The Bright Side: How Optimists Change the World, and How You Can Be One

by Sumit Paul-Choudhury

In the bestselling tradition of Steven Pinker’s Enlightenment Now and Yuval Noah Harari’s Homo Deus, an engaging and interdisciplinary look at the history, philosophy, and psychology of optimism, and why being optimistic is a moral obligation—even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.

Scrolling through our daily newsfeeds we see war, political unrest, the swift rise of artificial intelligence, and a looming climate crisis—just a few of the tragedies fostering pessimism. So, in the face of such glum events, how do we stay optimistic? And, more important, why should we?

In The Bright Side, Sumit Paul-Choudhury tackles these pressing questions, arguing that optimism is not only essential for overcoming the obstacles ahead but also fundamental to human resilience and progress. Drawing on a wide array of evidence across diverse fields, Paul-Choudhury delves into the underappreciated philosophical roots of optimism, examines its impact on mental health and professional success, and discusses how an optimistic outlook supports a scientific and rational world view. Beyond theoretical discussions, The Bright Side shows how we can apply the principles of optimism to address complex challenges, particularly the environmental crisis. Through visits to innovative projects like the futuristic LINE city in Saudi Arabia, the Faslane Peace Camp in Scotland, initiatives related to the New Green Deal, and anecdotes covering everything from Ernest Shackleton to Bitcoin mania, the book illustrates optimism in action.

A salve for dark times, The Bright Side is a lens through which we can identify and solve the problems we face and create a better future for ourselves and generations to come.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Psychology, Philosophy, Science

320 pages, Hardcover

Published January 7, 2025

Reviews

[Bailey Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Bright Side: How Optimists Change The World, And How You Can Be One is a inspiring, mindful, encouraging, heartfelt, and thought-provoking read! I had hoped to finish reading this book by World Kindness Day (because it is perfect for that with its message of love, hope, and perseverance), but didn't quite make it. This non-fiction beautifully blends philosophy, psychology, and the practice of optimism to help the readers understand the value of implementating optimism in their life and the research behind it. As a mental health professional I cannot agree with the author more that optimism is an under utilized resource which promotes resiliency. While it is important to feel every emotion and acknowledge present challenges, optimism for a brighter future can actually help make the future brighter. There is so much to say about this book and so much to love, but put simply this book has the power to help you on your journey to brighter more loving future. We could all use more optimism in our lives!

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mooi boek over optimisme. Er worden veel vragen opgeworpen over hedendaagse problemen. Om bij al die problemen optimistisch te blijven is een hele klus. Samen optimistisch blijven en actie ondernemen is de oplossing.

[Natalie Park · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Rahul Vishnoi · Rating 5 out of 5]

-Celebrating the Half-filled Glasses-
Review of 'The Bright Side' by Sumit Paul Choudhury

'The Bright Side' is a celebration of half-filled glasses. It insists you harbour hipe in your heart and never let go because optimists have the power to change the world.

Choudhury begins his book with a hard-hitting sentence- I became an optimist the night my wife died. It's a story of acceptance and yet not giving up hope. It's an account of harbouring hope and never letting go. It bolsters your confidence, gives you mental support and the power to keep going. It's optimism and Choudhury believes it can not only change the world, it can work wonders at personal level. It can very well improve your personal life, your love life, your professional life and what not.

The author cites many examples to support his theory of celebrating half-filled glasses- from a measly chicken that can cross a roaring highway to Hellen Keller, from Ernest Shackleton who led an Antarctica expedition and a rescue operation to development of AI.
He quotes Shackleton- 'The quality I look for most is optimism: especially optimism in the face of reverses and apparent defeat. Optimism is true moral courage.'

Choudhury celebrates hopes and urges the reader to harness its very power for their everyday lives. He mentions that pessimism traps abound in human lives. Jobs you don't expect to get, so you never apply; crushes whom you believe to be out of your league, so you never ask them out; games you expect to lose, so you never play. From this point of view, it's not surprising that optimists turn out to be more successful than pessimists in almost every aspect of their lives.

A worthy addition to your shelf.

[Abi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the premise and the central argument of this book, and it did convince me that optimism is the best approach if we want to get things done/enact change in society.
The first third of the book really captured my attention (the part drawing on insights from psychological and sociological research).

However, the last two thirds felt much tougher to get through as they deal more with philosophy and science fiction, which I personally find less relevant to our day-to-day lives. He does make the argument for their relevance, but I found it unconvincing - especially when there are subjects of study that ARE devoted more directly to our experience and our social and psychological reality.
This could just be personal preference though.

Finally, I was a little dismayed at how little women were referenced in this book - felt like the vast majority of his insights come from male researchers and I'm sure there could have been very interesting interpretations of optimism vs pessimism by prominent feminist thinkers, for example.

[Paula L · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you like to read about Voltaire, Cicero, Liebniz, and a host of authors not familiar to the average person, then you will love this book. I, however, found the title of it to be very misleading. I was expecting to learn, as the subtitle reads, "how optimists change the world, and how you can be one". Instead, I slogged through pages and pages of academia (just look all the names/research included in the 16 page index). I wish this book had been given a title that more realistically reflected it's content, therefore it could be read by an appropriate audience.

[Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick thoughts: “How Optimists Change the World, and How You Can Be One.” Gulp? The timing of this release could not be better. It covers how optimism is a moral obligation, and even the history of optimism, its philosophical underpinnings and more. My default is optimism with a heavy dose of realism on the side, and I really enjoyed digging deep inside my own thoughts with this book. It’s been called “a salve for dark times.” Yep!

I received a free copy.

Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader

[Joost · Rating 2 out of 5]

De achterflap wekt de indruk dat dit boek een krachtig pleidooi is voor hoop en een nieuw perspectief op de toekomst van de mensheid. Puik werk van een marketing afdeling van de uitgeverij en ik ben er helaas ingetrapt. In werkelijkheid is het vooral een opsomming van historische feiten en anekdotes. Vooral de grijsgedraaide anekdotes en open deuren over AI zijn tenenkrommend. Prima geschreven, maar inhoudelijk mist het de diepgang en vernieuwing die beloofd wordt. Jammer, want het uitgangspunt is veelbelovend.

[Peter P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am occasionally caught between wanting to rate a book on how good it is versus how much I enjoyed it. Sometimes, I believe the author has done a first rate job on the subject, but, despite recognizing that, I might not have loved the book. This was that book. I think Paul-Choudry did a magnificent job, but his too frequent (for me) explorations into the deep historical context made it feel occasionaly like work. On the whole, I reluctantly gave the book four stars, because the shortcomings might have been my own and not the author's.

[Anna Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finished this ARC last night and I’m going to be honest, I had to trudge through it. It was very dry and felt like a textbook for 95% of it. If you’re looking to read the entire history of optimism, this book is definitely for you. There is ZERO doubt that the author is extremely knowledgeable on the subject, but if you’re looking for more of the inspirational easy read, I wouldn’t go this route.

Thank you @scribnerbooks for the free pub in exchange for my honest review 🩷

[Petol · Rating 3 out of 5]

Waarom we de plicht hebben om optimistisch te zijn, en het ook nog eens beter voor je is.

[Angela Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting information but found it hard to get through.

[Pat Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Technically very competent review of optimism but was a tad dry for an audiobook. Would have liked it better as a read.

[Everett Fullam]

Optimism can create the best of all possible worlds. This book is an inspiration to look on the bright side and not see disaster all around us.

[Stacey Couturier · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow. More negative than positive. Disappointing

[Stephanie W · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a bad premise but it’s ironic how a book about optimism can be so depressing. If I wanted to read about every bad thing that is and has ever happened in the world, I’d read the news

[Ab · Rating 3 out of 5]

audio - fun optimism philosophy and thought experiments. best of all possible worlds isn’t always possible though.

[Caitlin Burgess · Rating 3 out of 5]

as a person who is probably more optimistic than pessimistic this was something i prob didnt need to read but interesting enough