41cMqQTZ7qL._SX324_BO1,204,203,200_A few months ago I listened to Carl Honore discuss ‘the slow movement’. He is a great speaker – and as with all those wise motivational people around us, he wasn’t so much telling us things we didn’t know but reminding us to take time to listen to our inner voice and reflect on our approach to modern life. I am always amazed by how my productivity and contentment increases when I slow down – although this year slowness has been a real challenge at times. I am looking forward to reading his books, and introducing more slow strategies into my life!col-md-2

all-the-light-we-cannot-see-9781476746586_hrMy Book of the Year: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

‘The brain is locked in total darkness, of course, children, says the voice. It floats in a clear liquid inside the skull, never in the light. And yet the world it constructs in the mind is full of light. It brims with colour and movement. So how does the brain, which lives without a spark of light, build for us a world of light?’

Marie Laure is blind and has fled with her father from Paris to Saint Malo during the German occupation of World War 2. Werner is a young German radio technician caught in the heart of Hitler’s war. Their lives couldn’t be more distinct, and yet their fate is interwoven. Everything about this book, from its poetic prose to its exquisite attention to detail, is a masterpiece of writing, and it’s my favourite read of 2015.col-md-2