A review by sassmistress
The Gift of Fear: and Other Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence by Gavin de Becker

informative tense fast-paced

4.5

Very informative and engaging. With all the heavy content, I'm not sure if it will exacerbate anxiety, but the author was intentional about trying to alleviate it. I did like the section on worry showing how to get to the root of the concern, rather than reacting to the surface fear. 

There are a few things I would take with a grain of salt, such as the interview questions (and reliance on "intuition") that are likely to result in ablist hiring decisions. The heavy focus on intuition, with all the examples given, likely creates some survivorship bias ("I had a bad feeling about x, and then something happened" may leave out all the times nothing happened). 

There is a good section on spotting risk factors for DV, and for that reason I may recommend it for teenagers. 

I didn't enjoy the chapter on assassination, as it has more of a "true crime" bent and was less applicable, but many people enjoy that sort of content. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Violence, Stalking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Blood, and Alcohol

Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Cannibalism