Readers recommend…

Somebody Told Me by Danny Wallace

I've just finished reading this, and it's both hilarious and genuinely terrifying. Danny Wallace looks at how disinformation, conspiracy theories, and faceless trolls can spread fake news like wildfire. Along the way, he meets families, friends and whole communities who have been torn apart as a result and asks if there's anything any of us can do to stop it.

Jenny Hicken @greatnorthmum.bsky.social

Awaken the Giant Within by Anthony Robbins

Back in 2006, Robbins' seminar 'Unleash the Power Within' left a lasting impression on me. It was one of the first times I truly committed to the idea of personal development and showing up for myself. Given everything that's happening in the world right now, I felt drawn to revisit those lessons – to reconnect with that mindset and remind myself of the power of intentional living. I recommend the book to anyone looking to take back control of their mindset and make meaningful changes in their life.

Cynthia Adewole on LinkedIn

Joined Up Thinking by Hannah Critchlow

I love how Critchlow has the ability to tap into themes of 'collective intelligence', highlighting the importance of returning to thinking of intelligence as a collaborative act, not as an individual test score. She examines the interplay between technological development and social change and how it is a constant of our species' intellectual progress. It's a very accessible but gripping read!

Nandini Dutta on LinkedIn

Powering Workplace Proactivity: How to Build a Future-Focused, Change-Oriented Culture by Joanne Gray

This book does an excellent job of blending theory with practical tips for improving workplace proactivity. It is practical and gives a range of evidence-based tools and techniques as well as case studies - there's something helpful for every organisation in this book. In terms of fiction, I'll also be re-reading The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune. It's such a beautiful book about accepting differences.

Joanne Price on LinkedIn

Sexual Diversity: Being Human through Understanding and Acceptance by Silva Neves

Neves writes very clearly and demystifies much of the contemporary rhetoric around the subject of sexual diversity. This is a very readable book, clearly set out and, importantly, enjoyable to read. It's an excellent resource for students, qualified therapists and those in related professions.

College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists

Written in Bone by Sue Black

This is a fascinating description of how human lives are imagined through the forensic examination of a person after they have died. Written by world-renowned forensic anthropologist, Professor Dame Sue Black, she is able to tell us how everything we do leaves a trace in our bones - messages that wait patiently for months, years or even centuries.

Sally Tilt, BPS Member Circle

The Gift of Therapy by Irvin D. Yalom

An oldie but a goodie. Loads of practical advice for newly qualified therapists, which I really appreciated following all the theory I learned when training. I also loved Insight by Tasha Eurich for some good old introspection: this was one recommended at the last Graduate BPS conference.

Shamim Patel, BPS Member Circle

The Business Explorer by Dave Rogers

I recently saw Rogers speak at our local TEDx event and found his words really inspiring, which resulted in me downloading his book! After finishing this, I plan to read The Body Keeps Score by Bessel van der Kolk, which is often a favourite of members of the BPS!

Karen Mills, BPS Member Circle

Hitler, Stalin, Mum & Dad: A Family Memoir of Miraculous Survival by Daniel Finkelstein

This isn't in any way light reading, but it is utterly breathtaking. It's a powerful and moving account of how one family survived during one of the most terrible periods in human history. The book describes what happened to each of his parents and grandparents in the period leading up to, during and after the Second World War. Harrowing but beautifully written.

Michael Scott, BPS Member Circle

Everything Must Go: Why we are obsessed with the end of the world by Dorian Lynskey

Also,

Endless Forms: Why We Should Love Wasps by Seirian Sumner
Moon Dust: In Search of the Men Who Fell to Earth by Andrew Smith
The World Without Us by Alan Weisman

What can I say? I like stuff about apocalypses, space, and animals (mostly when there's a parasitic element).

Jon Sutton, Head of Science Communication, BPS

The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton

I first read this when I was a library prefect in secondary school - eager to read as many classics as I could! My sister got me a fancy copy of it for Christmas, and reading it as an adult has shed new light on its themes. As a child, I liked orphaned Lily Bart, a 20-something woman who is known for her good looks and charm, but is unmarried, which is seen as scandalous for the early 1900s. 

Now when I read it, I am more understanding of Lily's gambling problem and dependency on family and friends which makes the ending even more tragic and pivotal today: where wealth and reputation determine your fate and the limited choices available to those who are financially vulnerable; where moral integrity clashes with the demands of society. There's a film adaptation starring a young Gillian Anderson (Sex Education) which I just might have to watch this summer…

Chrissie Fitch, Associate Editor for Culture, The Psychologist. 

The Incurable Romantic by Frank Tallis

Once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down. I wanted to recommend it to all my colleagues so we could have conversations about the link between romantic love and mental health. Tallis draws on his clinical experience as a psychologist to explore the often-irrational nature of romantic love, an emotion capable of healing and harming. 

In each chapter, he explores a real-life case study of how romantic love has caused individuals to act in ways they never usually would. It examines delusion, jealousy and addiction, to name a few themes. I don't think that much psychology training deeply engages with the emotional, existential, and obsessive aspects of love. Reading this left me wondering, along with Tallis, whether this gap in teaching overlooks an essential part of the human experience — one that may be both timeless and profoundly significant.

Anna Joyce, Assistant Psychologist, NHS Isle of Wight