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  • Published: 14 September 2017
  • ISBN: 9781473554030
  • Imprint: Cornerstone Digital
  • Format: Audio Download
  • Length: 3 hr 24 min
  • Narrator: Naoko Mori

Ikigai

The Japanese secret to a long and happy life




2014 offered The life-changing magic of tidying
2016 surrounded us with hygge
In 2017, we’ll discover our ikigai

Ikigai – the Japanese secret to a long and happy life from the world’s longest living people.

Brought to you by Penguin.

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

We all have an ikigai.

It's the Japanese word for 'a reason to live' or 'a reason to jump out of bed in the morning'.

It's the place where your needs, desires, ambitions, and satisfaction meet. A place of balance. Small wonder that finding your ikigai is closely linked to living longer.

Finding your ikigai is easier than you might think. This book will help you work out what your own ikigai really is, and equip you to change your life. You have a purpose in this world: your skills, your interests, your desires and your history have made you the perfect candidate for something. All you have to do is find it.

Do that, and you can make every single day of your life joyful and meaningful.
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'I read it and it's bewitched me ever since. I'm spellbound.'
Chris Evans'Ikigai gently unlocks simple secrets we can all use to live long, meaningful, happy lives. Science-based studies weave beautifully into honest, straight-talking conversation you won't be able to put down. Warm, patient, and kind, this book pulls you gently along your own journey rather than pushing you from behind.' Neil Pasricha, bestselling author of The Happiness Equation

  • Published: 14 September 2017
  • ISBN: 9781473554030
  • Imprint: Cornerstone Digital
  • Format: Audio Download
  • Length: 3 hr 24 min
  • Narrator: Naoko Mori

About the authors

Héctor García

Héctor García is a citizen of Japan, where he has lived for over a decade, and of Spain, where he was born. He is the author of several books about Japanese culture, including two worldwide bestsellers, A Geek in Japan and Ikigai. A former software engineer, he worked at CERN in Switzerland before moving to Japan.

Francesc Miralles

Francesc Miralles is the award-winning and internationally bestselling author of books about how to live well, together with the novels Love in Small Letters and Wabi-Sabi.

Alongside Héctor García, he was welcomed to Okinawa in Japan, where the inhabitants live for longer than in any other place in the world. There they had the chance to interview more than a hundred villagers about their philosophy for a long and happy life.

Praise for Ikigai

The New "Hygge"

The People's Friend

If you feel you've lost your mojo, Ikigai could be the bedside reading you need to kickstart a more mindful 2018

Vegetarian Living

I love [this] book… I read it and it’s bewitched me ever since. I’m spellbound

Chris Evans, Radio 2

This book is beautifully and delicately written. It is perfect for the real world…comforting, easy to read

Nouse

If you're feeling slightly lost with regard to your direction in life, this book is a wonderfully warm, kind and comforting readfor you.

Keisei Magazine

Ikigai urges individuals to simplify their lives by pursuing what sparks joy for them

Marie 'KonMari' Kondo

A refreshingly simple recipe for happiness... According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai. It means your purpose – the reason you get up in the morning. The thing that fires you up and keeps you busy. Your raison d'être.

Stylist

Curl up on the sofa with this and enjoy an insight into Japanese culture while picking up some self-care tips you may not have considered before... Ikigai offers an insight into a gentle yet focused way of life built around a sense of purpose.

8 Best Self-Help Books, Independent

You've tried hygge and lagom - but it turns out ikigai is the key to happiness.

Independent

Ikigai is what allows you to look forward to the future... It might just help you live a more fulfilling life.

BBC

Ikigai gently unlocks simple secrets we can all use to live long, meaningful, happy lives. Science-based studies weave beautifully into honest, straight-talking conversation you won’t be able to put down. Warm, patient, and kind, this book pulls you gently along your own journey rather than pushing you from behind.

Neil Pasricha, bestselling author of The Book of Awesome and The Happiness Equation

[The] Japanese art of ikigai ... Its basic message is about "authentic living". Practitioners must fill in overlapping circles that cover motivation, fulfilment, what they earn and what improves their life. The answer at the centre will be the key to a happy and long life.

Guardian

If hygge is the art of doing nothing, ikigai is the art of doing something - and doing it with supreme focus and joy.

New York Post

A fascinating read and a practical guide to seeking a long, healthy and happy life

Liz Earle Wellbeing Magazine

The most eye catching autumn lifestyle trend is the Japanese concept of Ikigai, which translates as "reason to live"… An attractive and absorbing book.

Caroline Sanderson, The Bookseller

Persuasively shows that small changes can help readers find more joy and purpose in their lives [with] clear, succinct information . . . skillfully compiled . . . into an engaging, easily accessible format with lists, charts, and illustrations.

Publishers Weekly

The latest trend to take wellbeing bloggers by storm... A welcome reminder that we should all be making happiness a priority, for ourselves and our communities.

Huffington Post

The most eye catching autumn lifestyle trend is the Japanese concept of Ikigai, which translates as "reason to live"… An attractive and absorbing book.

Caroline Sanderson, The Bookseller

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