The subtle art of not giving a fuck: a counterintuitive approach to living a good life

For decades, we've been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "Fuck positivity," blogger Mark Manson says. "Let's be honest, shit is fucked and we have to live with it." This book is his antidote to the coddling, let's-all-feel-good mindset that has infected modern society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up. Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited: "Not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault." Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek. There are only so many things we can care about, so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with stories and profane, ruthless humor.