Thank you to @riverheadbooks and Setiya for sending me an advanced copy 🖤



Life is Hard by Kieran Setiya is beautiful and genuine. I expected this to be a more heavy read, but I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did. I appreciated the author sharing parts of their story and it made it easier as a reader to relate.

Not really a “how to” guide. It’s more of a “why” and it challenged me.

Thank you @riverheadbooks and Kieran Sethiya for the advanced copy of LIFE IS HARD: HOW PHILOSOPHY CAN HELP US FIND OUR WAY!

Thoughts 💭: This was an unexpected but a compelling read. In this compelling philosophical guide, as it’s been called, Seitya’s belief of how philosophy can become a tool we can use to navigate through personal trauma to social injustice in this world. Sethiya draws on ancient and mordern philosophy using social media and literary examples as well as stories from his own experiences to help his readers rethink how we use or think of philosophy in our lives. I also thought this book helped us to further think of how fate, spirituality, and religion often dictate our lives.

This book is warm, accessible, and is a timely contribution in these challenging times. This is especially true as we are still reeling from the pandemic. Just yesterday, I was peer reviewing an article on how students can use visual arts to cope with the social injustice in this world mix and that article ties so beautifully with Sethiya’s book!

There is no cure for the human condition: life is hard. Kieran Setiya has written a guide to face life's challenges including sections on Infirmity, Loneliness, Grief, Failure, Injustice, Absurdity, and Hope. This is a bit memoir, and a bit reading log. I found the title just a bit misleading because Setiya includes much more than philosophy. Examples of literary greats including Virginia Woolf and Herman Melville are included in the ways to help us find our way. This book encourages reflecting as readers become reacquainted with or introduced to different philosophies. This would make a beautiful gift for for friends and loved ones who are navigating their human conditions.

This was a beautifully written book that everyone should have on their shelf. Admittedly, there were no earth shattering revelations or life altering epiphanies, but what it did offer was perspective and insight. Setiya skillfully gives you the information and context you need as he goes so you do not have to have a background in philosophy to understand and enjoy this book. The way he ties it all together is poetry and his humor adds levity to some deceptively deep and heavy topics. This book invites thought, compassion, reflection, and consideration, both for one's own life and the lives of those around us.