Envy Enlightened: How to Turn a Negative Feeling into a Positive Practice

by Faith Salie, Shelley Lewis

It's been said that of all the seven deadly sins, envy is the one that's no fun at all. It makes us feel small, ashamed, even angry with the world, or ourselves. But what if we've been thinking about envy all wrong?

Envy Enlightened is a four-hour audiobook narrated by Faith Salie that will teach you how to listen to your envy and make it work for you, not against you. You'll learn how to destigmatize and normalize envy—because it is normal—and how it can often help you reach your full potential. With insight and practical advice from a recurring group of experts and "honest geniuses" who range from researchers and psychologists to a bestselling romance author and a Zen master, this is a journey that weaves intimate life lessons with research-based advice designed to help you reframe and rethink how envy can often actually improve your life.

Genres: Audiobook

Audible Audio

Published June 12, 2025

About the author

FAITH SALIE (author of APPROVAL JUNKIE) is an Emmy-winning contributor to CBS News Sunday Morning and a panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! She also hosts the PBS show, Science Goes To The Movies. As a commentator on politics and pop culture, she’s been interviewed by the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Bill O’Reilly, and Anderson Cooper. As a television and public radio host, she herself has interviewed newsmakers from Lorne Michaels to President Carter to Robert Redford, who invited her to call him “Bob.” Faith attended Oxford University on a Rhodes scholarship, where her fellow scholars went on to become governors and mayors, while she landed on a Star Trek collectible trading card worth hundreds of cents.

Reviews

[Gijs Limonard]

Good not great, pretty generic, it all comes down to agency in interpersonal interactions; the author dubbs it 'interpersonal resilience'; are you an agent or - through whatever process that shaped your behaviour in the past- a re-agent; it's called the dreaded drama triangle (or Karpman's triangle); victim-persecutor-saviour; a highly reactive form of going about living and getting what you want; fortunately there is a positive active (non reactive) counterpart that is worth your attention: Choy's winner's triangle; creator-challenger-coach.

[Marta Briede]

Envy Enlightened offers a refreshing perspective on emotions we often try to avoid, such as grief, shame, jealousy, and envy. Instead of treating them as purely destructive, the book shows how these feelings can hold valuable insights and even become tools for personal growth.

It’s an interesting and thought-provoking read that encourages readers to embrace uncomfortable emotions with curiosity rather than fear. The approach feels both compassionate and practical, making it stand out among books on emotional well-being.

[Ana]

Finishing chapter 5 at the moment but this book is so important that we should learn this in school!

Am now in the final chapter , I would be fine without the religious part of the book but apart from that all good.

[Brittni Barcase]

Everyone should read this! My brain is exploding as I digest everything I just read and from now on, I’m not afraid to feel envy!

[Donna Mouser]

A podcast-style audiobook about Envy - the types of envy, the ways it shows up in our lives, and how we can work to stop envy from encroaching our minds. Pretty quick read and an easy listen.

[Justine]

More entertaining than anything. Didn’t really absorb too much knowledge or helpful information from this one but the information that was talked about was still refreshing to hear.

[Sam Halley]

While it’s short and sweet, every time you get a tidbit of actionable help, the idea is over and we are on to the next. There are good points in this book but I think it could have had more details.

[Stephanie Stockman]

I loved the conversations with the envy “experts”. I also very much enjoy the scientific breakdown regarding the response on our physical bodies and brain. Thank you.

[Grayc Gatera]

Cute

[Kate]

This was a really good short read! Great ideas and solutions around envy, and how to make it work for us.
Love it

[Brittany]

Informative but not for me

[Rémy]

I really loved the narration and concept. I also enjoyed the spiritual references.

[Heather Kimball]

This book was good at the beginning, but it became very cyclical. I would have loved to hear from Mandy Patinkin alongside his wife Kathryn Gordy. I would have found that even more fascinating.

[Rachel Taylor]

It was ok for me. there were good things in there that had me think. Nice to have those different perspectives. just maybe would like to have not so long of chapters/sections.

[Danielle Hofmann]

Exceptionally validating