The Book of Human Emotions, Tiffany Watt Smith
The Book of Human Emotions, Tiffany Watt Smith
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The Book of Human Emotions
From Ambiguphobia to Umpty -- 154 Words from Around the World for How We Feel

Author: Tiffany Watt Smith

Narrator: Suzanne Toren

Unabridged: 10 hr 10 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/07/2016


Synopsis

A thoughtful, gleeful encyclopedia of emotions, both broad and outrageously specific, from throughout history and around the world.

How do you feel today? Is your heart fluttering in anticipation? Your stomach tight with nerves? Are you falling in love? Feeling a bit miffed? Do you have the heebie-jeebies? Are you antsy with iktsuarpok or filled with nakhes? Recent research suggests there are only six basic emotions. But if that makes you feel uneasy, suspicious, and maybe even a little bereft, The Book of Human Emotions is for you.

In this unique book, you'll get to travel across the world and through time, learning how different cultures have articulated the human experience and picking up some fascinating new knowledge about yourself along the way. From the familiar (anger) to the foreign (zal), each entertaining and informative alphabetical entry reveals the surprising connections and fascinating facts behind our emotional lives.

Whether you're in search of the perfect word to sum up that cozy feeling you get from being inside on a cold winter's night, surrounded by friends and good food (what the Dutch call gezelligheid), or wondering how nostalgia evolved from a fatal illness to enjoyable self-indulgence, Tiffany Watt Smith draws on history, anthropology, science, art, literature, music, and popular culture to find the answers.

In reading The Book of Human Emotions, you'll discover feelings you never knew you had (like basorexia, the sudden urge to kiss someone) and gain unexpected insights into why you feel the way you do. Besides, aren't you curious what nginyiwarrarringu means?

Reviews

Goodreads review by Trish on October 03, 2016

Emotions are funny things…some flit through us at the speed of light, barely registering on our face or consciousness, while others linger, hovering over us, coloring our perceptions of each new day. Descartes thought here were six basic emotions: wonder, love, hatred, desire, joy, and sadness, but......more

Goodreads review by Peter on January 15, 2016

Usually I'm one to devour a book as quickly as I fall in love with it. This however had me spending days on single pages enjoying the reflection of my own emotional life. Loved it!......more

Goodreads review by Renee on November 16, 2016

Toska. That is why I LOVE the Russians.......more

Goodreads review by Kelvino on December 03, 2022

The book of human emotions review The greatest pleasure for me in learning languages is learning of different ways to express thoughts that simply don’t exist in my native language. It isn’t a way to express your accumulated knowledge or display your intelligence (ok sometimes it makes me feel smart......more


Quotes

"In a world dominated by technology, it is comforting to have Tiffany Watt Smith serve as a guide through the dark woods of our emotions and to remind us: There's a WORD for that."
Roy Peter Clark, author of Writing Tools and The Art of X-Ray Reading

"Charming"—Melissa Dahl, New York Magazine

"One fun and breezy read."
Susannah Cahalan, New York Post

"Have you ever felt an emotion that you wish you could express in words, but couldn't figure out quite how? Tiffany Watt Smith can help....Spend a little time learning these words, and it just may help you to understand emotions better."—Justin Bariso, Inc.

"The Book of Human Emotions is as exhaustive and readable a book on emotional vernacular as I can ever recall seeing.... It's an eye-opening read perusing words with a multitude of origins that capture shades and flavors of emotions (many of the words you'll know, but even those are unpacked here ingeniously)....This book is all about the ambiguity, and well worth checking out."—David DiSalvo, Forbes