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How to Do Nothing

Author(s): Jenny Odell

Nothing is harder to do these days than nothing. But in a world where our value is determined by our 24/7 data productivity . . . doing nothing may be our most important form of resistance.

So argues artist and critic Jenny Odell in this field guide to doing nothing (at least as capitalism defines it). Odell sees our attention as the most precious—and overdrawn—resource we have. Once we can start paying a new kind of attention, she writes, we can undertake bolder forms of political action, reimagine humankind’s role in the environment, and arrive at more meaningful understandings of happiness and progress.

Far from the simple anti-technology screed, or the back-to-nature meditation we read so often, How to do Nothing is an action plan for thinking outside of capitalist narratives of efficiency and techno-determinism. Provocative, timely, and utterly persuasive, this book is a four-course meal in the age of Soylent.

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Buying options in the UK

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We found copies of this book available from Better World Books, Blackwell's, Bookshop, ebooks, Foyles, Hive, The Guardian Bookshop, Waterstones and World of Books.

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Other options for buying this book

You could also try these book sellers who all accept online orders and deliver nationwide:

Bert's Books - An independent online bookshop based in Swindon, with free shipping
Book-ish - a bookshop in Crickhowell which is at the heart of it's community and delivers nationwide
Bookbarn - an online seller of second-hand books that pays royalties on second-hand sales to authors and has a responsible approach to recycling
BOOKS Etc. - an online book seller that is based in Aldershot, Hampshire.
Children's Bookshop - a specialist in children's books based in Muswell Hill, London
Libro.fm - an audiobook seller which shares it's profits with local book stores
Lighthouse - a queer-owned and woman led independent community bookshop in Edinburgh
New Beacon Books - specialists in African and Caribbean literature based in Finsbury Park, London
No Alibis Bookstore - an independent bookstore based in Belfast that has been selling books for almost 25 years. They are also regularly host concerts, book launches, poetry readings, and lectures.
Oxfam - a charity dedicated to ending poverty across the world
Queer Lit - Manchester's Independent Gay Bookshop
Topping and Company Booksellers - a small chain of independent bookshops based in Bath, Edinburgh, Ely and St. Andrews

Your local bookshop can probably order this book for you if you contact them. The Booksellers Association's local bookshop search can help you find a bookshop near you.

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