Yes Man by Danny Wallace

Danny Wallace is a genius. Pure and simple. In his last book, Join Me, he placed an ad in a classified section inviting people to join him. Didn’t say what he was doing or why, just send him a picture and join him. From there, his movement became a worldwide collective of thousands upon thousands of people performing random acts of kindness. How to followup such an incredible move?

Well… when we catch up with Danny at the beginning of Yes Man, he’s in a bit of a funk. Creatively, he’s not doing as much as he’d like. He’s slowly secluding himself from his friends, becoming less and less social. And then, on the bus one night, he has a chance meeting with a stranger, who encourages him to “Say Yes More.” Just that simple. Danny’s new mission: go the rest of the year saying Yes to everything. Everything. Credit card offers online? Yes. Strange conspiracy theorist meet-ups? Yes. Hypnotic dogs? Yes! You’d think such a thing would just be an exercise in torture. But no! Danny wins $45,000 on a scratch off card. He gets promoted to a high position at the BBC (and he doesn’t even know what he’s doing). He enters a contest seeking England’s most German-looking man. He pokes a monk (and that’s not slang for anything. He quite literally pokes a monk).

Danny’s willingness to open himself to the world is an amazing experience to behold, and his growth as a human being both spiritually and emotionally is amazing. By the end of the book, Danny’s been through some highs and lows, and he’s ready to grow up and move on to the next phase of his life (nebulously dubbed “responsible adulthood”). Let’s hope that it doesn’t stick. Danny Wallace is out there having misadventures and seeing what the world has to offer, and he’s laying the challenge down to anyone: join him! Or at least, try something new. Say yes. See what happens.

(PS – unrelated to this book, Danny has started his own country. So, there’s that. http://www.dannywallace.com)