The Bright Side

An expansive tour de force. Paul-Choudhury's own voice shines through - he is witty, empathetic and a beautiful writer . . . We're born optimists, Paul-Choudhury argues; if you're no longer one, this title will give you a way back - and a lot more besides * * Observer * *
A powerfully inspiring study of optimism that avoids farcical good cheer. [ . . . ] Sumit Paul-Choudhury comes down firmly on the side of optimism in this lively exploration of glass-half-full thinking and its relationship with social progress. [He] presents a fascinating and wide-ranging argument that is hopeful but never trite or self-satisfied . . . It is a perspective that will be sorely needed in 2025 * * Guardian * *
I was left wondering how much humanity would change for the better if everyone read this book. Unlike the plethora of self-help publications full of their clichéd soundbites, Paul-Choudhury has written a truly inspirational and beautiful book with a powerful and timely message for today's society -- JIM AL-KHALILI, author and broadcaster
Sumit Paul-Choudhury transforms optimism from a soft-hearted notion into a hard-headed advantage. The Bright Side makes optimism rigorous, daring us to see it as a disciplined, effective way to tackle the world's toughest challenges -- DANIEL H. PINK, #1 New York Times bestselling author of DRIVE and THE POWER OF REGRET
I truly loved The Bright Side! It is both intelligent and erudite yet also accessible and warm. The range of examples and examples of pessimism pitfalls will be helpful to all -- CATHY RENTZENBRINK, author of THE LAST ACT OF LOVE
The Bright Side is a book we desperately need right now. This is science-based chicken soup for the soul. It will both nourish and empower you -- ROBERT WALDINGER, bestselling co-author of THE GOOD LIFE
With our fashion for cynicism, it's all too easy to believe the worst in ourselves and the world around us. In The Bright Side, Sumit Paul-Choudhury provides the perfect antidote to this defensive pessimism. With a lightness of touch, he deftly melds science, philosophy and culture to build a convincing case for optimism. I left this book feeling energised and empowered -- DAVID ROBSON, author of THE EXPECTATION EFFECT
This moving, insightful argument for optimism stands up against the cynical mood of the twenty-first century, challenging - and equipping - the reader to help create a better world -- DR MICHAEL BROOKS, author of THE ART OF MORE
I love this book so much! The Bright Side is a thrilling and galvanising ride. The optimism Paul-Choudhury describes is not just for the self-help aisle - it is a societal engine for creating the best of all possible worlds. This book is nothing less than a set of operating instructions for a better future -- SALLY ADEE, author of WE ARE ELECTRIC
The next few years are some of the most important in human history. The problems we face are huge, and can feel overwhelming, but it is vital that we don't fall into what Sumit Paul-Choudhury calls the pessimism trap - the sense that all is lost and there's no point struggling. This book brilliantly shows the way out. Both personal and universal, interwoven with examples from literature, history and modern science, this book shows us how to find within us fierce imagination and determined hope, and create a better future -- ROWAN HOOPER, author of SUPERHUMAN
In a world of polycrises and blighted by a pall of pessimism, this book is a beacon of light in exploring how imagination about a better future, and the agency to create that future, can lift our sights and our spirits. It could scarcely be more timely or important -- ANDY HALDANE, CEO of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA)
The Bright Side makes a compelling case for optimism. Psychological science shows that optimism is up to us, an existential choice. The facts of our external world, however, do not compel optimism, and Paul-Choudhury in a masterful historical review finds that it is the optimists who change the external world for the better while the realists passively accept their lot. I went away from this book inspired and enriched -- MARTIN E. P. SELIGMAN, bestselling author of LEARNED OPTIMISM and FLOURISH
Optimists believe problems can be solved - and we could sure use some optimism right now. Sumit Paul-Choudhury's dazzling The Bright Side lights the way -- GREGG EASTERBROOK, author of THE PROGRESS PARADOX
Paul-Choudhury showed impressive courage after his young wife's death, vowing to map the intellectual and psychological underpinnings of optimism. We are the beneficiaries of his tenacity. In lucid, lively, never highfalutin prose he brings onstage such characters as Odysseus, Oedipus, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and Helen Keller, each of whom has a vital lesson to impart. The book's conclusion: not only is optimism rational, it is a twenty-first century necessity. The Bright Side is a tonic for our times -- MEREDITH WADMAN, author of THE VACCINE RACE
Many books on optimism take an individualist approach; The Bright Side is altogether more ambitious: this is a guide for civilisation. Combining evidence-based, intellectual rigour with moving, personal experience, this book argues that optimism is no less than a collective duty for humanity, requiring courage, cooperation and imagination. This book is wise about the lessons of the past, clear-sighted about the challenges of the present, and hopeful about the possibilities of tomorrow. In its pages, the best of all possible worlds awaits. Pessimist readers will be disappointed - but they probably expected that -- RICHARD FISHER, author of THE LONG VIEW
The Bright Side is a still, small voice of calm in a culture hijacked by apocalyptic thinking and regimented behaviour. Paul-Choudhury reminds us that optimism matters, not because it is good for us (although it is), but because it is the only possible moral stance we can take to a life we none of us asked for. In a world where solutions only generate more problems, we desperately need to reframe our plight on this planet. The Bright Side is a generous and charming invitation to the future -- SIMON INGS, author of THE WEIGHT OF NUMBERS
In a spellbinding tour de force from effective altruism to AI, from the quantum multiverse to climate change, Paul-Choudhury has crafted an expansive and convincing argument of why building a better future demands that we believe in it first. An urgent call to arms to choosing change over doom, action over despair, optimism over hope -- PROFESSOR ROBERTO TROTTA, astrophysicist and author of STARBORN
A salvific, joyous paeon to all that's possible. Read this book. Don't be the version of yourself that doesn't: because the best possible version of you is almost certainly the one that picks it up. Paul-Choudhury's The Bright Side is a panoramic guide to why we should always hope that things can get better, even when it seems most likely they will not. It is just the book this world needs. You won't regret reading this: so, seize this opportunity to make the best of all possible worlds more than mere potentiality -- THOMAS MOYNIHAN, author of X-RISK