A review by chaptersofchase
Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole by Susan Cain

emotional inspiring slow-paced

4.5

R E V I E W ✨ Bittersweet

Genre: Non-Fiction
Format: 📖
Pub Date: 4.5.2022
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆.5

"Everything that you love, you will eventually lose. But in the end, love will return in a different form."

For 2023, I challenged myself to read a monthly non-fiction book (it's always been my least-read genre). Bittersweet by Susan Cain was my non-fiction read for February, and it's an Oprah Book Club Pick. I also had the chance to sit down and talk to the author about her book (which was an absolute delight). 

For those of you who know me well, you know that I am an emotional person. I have the rule that no one cries alone, and sometimes that means that fictional characters don't cry alone either… If there's a sad commercial, it is guaranteed to bring on tears, and a book that makes me cry will most certainly receive a 4.5-5 star rating. 

It's always been my "weak" point, but after reading Bittersweet, I don't feel like it is. I finished reading the book and thought I understood myself so much more.

Cain acknowledges that it is not only the good things in life that help to make us whole. But the brutal, devastating, and sad moments also bring our life into focus. 

Then she discusses something particularly prevalent today, the "Tyranny of Positivity''. This tyranny is pervasive on social media as we only see the 6-second highlight reels of someone's life, and it causes us to feel envious of the life they're living (seemingly hardship-free). But these very same people might be struggling on the inside, and because they don't want to seem depressed to their followers, they only share what's ''great'' in their life. How do we stop this? How do we show others that behind the 6-second aesthetic video, there's an actual human with real emotions? Cain addresses a lot of this in her book. 

Bittersweet is broken up into three parts. I enjoyed the first section, but it felt over my head as it was more data/research-driven, so some fundamental aspects were likely lost. But, the other sections titled ''Winners and Losers'' and ''Morality, Impermanence, and Grief'' had a more profound impact on me. 

I don't think Bittersweet will be everyone's cup of tea, but if any of the above sounds intriguing, I suggest reading it or listening. Susan Cain is incredible, and I loved hearing her talk more in-depth about her book.

PS. For those who read Bittersweet, my Bittersweet Score was 8.6. 

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