Your Second Life Begins When You Realize You Only Have One

YOUR SECOND LIFE BEGINS WHEN YOU REALIZE YOU ONLY HAVE ONE by Raphaelle Giordano shares the tale of Camille (30-something years old and Parisian) who is suffering from a case of acute routinitis, wherein she is “finding it hard to feel happy despite an abundance of material wealth, a feeling of disillusionment and lethargy, amongst other things.” Claude, a therapist of sorts, offers suggestions like de-cluttering her house and trying new adventures.  Camille resists, but eventually feels transformed and finds happiness in this light and sometimes superficial work which was a best seller in France. The cover conveys the charming, feel good content such as “instead of counting sheep before you fall asleep, tonight try to remember three nice or encouraging things that happened to you today.” There is a helpful dictionary (inner dialogue, positive anchoring, etc.) at end, plenty of quotes throughout (such as Churchill’s “Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm”) and the author herself stresses that “there is nothing more important than to live life to the limits of one’s childhood dreams.” 

Those looking for a more positive attitude and self-image may find inspiration in Camille’s story, but one is left wondering if offering these self-help suggestions as actions intertwined in a novel is ultimately more or less effective than creating a workbook with therapeutic exercises (like acting as if, be a cat), templates, and/or checklists. The author has expertise in personal development and in France has previously published non-fiction works on stress management and relationships.