What We Are Reading Today: What Do You Want Out of Life?

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Updated 27 December 2022
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What We Are Reading Today: What Do You Want Out of Life?

Author: Valerie Tiberius 

What do you want out of life? To make a lot of money—or work for justice? To run marathons—or sing in a choir? To have children—or travel the world? The things we care about in life—family, friendship, leisure activities, work, our moral ideals—often conflict, preventing us from doing what matters most to us. Even worse, we don’t always know what we really want, or how to define success.

Blending personal stories, philosophy, and psychology, this insightful and entertaining book offers invaluable advice about living well by understanding your values and resolving the conflicts that frustrate their fulfillment.

 


What We Are Reading Today: ‘Volcanoes in Human History’

Updated 05 January 2026
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What We Are Reading Today: ‘Volcanoes in Human History’

Authors: Jelle Zeilinga De Boer and Donald Theodore Sanders

When the volcano Tambora erupted in Indonesia in 1815, as many as one hundred thousand people perished from the blast and ensuing famine. 

Gases and dust particles ejected into the atmosphere changed weather patterns around the world, resulting in the infamous “year without a summer” in North America, food riots in Europe, and a widespread cholera epidemic.

And the gloomy weather inspired Mary Shelley to write the gothic novel “Frankenstein.” This panoramic book tells the story of nine such epic volcanic events.