Cait Flanders

Documents Cait's life from July 2014 to June 2015, during which time she challenged herself not to shop and bought only consumables: groceries, toiletries, gas for her car. Along the way, she found the less she consumed, the more fulfilled she felt.

How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store

The Year of Less

"[This book documents the author's] life for twelve months during which she bought only consumables: groceries, toiletries, gas for her car. Along the way, she challenged herself to consume less of many other things besides shopping. She decluttered her apartment and got rid of 70 percent of her belongings; learned how to fix things rather than throw them away; researched the zero waste movement; and completed a television ban. At every stage, she learned that the less she consumed, the more fulfilled she felt. The challenge became a lifeline when, in the course of the year, [the author] found herself in situations that turned her life upside down. In the face of hardship, she realized why she had always turned to shopping, alcohol, and foodand what it had cost her"--Amazon.com.

How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store

It’s so interesting because I did the shopping ban and many things in this book that it felt eerie reading it back! It’s also very timely for where I’m at now to evaluate where I’m at and reduce spending

Rebecca Joy Tan

** spoiler alert **
           I was expecting and was fine with a memoir. Unfortunately, I wasn’t expecting the hardest thing the author goes through as an adult to be her parents’ divorce. Her focus on this felt forced, like manufactured drama, and I found it hard to relate. 

This book would benefit from a tighter edit in general. There were phrases and words seemingly repeated not as literary device, but out of sloppiness, and an editor should have caught these.

Niels Andersen

The concept of not buying crap you don’t need seems really appropriate for the times we live in. 

The book is a description of the ups and downs of being a 20 something working remotely in the knowledge economy and the story is maybe a bit humdrum and generic. 

I had hoped for a bit more advice on how to get started applying a similar system for myself but the book only has a little of that. 

If you want to learn how to apply the system in your own life you’d be better off watching a few of the author’s talks on YouTube and read some blog posts.

I felt like this book would be good for people who already knew who Cait is, as it's really more of a memoir than any kind of actionable guide.

Kate B-L

Bilge Ince

More was never the answer. The answer, it turned out, was always less.

It’s been a while I started to recycle, up-cycle, and try to live simpler and even healthier. I spent a long time struggling with an auto-immune disease which I still have but silent for a couple of years. Therefore, I didn’t have a chance to ask myself the essential question, plus I was so young back then. However, I started to think over the rest of my life lately. I have 85 years in total at most. What do I want to do with it? How do I want to live it? I find my current answer on less, and this book was one of the things that helped me to discover it.

Gisela Ayala 

Interesting read. I think I wanted a bit more practical advice. Which the very last chapter does give you. Overall I think it was okay, and it did help set some intentions for myself.

Sonja H

Gerade zu Jahresbeginn lese ich gern Erfahrungsberichte von normalen Menschen, die sich für ein Jahr einer besonderen Herausforderung gestellt haben.

Cait Flanders, eine junge Frau um die 30, wurde online bekannt über ihre öffentliche Auseinandersetzung auf ihrem Blog mit ihren Schulden und ihrem Weg, diese innerhalb relativ kurzer Zeit zu begleichen.
„The Year of Less“ beschreibt das Jahr, in dem sie sich die Aufgabe stellte, 365 Tage lang nur nach einer strikten Liste einzukaufen und ansonsten jegliche Ausgaben zu vermeiden.

Ich muss sagen, dass der Titel etwas verwirrend ist. Letzten Endes schildert Flanders in diesem Buch Monat für Monat ihre Gedanken zu ihrem Leben und wir erfahren mehr über ihren Alkoholentzug, ihre Beziehung zu den falschen Freunden, der Scheidung ihrer Eltern und ihrer Karriere als zu ihrem Vorhaben, nichts zu kaufen.

Zwar ist es interessant, ihre Einstellungen zu ihrem Leben kennenzulernen und ich bin teilweise sehr beeindruckt von ihren ehrlichen und tiefgründigen Einsichten, aber leider läuft das alles zu sehr am Thema vorbei, um dieses Buch wirklich empfehlen zu können.

Kann man lesen, muss man aber nicht.

Sarah Smith

Stopped listening to the audiobook in chapter 1 after hearing the hatred in her voice when she said "fat girl clothes." No thank you, not here for that in 2020.

Lost me once she started equating alcoholism and overspending with "almost being in the plus size section."

Brigid Hogan

It's a lovely memoir that is helping me rethink my own consumption habits. Why are all the reviews by people who didn't think it was a memoir?!

Georgia Carr

too much like a long blog post for my liking but a great topic nonetheless

Irina 

I honestly did not expect to take away from this book as much as I did. This book came into my life at the exact right moment that I needed it. Loved the perspective that Cait provides. And even if you can’t related to all of the things that she talks about in this book, I believe there is something for everyone. I will be recommending it to everyone.

Danica Holdaway

Possibly the fault is mine for assuming this would be more manual/experience, but it’s mostly a memoir of someone with addictive compulsions gaining control of her life. Which is totally cool! It’s just not necessarily a handbook for minimalist lifestyles. I think a better format would be to expand the last chapter (the actual how-to) and intersperse her experiences with that instruction. And sometimes having the author read their own audiobooks is fine, but not the best option for this one.

Tori Carrillo

I’m not sure what I was expecting when I picked up this book. Written in somewhat of a diary format with each chapter representing a month in this year long “shopping ban” challenge, I learned a lot about the authors life and story for this year period of her life. It is quite repetitive. There’s maybe only a brief mention towards the end of each chapter about the shopping ban and the authors struggles or successes with it, and only sometimes does it tie into the story or life event of that chapter. 

Interesting concept for those considering a more minimalistic lifestyle and footprint as well as those who would like to take a closer look at whether material possessions are truly adding to their happiness or if shopping is just a coping mechanism thanks to marketing and consumerism.

Chelsea White

2.5 stars. This was a decent book, it has definitely inspired me to take a hard look at my spending habits, and to take a shopping break this upcoming year.
I listened to the audiobook, and by the end, the narrator had started grating on me. Her voice was very monotone with minimal emotion being shown, which made it difficult to connect with the story, especially in the more emotional parts.
One thing about the book itself that really made me almost put it away without finishing it was when Flanders stated that her parents’ divorce was worse than a death in the family, because it was the death of the family unit. While I’m not trying to argue against her feelings regarding the divorce, at least every member of the family in question is still alive. As someone who has lost her dad, I was immediately put off from the rest of the book and couldn’t connect in the same way I had before.

Lysh (She/Her)

I loved this. Cait talks about her decision to go on a No-Buy-year, and how this effected her finances, relationships, mindset, and many other experiences. Would recommend for anyone on a budget or looking into minimalism.

Aurooba Ahmed

I had a really hard time reading this book. But I loved listening to it as an audiobook! A simple but fascinating memoir that I could often relate to in the oddest way, although I don't battle any addictions. Great listen.

Adam

I've been reading Caits blog for longer than I can remember. Before the finance community was something I knew about, Cait's approach to heartfelt stories about minimalism and consumption was what drew me to read more. This book dives deeper with a narrative that winds through a difficult year.

Going much deeper into personal stories than I expected, the common thread is a story of growth – both towards having less stuff, but also for better understanding what leads to happiness. Editing down a life to focus on what matters is no small undertaking, and many of these stories have inspired me to look at areas of my life that could use a little editing.

Erika A

Opa Kholis Majid

Ashley Lock

Janice Walker

Ember Skies

In her late twenties, Cait Flanders found herself stuck in the consumerism cycle that grips so many of us: earn more, buy more, want more, rinse, repeat. Even after she worked her way out of nearly $30,000 of consumer debt, her old habits took hold again. When she realized that nothing she was doing or buying was making her happy —only keeping her from meeting her goals —she decided to set herself a challenge: she would not shop for an entire year. The Year of Less documents Cait’s life for twelve months during which she bought only consumables: groceries, toiletries, gas for her car. Along the way, she challenged herself to consume less of many other things besides shopping. She decluttered her apartment and got rid of 70 percent of her belongings; learned how to fix things rather than throw them away; researched the zero waste movement; and completed a television ban. At every stage, she learned that the less she consumed, the more fulfilled she felt. The challenge became a lifeline when, in the course of the year, Cait found herself in situations that turned her life upside down. In the face of hardship, she realized why she had always turned to shopping, alcohol, and food —and what it had cost her. Unable to reach for any of her usual vices, she changed habits she’d spent years perfecting and discovered what truly mattered to her. Blending Cait’s compelling story with inspiring insight and practical guidance, The Year of Less will leave you questioning what you’re holding on to in your own life —and, quite possibly, lead you to find your own path of less.

The Year of Less How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store

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