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

Blogger and personal finance writer Flanders's "self-help memoir" isn't an instruction manual on how to eliminate spending but rather a personal account of the author's yearlong shopping ban. She explains the rules she established for herself and offers some advice but mostly focuses on the life events that led her to choose to live with less and the challenges she faced in adapting. Her story actually begins well before the shopping ban as she also shares past experiences eschewing alcohol, changing her unhealthy eating habits, and eliminating substantial consumer debt. Although eliminating shopping for a year may seem extreme, Flanders is relatable in a way that will make listeners feel that they, too, can reduce their own unnecessary spending. She doesn't advise listeners to replicate her ban but rather to create their own rules and stick to them.