This book is so refreshing! A collection of short (from a paragraph or two to a few pages in length) uplifting, true encounters with good people who reach out to help or reward strangers, expecting nothing in return.

We've become used to being bombarded with bad news every day. This serves as a welcome and much needed reminder that there are good people and good things happening all around us!

Thanks to the authors and National Geographic for putting this book out there and for allowing me to access a DRC via NetGalley. Publication is 9/3/24. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

Thank you NetGalley and National Geographic for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book. I really truly did. I love following Upworthy on social media and I firmly believe we all need more hope and joy and evidence of the kindness of humans in our lives. However, this format just didn’t work as a book for me. You can’t just sit and binge read and get the same amount of feel-good bright moments as you would reading these as the Upworthy social media originally is able to. It almost weakens the strength of the stories by allowing you to consume too many at once. As for the writing, I got a bit tired of the trite and sometimes cheesy wordplay that made up the final sentence of every single story. Cute once or twice but tiring 101 times.

I love the concept, I love the collection, but I’m just not sure a compiled book has the same effect as wandering across a single story while doom-scrolling.

The premise was that Upworthy posted questions online, and its fans answered. Some of the respondents were contacted to flesh out their stories more, for use in a compilation book. They ended up with 101 stories broken down into six chapters, with titles like: The Kindest of Strangers, Learn by Heart, It’s the Little Things, The Kids are All Right, When I Needed It Most, and Away From Home.

Some of the stories are a few pages long, and others are just a sentence or two. There are simple but colorful cartoon drawings within most of the longer ones, which makes these lovely stories even lighter and cuter.

There is a whole section dedicated to teachers who made an impact. Obviously, one chapter is about kids, with all their optimism and goofy turns of phrases. One is just about travel. But all are stories about things other people did or said that gave the authors reason to hope.

And I must single out that there is one story in here about Dolly Parton. It takes place in Nashville, so I can’t resist.

The uplifting nature of the stories makes this a fun and easy read, whether you read it in larger chunks or tiny bites. It might just be a good one to keep by your bedside to end the day with, or maybe to give to a friend who needs a pick-me-up.

Confession: I have subscribed to the Upworthy newsletter for many years and consider myself a fangirl. So, it is no surprise that I am giving two enthusiastic thumbs up for this book; “Good People: Stories From the Best of Humanity,” which is a collection of personal anecdotes, assorted sizes, of people and moments that made a difference to someone’s life. They are loosely grouped around six themes, ranging from the unexpected kindness of others to moments of crisis and vulnerability of travelers far from home. The cumulative impact of these stories, which are near impossible to stop compulsively reading, will send you on your own wash of memory from the very special teacher who understood your own brand of difficulty to finding the meaning of compassion in the seemingly smallest gesture of a stranger that helped you out. In this polarized age, it often seems insurmountable to find a place of mutual communication and connection. Upworthy provides the passageway. Recommended

Such a breath of fresh air and medicine to the soul. Truly was sad to finish this as I just kept wanting to read more about the good in the world. Not only that, but I was deeply inspired. Inspired to see how I can positively impact the world. Small gestures may seem pointless, but this book proves time and time again how meaningful small actions can have on a person.

I love that Upworthy made a book. I really enjoy reading their posts on Instagram. What I find remarkable about this book is that although not every story resonated with me, there is a story for everyone who picks up this book. As a new mother, I found some of the stories of parents with kids to bring me to tears because I’ve learned that it really does take a village to raise a child. This book has inspired me to be more aware of those around me that may need a helping hand. It is also refreshing to read a book full of stories that having happy outcomes, especially among all the hardships that bombard us on a daily basis. Life isn’t easy but reading these stories gives me hope in humanity. ☀️

Thanks to Netgalley and National Geographic for the ARC in exchange for my review :).

I love reading stories that somehow gives us hope despite of all the mess and evil going on in the world right now.
It is like therapeutic, and even healing to see that there are still people out there with good hearts and trying to inspire others.
A very inspiring and interesting book. All these stories and worth the time and attention.

Thank you National Geographic and Netgalley for the free ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

Following Upworthy on social media, I was excited to dive into the book and it did not disappoint! Reading this confirmed that there still is a humanity of caring and kind people.. such a heartwarming book! Appreciate the opportunity to read such great stories!!

This book contains the living stories that inject dopamine and joy to the brain. Some mere sentences and others a handful of paragraphs, these are the stories of real people who seemingly randomly happened to help someone else, except I firmly believe they had trained their entire lives to do just that. Likely over and over again.

Better than the many meditations books out there to improve ourselves. This book attempts to improve humanity.

I have always enjoyed when I was surfing the internet and came across an uplifting Upworthy human interest story, so I was delighted to see someone compiled them into a book! This is like a modern Chicken Soup for the Soul book, a feel good uplifting book you can pick up when you are feeling down. When the world is a scary crazy place, it is so nice to have something to grab to remind you how kind and beautiful people can be, and how one person really can make a difference. And as a teacher, I loved how many stories featured teachers who made a difference. A gem of a book that I will keep around for those bad days. I received an ARC, and this is my honest review.

What a wonderful book!! In today’s world of constant negativity it’s hard to remember that good people far outnumber the bad! This book is like a giant hug reminding you to always look for the positive. And the chapter by kids is absolutely hilarious! I can’t recommend this book enough! In fact, instead of watching the news read this. It’s what’s really going on in the world!

Like a big, warm hug, this read is a beautiful love letter to humanity, by humanity. The vast majority of the stories included, some as short as a single paragraph, reflect on how an entire life can be changed by a (perceivably) small action of a stranger. It's not only reassuring in this day in age, like an updated <i>Chicken Soup for the Soul</i>, but also inspiring as to what us humans can do for each other.

I, personally, have followed UpWorthy on social media for years and this book truly feels like a love letter to the community. The creators mention in the introduction that they were inspired not by the stories they shared on the platform, but the comments they received from those of us sharing similar stories. This is a long way of saying I cried through at least 50% of the book, starting 3 seconds into the first page. I truly look forward to revisiting this to turn to a random page and take 5 minutes to remind myself how full of love the world truly is.

This is a book of accumulated first-person true stories about human acts of kindness, some random, some intentional, all meant to inspire. Complete with whimsical illustrations, the collection has been compiled and edited by the editors of the website Upworthy. It's a book to dip in and out of during low moments, or when you're looking for evidence of good things happening in the world. This seems like a timely title. It's rough out there, and this aims to remind you what human decency looks like.
[Thanks to National Geographic and NetGalley for an opportunity to read an advanced reader copy and share my opinion of this book.]

This new book from Upworthy, Good People, is exactly what it says it is - stories from the best of humanity. It's also a much-needed reminder that WE are the best of humanity and that it doesn't take a lot of effort to make someone's day better or make a difference in someone's life. Whether it's a kind note, a few words of encouragement or simply taking the time to listen to someone and really hear them...any bit of kindness matters.
Thank you to Upworthy for creating this book and thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review the free ARC of this book.

I love upworthys Instagram posts and really loved having a book of these stories. It is a feel good read and gives you some faith in humanity!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this review copy

Upworthy Good People is that feel-good kind of book that you’ll want to keep on your bedside table for a dose of sunshine to begin every day. These short stories are uplifting, beautifully written, thoughtful and sure to make you smile.

Warning: Kleenex likely needed

I only made it 12% in before my eyes were welling up. There's no better time to publish this book as hope is in short supply.

Some of the stories weren't very touching - or interesting. If it weren't for the duds I'd have given this a full 5/5.

I love following Upworthy on Instagram. When I saw this book, I knew I had to read it. It's full of very short accounts of amazing things that ordinary people do for one another. This is so easy to pick up when you just need to read something good in the world.

What a treat to read. The stories literally lifted my spirit at just the right time. This is such an easy read. The stories went by so quickly.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Highly recommend it to those who need reminded that there are great people still in this world.

Thanks to NetGalley and National Geographic for an advanced reader copy. This is my honest opinion of this book.

This book could not come at a better time. With so much divisiveness and so much us versus them, we have lost the ability to see others as human beings and all the being human encompasses. There is so much negative noise that it is hard to parse out any goodness. Then I started to read, and I was quickly reminded of what I used to know before everything went awry: there is inherent goodness within us. The stories included show that inherent goodness from strangers, acquaintances, coworkers, family, and friends. They show the incredible power of a kind word or action to change the trajectory of someone’s life. Reading these stories brings me hope. It also showed me where I had lost my own way in putting too much focus on the overwhelming negative stories we are bombarded with every day. It is a reminder to be kind to everyone because we truly don’t know what someone is going through, and we do not know our own power to bring goodness, kindness, and love to our fellow human with the smallest of action, the kindest of words. We do have the power to embody what we wish to see in the world, and it starts with us.