The Sunny Nihilist: A Declaration of the Pleasure of Pointlessness

A positively rebellious take on a traditionally negative philosophy offers an antidote for our anxious times.

Career success, a beautiful life, a beautiful Instagram account — what's the point? In a world where meaning has become twisted into a form of currency that everyone is very keen to cash in on, journalist Wendy Syfret invites you to change the way you think about the way you think.

In her seminal work, The Sunny Nihilist, Syfret presents the optimism in Nihilism, encouraging us to dismantle our self-care and self-centered way of living and accept a life more or less ordinary. Syfret re-examines the meaning of worth, value, time, happiness, success, and connection, and guides us towards the alternative path of pointless pleasure.

When you let go of the idea that everything must have purpose, you will find relief from stress, exhaustion, and anxiety. Most importantly, you can embrace the opportunity to enjoy the moment, the present, the chaos and luck of being alive at all. The Sunny Nihilist is an inspiring call to action and survival adaptation for modern life.

"Sharp....this hopeful and breezy take will have philosophy-minded readers believing that an ordinary existence can indeed 'become celestial' — if the perspective is right." Publishers Weekly

"An honest, urgent, but also totally chill and non-dreadful call to find the mirthful in the meaningless. Syfret makes me proud to call myself a sunny nihilist." Amanda Montell, author of Wordslut: A Feminist Guide to Taking Back the English Language and Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism

"Syfret's creative use of nihilism to dismiss the 'meaningful' values and activities of normal society is engaging and potentially useful to anyone who feels trapped by those standards and willing to rethink their own priorities." Dr. Michael Bennett and Sarah Bennett, New York Times bestselling authors of F*ck Feelings

Wendy Syfret is former Head of Editorial for VICE Australia and an award-winning writer, editor, and author whose work has appeared in i-D and the Guardian.