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Get an additional 5 free travel packs and a year supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk
Monday Mar 28, 2022
Monday Mar 28, 2022
Wendy Syfret is a Melbourne-based writer and editor, and author of The Sunny Nihilist. She has spent time working for VICE and has contributed to The Guardian, British Vogue, and ABC.
She is the current editor at RIISE and her work can be found at www.Wendysyfret.com
Support
Please help me by sharing this podcast with a friend, or by signing up for my new weekly newsletter.
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Get an additional 5 free travel packs and a years supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk
Friday Mar 11, 2022
Friday Mar 11, 2022
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Symeon Brown is a journalist and reporter for Channel 4, his long-read 'The Wolves Of Instagram' was nominated for an Orwell prize. His new book Get Rich Or Lie Tryin' is an in-depth look at some of the perils of the influencer economy. We discuss who it's hurting, an influencer's nipple falling off, how we're being lied to, some of the pyramid schemes disguised as get-rich-quick schemes, and much more.
The book is out now if you want to get a copy from your local book store.
Support
The best way to support the show is to share it with a friend. Or you can share it with a not-a-friend, I’m not fussy.
To get weekly insightful emails from me head to this link: https://aneedtoread.us19.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0334e9242982fc3b7d0ab8bac&id=e2e171e387
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Get an additional 5 free travel packs and a years supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk
Tuesday Mar 08, 2022
Tuesday Mar 08, 2022
This is a review, and summary of some key ideas, of Rutger Bregman's Human Kind. The bold idea this book tries to convert you to is: Humans are actually pretty decent. I sat on the other side of this debate for a long time and have been convinced to change my mind. This outlook on life seems to have made a really positive change. Hopefully, it'll do the same for some others!
Support
The best way to support the show is to share it with a friend. Or you can share it with a not-a-friend, I’m not fussy.
To get weekly insightful emails from me head to this link: https://aneedtoread.us19.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0334e9242982fc3b7d0ab8bac&id=e2e171e387
To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5 minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.
Get an additional 5 free travel packs and a years supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread
I am reachable here: hello@aneedtoread.co.uk