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images INTRODUCTION

images PART I: BE MORE INTERESTING

Live Like an Aristocrat: The Best Places to Mingle with the Elite

Dive into the Underworld: Essential Tours of Gang Wars, the Drug Trade, and Otherwise Felonious Living

Drink the Kool-Aid: Touchstones for Quirky, Like-Minded People

Discover New Worlds: Explorers Who Can Take You into the Unknown

Find Your Calling: All-Consuming Hobbies for Your Consideration

Outwit Death: Essential Lessons in Survival

Put On a Poetic Air: Sources of Weird and Wonderful Word Combinations

Adopt a More Outlandish Childhood: Because Some Kids Have All the (Bad) Luck

Ten Essential Catchphrases for Use at Dinner Parties

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images PART II: GET SMART(ER)

Get Up to Speed: Essential Podcasts for Aspiring Know-It-Alls

Think Outside the Box: Preparation for Every Eventuality (And Several Alternate Universes)

Get to the Heart of the Matter: Pithy Explanations of Really Complex Things

Watch the World Unfold: History Lessons That Will Keep You on the Edge of Your Seat

Catch a Predator (And More): Procedurals to Aid in Nearly Every Endeavor

Stand on the Shoulders of Giants: Geniuses Willing to Talk to Non-Geniuses

Cheat on Your Homework: Essential Literary Adaptations—For Both Information and Inspiration

images Gain Emotional Intelligence: Because Sometimes IQ Just Isn’t Enough

The Smartest Inanimate Objects in the History of Pop Culture

images PART III: STOP DOING IT WRONG

Drop the Facade: Songs Guaranteed to Melt Your Frozen Heart

Stop Talking Bad: Models of Soulful, Incisive, Hard-Hitting Dialogue

Gain Some Perspective: Read a Book and Try On Another Human Being

Be More Responsible: Essential Reminders That if You Don’t Do It, No One Will

Eat Better: Where to Find Your Culinary Inspiration

Get Motivated: Songs Guaranteed to Get You Pumped

Stop Being Such a Philistine: Easy Access Points to the World of High Art

Stop Being Such a Snob: Lowbrow Entertainment That Puts the High-Minded Stuff to Shame

How to Fix Pop Culture

images PART IV: FIND HAPPINESS

Achieve Mindfulness: Movies That Will Show You the Way (With Wise Elders Now Included!)

Sleep with the Fishes: The Ten Best Places to Find Your Spirit Animal

Eat, Pray, Love, Spelunk: Tag Along on a Life-Changing Vacation

Go Where Everybody Knows Your Name: The Best Places to Hang Out for an Hour

images Lose Yourself in a Good Story: Essential Potboilers

Rest Assured: Movies Where People Get Exactly What They Deserve

Find Your Happy Place: Magical, Fictional Worlds

Laugh So Hard You Soil Yourself: Reliable Sources of Undeniable Joy

Happiness, as Defined by Ten Random Celebrities

images PART V: SURVIVE THE HOLIDAYS

New Year’s Day: The Inspiration You Need to Keep Your Resolutions

Valentine’s Day: Hallmark-Proof Love Stories

Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Speeches Worth Heeding

Independence Day: The Best Sources of AmericAttitude

Mother’s Day: Celebrating Some Underappreciated Acts of Pop-Cultural Procreation

Thanksgiving: Ad Hoc Families That Will Do in a Pinch

Christmas: Ten Wildly Different Interpretations of the Meaning of Christmas

New Year’s Eve: Parties That Will Get You Pumped for Parties

Ten Proposed Holiday Amendments

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images APPENDIX: Top Ten Resources for People Who Still Want More

images INDEX

images ABOUT THE AUTHOR