This is a great resource. Not meant to be read in one sitting. To me it felt like a book for guidance. It was hard to get through. If you are into stoicism, this is a great resource for you. Not that you would want to have one more thing in your life.

This was hard for me to get through for some reason but I love the premise behind it. Thanks for the ARC and letting me read it for an honest review.

This title is written by an Italian philosopher. In it, he updates some precepts of stoicism for the modern reader. In particular Pigliucci examines the handbook of Epicetus. Through this, he offers thoughts about how one can live their best life.

To me, parts of this book were quite proscriptive but I think that was the writer’s intent. Stoicism as a philosophical way of looking at the world becomes clear through this text.

Do you aspire to live a life like the ancient Stoics? Do you want to understand more about the Stoics way of looking at the world? If yes, give this one a look.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Massimo Pigliucci and his Field guide to a happy life presents Stoicism for modern times. He shows us how to adopt Stoic philosophy as our compass to live a life worth living.

We all know stoics Marcus Aurelius and Seneca, here author mostly focuses on Epictetus's teachings.

First section of the book is meant as general introduction to Stoicism and to Epictetus.
Central and crucial section comprises fifty-three units, each paralleling a similar unit of original manual with relatable examples to our times.
Third section is a summary of how modern Stoicism diverges from "original", keeping in mind that Stoicism has been altered constantly through time.

Very useful book, I love it.

When I originally picked this book to read, I didn't know what to expect, but A Field Guide to a Happy Life: 53 Brief Lessons for Living did end up teaching me some new concepts I didn't know about. The main thing you should know about this book- if you haven't already done some research on it- is that it is about Stoicism.

Stoicism is a philosophy that is based on living a virtuous life as well as valuing wisdom. Although this book does mention that you can learn about Stoicism without prior knowledge, I did feel overwhelmed at times because of my ignorance on the topic. I was able to pick some things up regarding Stoic thought, this was done through examples, but there were times where I felt I was inundated with information, so I did not get a full grasp on the subject.

My suggestion is that if you are looking to learn more about Stoicism, that you also do some research before to get your feet wet, and then read this book in pieces so that you have plenty of time to reflect on the subject.

I enjoyed this useful (if somewhat repetitive) brief guide outlining the basics premises of the Stoic philosophy of Epictetus. The concepts are explained clearly and with gentle humour and, with study and practice, are simple--if not easy--to follow.

There were some parts of this book that I enjoyed. But I felt like a lot of it didn't really apply to my life. I had a hard time connecting to some of the ideas.

Drawing from Epictetus's teachings and insights, the author expounds on living, how we relate to each other and nature and I was mostly fascinated by how we react to things or how our judgement of things affects our lives.
This is not the kind of book you can read in one sitting- it's neither fiction nor fantasy, it's more of the book that you can hope to engage friends or strangers into a conversation on.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

Some thought provoking ideas explained in the book but I didnt feel engaged or drawn into what I was reading meaning difficult to relate to real life. Read a bit too much like a textbook for me.