Book Recommendations

  I met the author of this book, at a Melbourne Books evening, 10th December 2024 at which David Tenenbaum and team were celebrating their published authors of the year. As a fellow author of Melbourne Books, I take this opportunity to foster and appreciate another author on their exciting entry into the world of… Read More

I love gifting books, and I love being gifted books! This month’s book recommendation is one that was gifted to me back in 2020 and has since been greatly enjoyed, shared, and treasured. As you know, Sue and I are career educators with a passion for supporting people – young and old – to foster… Read More

Hugh Mackay, leading Australian sociologist, is no stranger to our blogs! I have recommended his books, The Inner Self, blog 128, and The Way We Are, blog 132, and blog 135. I return to his work in this blog, when recommending his book, Right & Wrong. I previously referred to Mackay as a learned elder,… Read More

Over the past decade, I have greatly admired the work of Dr. Lucy Hone, co-director of the New Zealand Institute of Wellbeing and Resilience. I’m fortunate to know Lucy (and her co-director, Dr. Denise Quinlan) personally and had the privilege of contributing a chapter to their recent book, The Educators’ Guide to Whole-School Wellbeing. Today,… Read More

When I began writing blogs for my manifesto, I found a great deal of encouragement from this anthology on my shelf, The Art of the Personal Essay, selected and introduced by Phillip Lopate. His introduction encouraged me – along with the invitation to be ‘playful’ by our very own Justin Robinson – to have fun… Read More

I have great respect and admiration for many leaders and pioneers in the field of wellbeing and positive psychology, and Tal Ben-Shahar, is one of these inspiring figures. I feel fortunate to have connected with Tal during his visits to Geelong Grammar School, completed his 12-month Certificate in Positive Psychology course, and absorbed the wisdom… Read More

I was grateful to read this uplifting and inspiring memoir of Eddie Jaku before his passing in late 2021. The book was published in 2020 as Eddie turned 100, and I found it to be a powerful, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful memoir about how happiness can be found even in the darkest of times. Edward… Read More

As I sit down on the eve of the Geelong Book Launch of our book, My Manifesto, my heart is full of warmth, gratitude, and love. (There are also plenty of nerves and excitement mixed in there as well!). In focussing on the big emotion of love, it reminded me of a powerful book in… Read More

It is with great pleasure that I have the opportunity to recommend Hugh Mackay’s latest book, The Way We Are, which I alluded to when I wrote an earlier blog about his book, The Inner Self. The subtitle of this book is Lessons from a lifetime of listening, and I for one are heartily grateful… Read More