The Little Book of Hygge - Book Review

The Little Book of Hygge - Book Review

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Posted 2017-04-18 by Julia Afollow

I've just finished reading the Little Book of Hygge . It's interesting, covering why Denmark is often considered to be one of the happiest countries in the world. Is it down to hygge and if so, what is it and how do we bring a bit of it into our lives?

What exactly is hygge (pronounced hoo-ga)? It's difficult to explain and the author quoted one of the greatest philosophers of all time - Winnie the Pooh with his "How do you spell love? You don't spell it. You feel it" as an example. So you'll know hygge when you feel it.

Wikipedia defines "hygge" as "a form of everyday togetherness", "a pleasant and highly valued everyday experience of safety, equality, personal wholeness and a spontaneous social flow".

After reading the book, some of the words that I would use to explain "hygge" are cosiness, the feel good factor, simple pleasures, warmth, atmosphere, togetherness, experience, homeliness and comfort. Other people may have a completely different view. And then it is also used in different ways - as a feeling, an adjective, a verb, a noun, a state.

The author Meik Wiking is CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen and has spent many years studying Danish life and has concluded that hygge is what makes the Danes the happiest nation in the world.

This book is all about how we can bring a little more hygge into our everyday lives.

All this "happiness" stuff is really popular at the moment, but it's not new. I learnt that Robert Kennedy pointed out over 40 years ago that "The Gross National Product measures everything except that which makes life worthwhile". And you've got to love a country like Bhutan that measure itself by its Gross National Happiness index.

So what else did I pick up from this book and learn about Hygge? Well Danes love the following (not by any means a complete list) and believe they are good Hygge:
  • Candles (and mood lighting - but they appear very, very fond of candles)
  • * Ugly woollen socks (the uglier, the Hygge-lier?)
    * Gloeg (mulled wine)
    * Coffee (tea and hot chocolate with marshmallows seems to be up there too)
    * Blankets (including reindeer skin ones)
    * Christmas (must be because it's mulled wine and cake season)
    * Cake and sweets (Conditori La Glace is the oldest and probably best and in offices after meetings, they have "cake watch" to checkout leftover offerings)
    * Books (and curling up with a good book in a little cosy nook with a lit candle wearing ugly woollen socks, a cup of coffee in hand, cake on a plate and a blanket would appear to be very Hygge).

    It's an interesting little book and after all, we could all do with a little more hygge in our lives. So why not grab a copy and curl up in front of a fire with a blanket and a cup of coffee this winter?

    The book published by Penguin in Australia was released 31 October 2016 and is available in hardback. The RRP is $24.99.

    Note: if you do intend to start lighting candles around the home to increase the hygge, please do not leave them unattended as that would not be very hygge.

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    86875 - 2023-06-11 07:29:09

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