The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times

by Jane Goodall, Douglas Abrams

Overview

**THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER**

In a world that seems so troubled, how do we hold on to hope?

Looking at the headlines—the worsening climate crisis, a global pandemic, loss of biodiversity, political upheaval—it can be hard to feel optimistic. And yet hope has never been more desperately needed.

In this urgent book, Jane Goodall, the world's most famous living naturalist, and Douglas Abrams, the internationally bestselling co-author of The Book of Joy, explore through intimate and thought-provoking dialogue one of the most sought after and least understood elements of human nature: hope. In The Book of Hope, Jane focuses on her "Four Reasons for Hope": The Amazing Human Intellect, The Resilience of Nature, The Power of Young People, and The Indomitable Human Spirit.

Drawing on decades of work that has helped expand our understanding of what it means to be human and what we all need to do to help build a better world, The Book of Hope touches on vital questions, including: How do we stay hopeful when everything seems hopeless? How do we cultivate hope in our children? What is the relationship between hope and action? Filled with moving and inspirational stories and photographs from Jane’s remarkable career, The Book of Hope is a deeply personal conversation with one of the most beloved figures in the world today.

While discussing the experiences that shaped her discoveries and beliefs, Jane tells the story of how she became a messenger of hope, from living through World War II to her years in Gombe to realizing she had to leave the forest to travel the world in her role as an advocate for environmental justice. And for the first time, she shares her profound revelations about her next, and perhaps final, adventure.

The second book in the Global Icons Series—which launched with the instant classic The Book of Joy with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu—The Book of Hope is a rare and intimate look not only at the nature of hope but also into the heart and mind of a woman who revolutionized how we view the world around us and has spent a lifetime fighting for our future.

There is still hope, and this book will help guide us to it.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250784094
Publisher:	Celadon Books
Publication date:	10/19/2021
Series:	Global Icons Series
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	4,511
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Jane Goodall:
Dr. Jane Goodall DBE is an ethologist and environmentalist. From infancy she was fascinated by animal behavior, and in 1957 at 23 years old, she met the famous paleoanthropologist Dr. Louis Leakey while she was visiting a friend in Kenya. Impressed by her passion for animals, he offered her the chance to be the first person to study chimpanzees, our closest living relatives, in the wild. And so three years later Jane travelled from England to what is now Tanzania and, equipped with only a notebook, binoculars and determination to succeed, ventured into the then unknown world of wild chimpanzees.

Jane Goodall’s research at Gombe national park has given us an in-depth understanding of chimpanzee behavior. The research continues, but in 1986, realizing the threat to chimpanzees throughout Africa, Jane travelled to six study sites. She learned first-hand not only about the problems facing chimpanzees, but also about those facing so many Africans living in poverty. She realized that only by helping local communities find ways of making a living without destroying the environment could chimpanzees be saved. Since then Jane has travelled the world raising awareness and learning about the threats we all face today, especially climate change and loss of biodiversity. Author of many books for adults and children and featured in countless documentaries and articles, Jane has reached millions around the world with her lectures, podcasts and writings. She was appointed as a UN Messenger of Peace, is a Dame of the British Empire and has received countless honors from around the world.

Douglas Abrams:
Douglas Abrams is the New York Times bestselling co-author of The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the first book in the Global Icons Series. Douglas is also the founder and president of Idea Architects, a literary agency and media development company helping visionaries to create a wiser, healthier, and more just world. He lives in Santa Cruz, California.

Table of Contents

An Invitation to Hope 11

I What is Hope?

Whisky and Swahili Bean Sauce 21

Is Hope Real? 28

Have You Ever Lost Hope? 32

Can Science Explain Hope? 54

How Do We Have Hope in Trying Times? 60

II Jane's Four Reasons for Hope

Reason 1 The Amazing Human

Intellect 73

From Prehistoric Ape to Master of the World 77

Half Sinner, Half Saint 83

A New Universal Moral Code 90

The Wise? Ape 97

Reason 2 The Resilience of Nature 105

Eco-Grief 116

The Will to Live 126

Adapt or Perish 132

Nurturing Mother Nature 135

Rescued from the Brink 141

The Tapestry of Life 148

Our Need for Nature 160

Reason 3 The Power of Young People 169

Love in a Hopeless Place 179

"I Don't Want Your Hope" 190

Millions of Drops Make an Ocean 196

Nurturing the Future 201

Reason 4 The Indomitable

Human Spirit 213

When I Decide to Climb Everest 217

The Spirit That Never Surrenders 225

Nurturing the Indomitable Spirit in Children 237

How the Indomitable Human Spirit Helps Us Heal 240

We Need Each Other 246

III Becoming a Messenger of Hope

A Lifelong Journey 257

Challenges in Africa 283

From Shy Young Woman to Global Public Speaker 286

"Let's Just Say It Was a Mission" 290

Was It Coincidence? 296

Spiritual Evolution 302

Jane's Next Great Adventure 310

Conclusion: A Message of Hope from Jane 323

Acknowledgments 339

Further Reading 349

Editorial Reviews

★ 06/28/2021

This illuminating conversation between naturalist Goodall (Reason for Hope) and Abrams (coauthor, The Book of Joy) teases out Goodall’s thoughts on why one should feel hopeful in “dark times.” According to Goodall, there are “four main reasons for hope: the amazing human intellect, the resilience of nature, the power of youth, and the indomitable human spirit.” In unpacking her belief in the power of persistence, Goodall takes readers to her childhood home in England, where her family questioned if she had the constitution to travel to Africa; to Tanzania, where she studied chimpanzees and came face to face with “crippling poverty, lack of good education and degradation of the land”; and into her work as a U.N. Messenger of Peace. In the process, she cites having a spiritual sense of purpose as crucial to her hope and activism. Her infectious optimism and stirring call to action make this necessary reading for those concerned about the planet’s future: “we must not let this distract us from the far greater threat to our future—the climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity,” she writes. “Find your reasons for hope and let them guide you onward.” Goodall’s rousing testament will resonate widely. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

**As seen in TIME, CBS Sunday Morning, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, Parade, AARP, and Guideposts**

"I don't feel there could have been a more timely moment for this book to be coming into our lives... it's the book we've been waiting for. It's the book we've been hoping for."
—Jay Shetty, On Purpose Purpose

"Despite the many issues of our collective culture, The Book of Hope is a perfect example of how we can still dream and create a better world. It's an amazing book that takes you on an extraordinary journey, and once you read it, you too will experience the many profound reasons for hope."
—Deepak Chopra

"...An informative road map of ideas for ways in which every person may help bring about positive change in the world."
—NPR Books

Goodall's "infectious optimism and stirring call to action make this necessary reading for those concerned about the planet’s future... [Her] rousing testament will resonate widely."
—Publisher's Weekly, starred review

"Goodall's words and wisdom will resonate in your heart and soul, inspiring action, change, and, yes, hope."
—Business Insider

"Goodall’s eloquent reflections prove strikingly persuasive and often profoundly moving."
—Christian Science Monitor

"Vibrant with wry humor, scientific fact, grassroots advances, compassion, and spiritual depth, this compelling and enlightening dialogue of hope amplifies Goodall’s mantra: 'Together we can. Together we will.'"
—Booklist, starred review

"Ultimately, this is less a self-help book than the personal testament of a traditional idealist with the belief that we are put on Earth for a purpose...An estimable researcher and activist tells stories and delivers uplifting advice."
—Kirkus Reviews

"A lifetime of experience and wisdom combines with much-needed optimism in this guide to the climate crisis and what we can do about it."
—The Guardian

From the Publisher

09/01/2021

Abrams (The Book of Joy: Finding Happiness in an Uncertain World) interviews famed animal behaviorist and environmentalist Goodall (In the Shadow of Man) on her hopes for the future of the world. Although the planet is in dire straits due to climate change, poverty, corruption, loss of habitat and diversity, unsustainable lifestyles, and a rapidly growing population, Goodall believes there is still a window of opportunity to solve these and myriad other problems that affect the Earth's functioning. Among Goodall's reasons for hope: the amazing human intellect, the resilience of nature, the power of young people, and the indomitable human spirit. Adams and Goodall explore each of these reasons for hope, and Goodall offers examples to illustrate her points. Her key argument is that governments and scientists must involve everyone, especially young people, in decision-making if both the environment and people are to prosper. Abrams also shares the science of hope, events from Goodall's life, and photographs from throughout her career. VERDICT An inspiring, personal, hopeful look at ways in which people can work towards solutions to serious problems to prevent further environmental disaster. This book will appeal to Goodall's many fans, conservationists, and anyone who cares about the planet and needs a dose of hope.—Sue O'Brien, Downers Grove, IL

Library Journal

2021-08-13
The renowned naturalist and chimpanzee researcher reflects on her philosophy of life.

No longer observing wildlife in the fast-vanishing African forests, Goodall, now 87, continues to work, traveling the world to speak about conservation, humane treatment of animals, reforestation, and the detriments of climate change and poverty. Written as a dialogue with Abrams, who has co-authored similar eloquent testaments with the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, this book mixes autobiographical details with a fiercely positive credo that has kept Goodall fighting in the face of immense odds. Goodall maintains that hope is often misunderstood. “People tend to think that it is simply passive wishful thinking: I hope something will happen but I’m not going to do anything about it,” she notes. “This is indeed the opposite of real hope, which requires action and engagement. Many people understand the dire state of the planet—but do nothing about it because they feel helpless and hopeless.” She adds that achieving a lasting sense of hope requires four components: attainable goals, realistic pathways to pursue them, confidence that we will succeed, and confidence that others support us. Goodall emphasizes that hope is a survival trait that every child possesses, but it must be cultivated. She illustrates this point with anecdotes from her life as a naturalist and teacher as well as many mystical, science-can’t-explain experiences that often turn up in inspirational writing. Ultimately, this is less a self-help book than the personal testament of a traditional idealist with the belief that we are put on Earth for a purpose and that the universe must have a deep, guiding intelligence behind it—if not the traditional God, then something similar. As Goodall notes late in the book, she welcomes a “convergence of science and religion and spirituality.”

An estimable researcher and activist tells stories and delivers uplifting advice.

Kirkus Reviews