Book cover of Friends: Understanding the Power of our Most Important Relationships

Book description

'Fascinating...In essence, the number and quality of our friendships may have a bigger influence on our happiness, health and mortality risk than anything else in life save for giving up smoking' Guardian, Book of the Day

Friends matter to us, and they matter more than we think. The single most…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Friends as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I learned about Robin Dunbar’s work many years ago with his book about Grooming, Gossip, and the Evolution of Language.

The deep thoughts and ideas stuck in my mind and they come back to me from time to time in my own work. After a chance meeting with the author, I discovered that he’d written an update on his famous work around the Dunbar Number and the scaling of groups in the animal kingdom.

This book was a fascinating romp through the dynamics of social systems with many new memorable teachings.

If you love Friends...

Book cover of These Blue Mountains

These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas,

A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…

Want books like Friends?

Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Friends.

Browse books like Friends

Book cover of Bluebird
Book cover of Garage Band
Book cover of Let's Go for a Drive!

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,395

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like Friends, you might also like...

Book cover of Need to Know: World War II and the Rise of American Intelligence

Need to Know by Nicholas Reynolds,

The authoritative but accessible history of the birth of modern American intelligence in World War II that treats not just one but all of the various disciplines: spies, codebreakers, saboteurs.

Told in a relatable style that focuses on actual people, it was a New Yorker "Best of 2022" selection and…

Book cover of Tsunami

Tsunami by LeeAnn Pickrell,

On the morning of December 26, 2004, an undersea earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean. The resulting tsunami killed an estimated 230,000 people across fourteen countries, from Indonesia to Sri Lanka to Thailand to the Maldives to India and all the way to East Africa.…

5 book lists we think you will like!