I've followed the writings of Alain de Botton for over a decade now, having serendipitously purchased his early philosophically blended work, "On Love: A Novel." With his latest work, "The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work," which happens to follow a recent life theme of mine, he writes a wonderfully philosophical book about how we occupy half of our waking lives, if not more. The work we do, either by choice or by circumstance, is unmistakably intertwined with our modern identify.
I've been fixated on this them of work for many years now, trying to figure out whether or not work ought to be a calling, and if it ought, then how I can possibly merge this calling with today's economy.
In Botton's book, we are taken on a journey through various work environments (or unemployment, as one chapter explores). Logistics, international fisheries from sea to plate, entrepreneurs, are three of the many explorations into contemporary work environments. As always, we see not merely the what, the who and the how, but insightful arguments and explorations into the why of work.
Botton's work is wonderfully articulate: thoughtful, reflective, personal as well as profound, it will not disappoint those who know Botton's expansive body of work.
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