Showing posts with label make you smile. Show all posts
Showing posts with label make you smile. Show all posts

Thursday, December 29, 2011

"The Book of Holiday Awesome" By Neil Pasricha

179 pages

Wrapping a gift with that tiny leftover piece of wrapping paper. When the lights from last year all work. Successfully regifting an item. All of these happy observations are made in the latest "Book of Awesome" collection of books inspirited by Pasricha's blog, www.1000awesomethings.com. In the blog as well as his other books, Pasricha writes short, charming essays on all of the little things that make life beautiful. This collections consists of similar mini essays; the dfference is that, obviously, these entries are all devoted to the holidays. Christmas, Hanukkah, Valentine's Day, Independence Day, you name it. After I read this book, I totally found myself more aware of the wonderful little things that happen everyday. This is a great coffee table book, as it can be read in increments.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

"The Book of Even More Awesome" by Neil Pasricha

390 pages

A few years ago, Neil Pasricha was struggling. Soon after his marriage failed, one of his best friends committed suicide. After feeling depressed for a while, Neil started a blog called 1000 Awesome Things (1000awesomethings.com) to celebrate the little things that make life better, such as the smell of bakery air, snow days, and finding money you'd forgotten about in your pocket. He did it to pull himself out of his funk, but it turned into much more than that. Before long he had a book deal for "The Book of Awesome," which became a bestseller, and now there's "The Book of Even More Awesome."

I totally love 1000 Awesome Things and "The Book of Awesome," and this second book didn't fall short of my high expectations. However, I think I liked the second "Book of Awesome" slightly less than the first because it seemed more cheesy at parts. I think a little cheese fits with the style of this book and I'm okay with that, but there's a line. Still, I loved this volume. Over and over I found myself thinking, "Oh yeah, I love that!" The little essays that Pasricha writes for each item on the list never fail to cheer me up when I'm having a bad day, and they've made me more appreciative of the little things in general.

Here's a little sample of the things you'll find in "The Book of Even More Awesome":
  • When batteries are included
  • When a cop finally passes you after following for awhile
  • Getting in the fastest line at the grocery store
  • Getting a hug from someone you didn’t know you were in a hugging relationship with
  • When the person you're meeting is even later than you
  • Finally peeing after holding it in forever
  • Looking at how much dirt came off something you just cleaned
  • When a work friend becomes an outside-of-work friend
  • When a social event you didn’t want to go to gets canceled
  • An extra hour of sleep for the end of Daylight Savings Time
  • A day with nothing on your schedule