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The Lonely Century
- Coming Together in a World That's Pulling Apart
- Narrated by: Noreena Hertz
- Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins
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The Lonely Century
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Summary
Even before a global pandemic introduced us to terms like social distancing, loneliness was already becoming the defining condition of the twenty-first century.
Carl, the Los Angeles media executive so lonely he pays to be cuddled. Eric, the Parisian baker finding community in the political far right. Peter, the London schoolboy distraught because no one 'likes' his Instagram posts.
All around us, the fabric of community is unravelling and our personal relationships are under threat. And technology isn't the sole culprit; equally to blame are the dismantling of civic institutions, the radical reorganisation of the workplace, mass migration to cities, and decades of neoliberal policies that placed self-interest above the collective good.
This is not merely a mental health crisis. Loneliness increases our risk of heart disease, cancer and dementia. Statistically, it's as bad for our health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. It's also an economic crisis, costing us billions annually, and a political crisis, with feelings of marginalisation fuelling divisiveness and extremism around the world.
But it's also one we have the power to reverse. Combining a decade of research with first-hand reporting, Noreena Hertz takes us from a 'how to communicate in real life' class at an Ivy League university to encounters in German beer gardens between people with radically different political views, from 'renting a friend' in Manhattan to nursing home residents knitting bonnets for their robot caregivers in Japan.
Offering bold solutions ranging from compassionate AI to innovative models for urban living to new ways of reinvigorating our neighbourhoods and reconciling our differences, The Lonely Century offers a hopeful and empowering vision for how to heal our fractured communities and restore connection in our lives.
Critic reviews
"Indispensable, engaging and brilliant book about the pervasiveness of loneliness in the twenty-first century and its far-reaching impact...a hopeful book that couldn't be more important or timely." (Philippa Perry, author of The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read)
"Fascinating, timely and important...Read it, then pass it on to a friend. If you can find one." (Charlie Brooker)
"Passionately argued and deeply researched, this book is for everyone who wants to build a healthier and more connected world." (Arianna Huffington)
What listeners say about The Lonely Century
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Oleks GALKA
- 23-06-21
lonely century - Covid 19?
fantastic listen. well needed audible especially regarding covid 19 is still here and has accelerated our loneliness further.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- M. Bellamy
- 22-02-21
Important book
I learnt so much from this important book.
This is a survey of the atomisation of our society. It comes out at a time when we have all been separated from friends, family and colleagues by a miniscule but deadly virus.
Noreena Hertz looks at how we have become a society that isolates, sickens and even destroys many of our fellow human beings be cause of loneliness.
This is not a negative book though, throughout she shows how there are amazing things going on all over our planet to combat loneliness and recreate the idea of a caring society.
I thought her last chapter on possible solutions in the post-pandemic world was inspirational.
I would highly recommend this book in any of its formats.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Irina
- 28-06-22
Very knowledgeable.
Very knowledgeable, I am recommend to all parents.
Good understanding of the new parenting skills.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ida Kristine Meland
- 01-03-23
Important
This book should be on the curriculum for being a human in the modern world.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jenny Cutler
- 15-02-21
Shockingly good read.
So glad I came across this very carefully considered book. I couldn't put it down. I want everyone I know to read it. But they won't!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 18-09-20
Awesome Book
I really enjoyed this fascinating topic, It is really well researched and an eye opening book. I have been discussing some of the topics at work. I have started to see why the world is becoming more lonely. Thank you Noreena Hertz
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Mariano Slutzky
- 26-04-21
Excellent description of loneliness and neoliberalism
Very extensive but not a minute boring description of how so many years of distancing created and maintained by the rules of neo liberalism. The author reinforces how important is the role of community, sharing, making contact with those who you don’t know, using less the screen and go back to real contact.
Next book could amplify the practical solutions and ways to deal with this very important issue. That’s the only item that could use some more attention in this book.
I’m so found of this book that I bought a poet edition in order to make there written notes and bought another one for my daughter of 27 years.
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- Anonymous User
- 24-04-22
great book
I loved the book, narrator was inspiring and I would even say motivating. A lot of inspiration for post-pandemic time.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 25-04-21
Great book.
This book is full of interesting information and sometimes the facts are depressing. However it also has has so many positive suggestions as to how to combat loneliness in society based on real examples.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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- Dan Edwards creative
- 15-12-22
Great book, weird delivery, audio problems
So I really enjoyed the content of this book - it's interesting and makes a strong argument. If I were reviewing a paper copy, my only critique would be that there's too much emphasis on the coronavirus pandemic, which has dated it quite a lot. I don't think the specific problems of the pandemic have lingered as much as the author thought.
Reviewing the audio specifically, I thought the performance was too emphatic - there are many places where the reader puts big gaps between many words in the same sentence and it got tiresome quite quickly. I get that the reader (also the author) obviously loves the research on the subject matter but I think it would have been better to get someone more dispassionate to read it. The words speak for themselves. Finally, the audio engineering isn't quite professional - the sibilance (harshness on S words) is really unpleasant and meant I couldn't bear to listen in the car, where the harshness is exaggerated even further.
Great book though! I will be making changes to my life from reading it.
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