Agarwal, Pragya – The Bell Bookshop

Hysterical

Emma — Thu, 01 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

A WATERSTONES BEST BOOK OF 2022: POPULAR SCIENCE
AN iNEWS BEST NONFICTION BOOK OF 2022
A TELEGRAPH BIG IDEAS BOOK 2022

‘Read this book and feel furious, uplifted and galvanised to take its findings out into the world and fight for change’ – LAURA BATES

Emotions can be difficult things to define, yet we all recognise them when we feel them or see them in others. How we interpret those emotions and act on them has been heavily gendered, as far back as Ancient Greek and Roman times and – despite the improvements in societal equality – continues to be today.

We’ve all heard the sayings that girls should be ‘sugar and spice and all things nice’, while ‘boys don’t cry’. In Hysterical, Pragya Agarwal dives deep into the history and science that has determined the gendering of emotions to ask whether there is any truth in the notion of innate differences between the male and female experience of emotions. She examines the impact this has on men and women – especially the role it has played in the subjugation of women throughout history – and how a future where emotions are ungendered might look.

(M)Otherhood

Emma — Thu, 06 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

In a world where women have more choices than ever, society nevertheless continues to exert the stigma and pressures of less enlightened times when it comes to childbirth, defining women by whether they embrace or reject motherhood, and whether they can have children or not. Dr Pragya Agarwal uses her own varied experiences and choices around motherhood to examine the broader societal and scientific factors that drive how we think and talk about this issue - including education, economic status, feminism, race and more.

Sway

Emma — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

‘Passionate and urgent.’ Guardian, Book of the Week‘A must-read for all.’ Stylist, best new books for 2020‘Cogently argued and intensely persuasive. Groundbreaking Work.’ Waterstones, best new books of April‘Impressive and much-needed.’ Financial Times, Best Business Books April to June‘Admirably detailed.’ Prospect Magazine‘Practical, useful, readable and essential for the times we are living in.’ Nikesh Shukla‘An eye-opening book that I hope will be widely read.’ Angela Saini‘If you think you don’t need to read this book, you really need to read this book.’ Jane Garvey‘An eye-opening book looking at unconscious bias. Meticulously researched and well written. It will make you think hard about the judgements you make. An essential read for our times.’ Kavita Puri, BBC Journalist and author For the first time, behavioural and data scientist, activist and writer Dr Pragya Agarwal unravels the way our implicit or ‘unintentional’ biases affect the way we communicate and perceive the world, how they affect our decision-making, and how they reinforce and perpetuate systemic and structural inequalities. Sway is a thoroughly researched and comprehensive look at unconscious bias and how it impacts day-to-day life, from job interviews to romantic relationships to saving for retirement. It covers a huge number of sensitive topics – sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia, colourism – with tact, and combines statistics with stories to paint a fuller picture and enhance understanding. Throughout, Pragya clearly delineates theories with a solid grounding in science, answering questions such as: do our roots for prejudice lie in our evolutionary past? What happens in our brains when we are biased? How has bias affected technology? If we don’t know about it, are we really responsible for it? At a time when partisan political ideologies are taking centre stage, and we struggle to make sense of who we are and who we want to be, it is crucial that we understand why we act the way we do. This book will enables us to open our eyes to our own biases in a scientific and non-judgmental way.

(M)Otherhood

Emma — Thu, 03 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

‘An exhilarating, genre-defying read’ Observer, ‘Beautiful’ Elif Shafak, ‘Absolutely sensational’ Michael Cashman, CBE, ‘Powerful and compelling’ New Statesman‘, ‘Brilliant’ Caitlin Moran

In a world where women have more choices than ever, society nevertheless continues to exert the stigma and pressures of less enlightened times when it comes to having children. We define women by whether they embrace or reject motherhood; whether they can give birth or not.

Behavioural Scientist Pragya Agarwal uses her own varied experiences and choices as a woman of South Asian heritage to examine the broader societal, historical and scientific factors that drive how we think and talk about motherhood. She looks at how women’s bodies have been monitored and controlled through history, and how this shapes the political constructs of motherhood and womanhood now.

Extremely open in its honesty and meticulously researched, (M)otherhood probes themes of infertility, childbirth and reproductive justice, and makes a powerful and urgent argument for the need to tackle society’s obsession with women’s bodies and fertility.