The Algorithm Age

We all need a little bit of comfort these days. In a fast-paced and interconnected world, many of us are feeling overwhelmed by our phones and social media, climate change and politics . Reading is one way to quiet the noise. Turning to a good book can be an act of self-care and even promote healing – like “bibliotherapy,” a practice some therapists use to help clients work through issues using literature as the tool. Though what's comforting can look different person to person, here are eight books we recommend turning to when you need to feel a little lighter, a bit better and a hint more hopeful. Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning. ‘Anxious People’ by Fredrik Backman I’d nominate any Backman book for this list, especially “Anxious People.” Backman has a particular talent for writing about hard topics in a way that still makes you cozy, even telling USA TODAY in May that he aims to make readers “c...

Nicola Trotman grew up as an avid bookworm, often reading under the duvet by torchlight. So when her daughter Sadie, who will turn two in August, was born, she made a point of instilling a similar love of books. “After bath time, we read stories to her. It’s a habit we really enjoy and that she really enjoys, so much so that everyone says she’s going to be a bit of a bookworm like me,” says the 34-year-old PR director from Melbourne. “It’s really helped a lot with her language development. You can have almost conversations with her … she knows all her animals, she’s learning colours at the moment. She knows her ABCs already.” Bedtime reading at an all-time low New research from HarperCollins UK , however, has found the number of parents reading aloud to children is at an all-time low. Fewer than half of parents of children under 13 said reading aloud to children was “fun for me”, while fewer than half of 0- to 4-year-olds a...