Life Skills for a Broken World (Ahona Guha, Scribe)

Like having a therapist in your pocket, Life Skills for a Broken World is a guide to positive mental health, leading readers through potential pitfalls and prevention strategies. Ahona Guha, a psychologist and author of Reclaim (on complex trauma), begins her second book with strategies for identifying values, processing emotions and thinking about our thoughts (meta-cognition), before narrowing into more specific issues, including coping with change, death and heartbreak through radical acceptance. As the author suggests, read it cover to cover for a general ‘framework’ for living well or flip to a particular section for specific guidance. The title itself, referencing ‘a broken world’, holds the key to the distinctive nature of this book in a crowded market. The book includes advice on boundaries and burnout (significant issues post-Covid) as well as combatting disinformation, resisting social media messaging and the capitalist pressure for more, keeping hope alive, being a good ally and fighting for change. The ‘further reading’ sections at the end of many chapters offer useful materials (such as a historical perspective on burnout and books on self-compassion), and the graphics and design break the text up nicely. Suitable for wellbeing ‘first-aid’ and a good port of call for those considering professional help, this relevant and readable book offers practical advice for coping with life and social situations; it would also make a good gift for young adults.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Joanne Shiells is a former editor of Books+Publishing and a current high school teacher. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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