Book description
Big ideas that just might save the world. the Guardian
A serious book on an important subject. Without imagination, where are we? Sir Quentin Blake
What if we took play seriously? What if we considered imagination vital to our health? What if we followed nature's lead? What if…
Why read it?
2 authors picked From What Is to What If as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
I loved this book because it takes us beyond the “me me me” way of thinking about society to a more “we and me” based approach.
Community and consideration are often underrated and misunderstood in our society. It takes us back to looking at systems of accounting that count what matters.
From Oona's list on The best books to show why kindness is profitable (and not boring).
Most nonfiction books on social issues begin—in fact, some go on for about half the book—on the theme of what’s so bad about the problem being addressed. Most authors want you good and scared before they start talking about the good stuff. This book doesn’t do that. It opens, in fact, with a short story set in The World That Turned Out Okay.
And then it backs it up with real-world examples. Transition Town Totnes. Transition Streets. All sorts of projects, from all around the world. And throughout the books, it asks the same question again and again: why is…
From O. E.'s list on The best books on a future worth living in.
If you love From What Is to What If...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
Want books like From What Is to What If?
Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like From What Is to What If.
Share your top 3 reads of 2026!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
179
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like From What Is to What If, you might also like...
Sexy Selfie Nation
The problem is not with the actions young women take but with the toxic, sexist conditions they are responding to.
Tanenbaum found, based on six years of interviews with young people ages 14-30, that young women are navigating a culture littered with gendered dress codes, revenge porn, and sexually explicit…
In This Together
In This Together explores how we can harness our social networks to make a real impact fighting the climate crisis. Against notions of the lone environmental crusader, Marianne E. Krasny shows us the power of "network climate action"—the idea that our own ordinary acts can influence and inspire those close…
