Our shared bookshelf – gift ideas and inspiration
The Co-Foundry collaborators’ year in books
Nothing creative ever happens in a vacuum. Culture, personal context and the times we live in play their part. And, for those of us working in the creative industries, who need the muse to show up on a regular basis, we often find that it’s the books we’ve been reading that become our quiet collaborators.
We might not have picked them up with the aim of creative inspiration, and their influence in our work may not be immediately apparent, but some books cut through, shape our thinking and help us communicate our ideas in a more powerful way.
And so my round-up of 2025 shines the spotlight on the books that meant the most to The Co-Foundry and its collaborators this year. From the unexpected, to the motivational, there’s something to delight, surprise and learn from in our shared bookshelf – and plenty of gift inspiration too!
How to build a bright future
Rachel Hartwell, Senior designer:
What We’ll Build by Oliver Jeffers
As a parent of a small child, I can barely get through a normal adult book, so my pick is not a highbrow, academic text. It’s something way better. A recommendation for a children’s book that packs more emotional punch and political clarity into 32 pages than most grown-up books manage in 400.
And that’s the beauty of children’s books. With only a handful of words and a few dozen pages, they’re forced to distill a big idea into something simple, honest and human.
On the surface, What We’ll Build by Oliver Jeffers, is a gentle, hopeful story about a father and daughter imagining the future they’ll create together. But at its heart, it’s a book about how we choose to build our world, what we protect, what we fear and who we let in. The line that feels the most poignant right now is:
We’ll build a fortress to keep our enemies out, and higher walls for when they shout. But you don’t always lose, and you don’t always win. So we’ll build a door to let them in.
In that tiny moment, Jeffers quietly reminds us that the future doesn’t have to be shaped by fear or barricades. It can be built with empathy, curiosity and the odd, slightly awkward apology. Trump and Farage could do with a bedtime reading of this one – maybe it would make them realise that the world doesn’t fall apart when you let people in. It actually gets better.
The power of story
Becca Freestone, Tone of voice + copywriting:
One Aladdin, Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson
Jeanette Winterson spoke about her new book, One Aladdin, Two Lamps at an event for Toppings Bath last month and she completely blew my socks off.
One Aladdin Two Lamps blends memoir, essay and fiction to explore the transformative power of story. Adopted by evangelical parents, Winterson grew up working-class, in 1950s Lancashire, with a future that appeared set: factory work or marriage. Through books, she came to understand her life as a kind of fiction, a story she had the power to reshape.
The book invites us to understand that the imagination offers far more than just escapism. Our circumstances and our destinies – both personal and political – may seem fixed and beyond our control, but our imaginations allow us to explore alternatives, sparking the change we may want to make. A beautifully hopeful and liberating read.
On big ideas
Sonja Nisson, Content marketing consultant:
Utopia for Realists by Rutger Bregman
There’s not enough idealism in the world right now (it’s definitely lacking in our dominant politics) so this book is a tonic. I first read Utopia for Realists back in 2017, but re-reading it this year amid so much division and inequality, it felt even more urgent.
Bregman reminds us that progress always begins with imagination. Utopian thought isn’t a blueprint; it’s a direction of travel, a set of guideposts that throw open “the windows of the mind” and help us see what might be possible.
As comms lead for Humanity Project, working to build a people-led “assembly culture” here in the UK (a new kind of politics rooted in listening, connection and shared power), this book resonates deeply. It’s a call for embracing grand narratives again: for radical ideas that will make life better where we live.
I’m an eternal optimist. This book keeps hope and optimism alive.
How to get more out of life
Jonty Warner, IP Lawyer:
Meditations for Mortals, by Oliver Burkeman
Having enjoyed his huge bestseller Four Thousand Weeks, I read Oliver Burkeman’s Meditations for Mortals earlier this year. Another fascinating blend of philosophy, psychology and self-help, Burkeman makes a case for living a life of ‘imperfectionism’, sharing his ideas on how we might free ourselves from the demands, expectations and restrictions society places on us. This book is a compelling reminder to try and work out what our true values are and orientate our lives accordingly. I strongly recommend both reading the book and signing up to Oliver’s newsletter (see The Imperfectionist | Oliver Burkeman).
Values maketh the brand
Sue Bush, Brand Design Consultant:
Integrity Etc. Turning uninspiring company values into future-shaping strategy by Dave Greasley & Rob Alderson
I’ve been facilitating a brand values process for a large national non-profit whose current values lack visibility and traction. The organisation is complex, with over 8,000 staff. With such an important brief on my desk, I was delighted to come across a newly published book on the topic. And even more glad to see that it corroborated my main bugbear: far too many organisations get their values articulation wrong, plumping for values that are bland, forgettable and can all too easily be consigned to sitting on a shelf.
One stat sums it up in a nutshell: researchers have consistently found that around 50% of employees can’t recall their company values. Given how much time and energy organisations put into developing them, it’s a travesty that so many end up gathering dust.
Beautifully written, this book makes a compelling case for why organisational values have become so devalued (mainly due to a lack of imagination and genuine commitment) and how we can identify and define values that are authentic, distinctive and actionable – rooted in evidence and aligned with an organisation’s mission and culture.
The best book on brand values I’ve read (and I’ve read quite a few), Integrity etc demonstrates how to create, deliver and – crucially – live your values. If you’re about to embark on a values exercise, this is the one to read. And the bonus? If you appreciate the aroma and feel of a book like I do, you’ll love the tactile debossed cover with French flaps and uncoated stock!
Towards better conflict resolution
Fi Craig, Culture coach:
Smart Conflict: How to have hard conversations at work by Alice Driscoll and Louise van Haarst
Conflict comes up in so many of the coaching conversations I have – whether with individuals or, more often, with teams. It shows up as something people try to avoid, don’t feel equipped to handle, take too personally, or slip into without even realising. And when it does, it can feel unexpectedly heavy and all-consuming.
I crossed paths with Louise Van Haarst while at Henley Business School and knew that whatever she wrote would be valuable and underpinned by deep academic research. What I wasn’t quite expecting was that this book would be such an accessible read.
It’s packed with really good examples and deceptively simple coaching prompts, alongside well-researched theory including how experiences of conflict handling in our early years impact us to the present day and how task conflict (where we disagree about the right decision or route forward) differs from relationship conflict (where the beef is really between us).
The authors have built a framework for dealing with conflict that is thorough and flexible, and deep dives into five areas, broadly speaking – self-reflection, emotional regulation, readiness, managing your responses and repair (how to rebuild a relationship if that’s needed).
I particularly appreciated the way this book presents dealing with conflict in such a positive light – focusing on how all of this stuff CAN be learned and put into action. No more avoiding or bumbling our way through will ever be necessary again!
Rethinking shame
Eva Seymour, Content writer/ghostwriter:
A Philosophy of Shame by Frédéric Gros
It seems that shame is nothing to be ashamed of… I picked up this book thinking it would be a primer for understanding where this most personal of emotions comes from and how better to deal with it but found something completely different – shame turned on its head as a precursor to the kind of action that brings about real-world change.
A wake-up call that invites us to see things differently, A Philosophy of Shame challenges the “dominant, individualistic perspectives on shame, connecting it to broader social and political issues like racism, sexism and environmental exploitation”.
Gros identifies shame as something that relies on our imaginations. Imagination is what gives us the ability to feel ashamed in the first place and also how we envisage the ways in which things could be different.
Not at all what I expected, I came away from reading this short book intrigued by some of the concepts it explores and determined to wring out the destructive sadness that’s inherent in feelings of shame and put the anger that’s also at its heart to better use.
And now for something completely different
Frazer King, Motion designer:
Wild Swimming Walks Bristol & Bath by Georgie Duckworth
Don’t be put off by the title! I know wild swimming is a love-hate leisure pursuit (and something I actively avoided for many years). However, all the walks in this book can be done without getting cold and wet. They’re all circular walks with clear instructions, recommended pub/cafe stops and some history and trivia thrown in. It really captures some of the best corners of countryside around Bath and Bristol – local treasures that it’s a privilege to discover. Who’s been to Langport and swum in the River Parret?
Don’t settle for the same old Sunday walk again – get out and discover some of the most beautiful countryside in the UK – maybe this book might even entice you to try a little dip…
If there’s a common thread running through our bookshelf, it’s a word that comes up time and again through these very different choices – ‘imagination’ and through that the art of change and what’s possible on an individual, organisational, national and global level.
And that is surely the most hopeful message we can take into the coming year.
