New books and awards for Goodenough College Alumni

The Serendipity Mindset by Dr Christian Busch (pictured)

Dr Christian Busch’s book The Serendipity Mindset: The art and science of creating good luck (New York: Penguin Random House, 2020) was published in the US in June. The book will be published in the UK in September and is available for preorder via www.theserendipitymindset.com.

The Serendipity Mindset looks at how we can use uncertainty and unpredictability as a pathway to more joyful, purposeful, and successful lives. Based on the latest research in psychology, management, neuroscience, and physics, the book also includes a range of interviews with leading CEOs, entrepreneurs, and changemakers.

Arianna Huffington, founder of the Huffington Post, described it as a “wise, exciting and life-changing book”; Daniel Pink, NYT bestselling author of When, considers it to be a “bracing and hopeful antidote to a world addicted to efficiency and control”; and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman praised the book in helping us to “connect the dots” in today’s networked world.

Christian now directs the CGA Global Economy Program at New York University (NYU) and teaches on purpose-driven business, entrepreneurship, emerging markets, social innovation, and cultivating serendipity at NYU and at the London School of Economics (LSE).  As he says: “Many of the concepts in the book came to fruition over a lifetime of conversations, and I am deeply grateful to those of you who have inspired me through our discussions or perhaps even our own serendipitous encounters.”

Christian also gave a presentation on the subject, which can be found on the American Psychological society’s YouTube channel.

Coding Democracy by Maureen Webb

Human rights activist Maureen Webb recently published Coding Democracy: How hackers are disrupting power, surveillance and authoritarianism (MIT Press, 2020)

Maureen sees hackers as vital disruptors, inspiring a new wave of activism in which ordinary citizens take back democracy. The book was featured by Wired magazine as one of the “13 must read books for spring 2020”, and Maureen was invited to speak at a number of venues and events including the Oxford Literary Festival and Chatham House in London.

The book also been endorsed by Craig Newmark (founder of Craigslist), Randi Weingarten (President American Federation of Teachers), and technology scholars Andrew Feenberg and Geert Lovink.

Collected Stories by Jonathan Evans

Jonathan Land Evans recent publications include his Collected Stories compilation of short fiction available on lulu.com. The book was favourably reviewed by The US Review of Books, which called it “a grand and hefty collection” and described Jonathan as “an accomplished short story writer”.

Poetry prize for Alan Rainer

Alan Rainer recently received a prize from the World Humanitarian Drive in its COVID Times Poetry awards ceremony. Alan received the prize for his poem  ‘Awareness and Holiness’ which was originally published in Aware of Holiness (London: United Press, 2006) available from Lulu.com.

Alan read the poem on Zoom with nine other winners from different countries and languages at an online awards ceremony on Zoom, presided over by the Hon President of Trinidad and Tobago H E Anthony Carmona.

Hear Alan reading the poem (26.57 minutes in) on YouTube.