Book Club Selection — "Simple Prosperity: Finding Real Wealth in a Sustainable Lifestyle," by David Wann.

The first  selection for The Non-Consumer Advocate book club will be the terrific Simple Prosperity : Finding Real Wealth in a Sustainable Lifestyle, by David Wann. 

The Utne Reader writes:

“David Wann makes a compelling case that the current fiscal squeeze is really a good thing in Simple Prosperity. A coauthor of the best selling Affluenza, he covers a lot of solution-oriented ground, from conscientious consumption and cohousing to building human-scale neighborhoods and dismantling the fossil fuel economy…”

I am currently reading this great book, and it incorporates non-consumerism, frugality and simple living. Pretty much everything I write about, so I think it’s a great fit. I’ve also had it from the library for a few weeks and been able to renew it, so it should be widely available. (Although I did go buy my own copy.)

Here’s an excerpt:

It’s time for a new way of valuing the world and our place in it. The good news is that curing the pandemic of over-consumption at both the personal and cultural scale is not about giving up the good life but getting it back. What will we give up?  Mostly unwanted side effects like rising sea levels, debt, depression, waste, war, and inflation. Which would you rather have — a moderate, joyful lifestyle with fewer of these side effects, or the same old blowout with an even more miserable hangover?

When we change a few key priorities, many of our material wants will cease to be obsessions. It’s not just that we won’tneed the next generation of gadgets or clothes; we truly won’t even want them. Instead of fidgety, addictive consumption, our lives will be filled with the real wealth of sanity, health, hope, caring, connection, participation, and purpose.

We’ll start to discuss it on February first, which gives us more than two weeks to get going. It’s written in a very accessible style, and is easy to delve right into.

I’m really looking forward to discussing this great book. Let’s start reading!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

UPDATE: The author, (David Wann) has generously offered to be part of the book club discussion. I’m really looking forward to getting started!

Tagged as: Affluenza, Amy Dacyczyn, Book clubs, Cheapskate, Compact, Dacyczyn, David Wann, Environment, Environmentalism, Frugal, Frugality, Green Living, money, Money Matters, Money savings, Reading, Simple Living, The Compact, Thrift, Tightwad, Tightwad Gazette, Voluntary Simplicity