“What bothers me is that there is so much emphasis on food, rather than gathering and meeting - so that there is all this effort in creating the right food, whereas the food is only a small part of whether the encounter is successful or not.”

British author and public speaker

Alain de Botton is a British author and public speaker known for writing about contemporary life and for making philosophy feel useful in everyday settings. His work often turns to common experiences and asks how ideas can help explain them. Among his best-known books are Essays in Love, which sold two million copies, How Proust Can Change Your Life, Status Anxiety, and The Architecture of Happiness.