10 Best Communication Books UK 2023 | Brené Brown, Alain de Boton and More

This book focuses on the importance of words to help us enjoy harmonious relationships with everyone around us. It looks at the idea that 'violence' can be more insidious than punching and smashing, rather sometimes simply referring to judgement, discrimination, bias and criticism. 

In his popular guide to forming better habits for communicating our thoughts and needs to others, Marshall Rosenberg posits that we should be finding ways of sharing our power with others rather than aiming to hold it over them. He promotes emotional, empathetic connections and the importance of sharing our knowledge and resources with our peers too.

This book is an excellent read if you want to work out the best way to communicate with family members, colleagues and friends whose behaviour patterns you find hard to navigate. A bestseller first in Sweden and now worldwide, the book clearly breaks down four personality types and explains how best to interact with each.

With detailed descriptions of the 'red', 'green', 'yellow' and 'blue' types, plus their respective attitudes, this book hits the communication nail on the head by highlighting the issues a one-size-fits-all approach can have on teamwork, relationships and family dynamics. Fascinating and applicable to our daily lives.

This book centres around the four pillars of good communication and aims to help you overcome the barriers that are holding you back from healthy relationships with children and parents, colleagues, partners, clients and friends. The tasks for self-reflection make it interactive and fun.

Just as much a long-term project as it is a riveting read, this book will encourage you to listen openly and effectively, keep nurturing relationships over time and deal with conflict using a peaceful approach rather than in pain or anger. 

Everyone loves a good TED talk, and apart from the fact the ideas discussed truly are – as the slogan goes – worth spreading, the public speaking techniques used are also invaluable. 

This book introduces the reader to a range of 9 clever techniques used by many of the activists, scientists, authors and thinkers who have spoken on the famous TED stage. You'll overcome your fears and be inspired to talk before groups however small or large. 

If you haven't yet discovered Alain de Boton's international project The School of Life, which has online resources on self-discovery as well as book stores and workshops across the globe, now is the time to research it! A loving deep-dive into emotion that feels like a chat with your wisest friend.

Though it was compiled by his team at The School of Life, with only the introduction written by the philosopher himself, De Boton's calm, considered tones seem to echo throughout this book, which is chock-full of fascinating ideas on why we behave the way we do and how we can more clearly express our needs and wishes in love, work and friendship.

A new perspective on communicating with children, this book was put together by two education experts, Adele Faber and Elaine Malish, and was first published in 1982. It became an international bestseller and is still a top pick with parents today because of its no-nonsense approach. 

So often we repeat the mistakes our parents made due to a lack of clarity in our communication. We say one thing and mean another. This book hands parents the tools to get their message across with love, respect and understanding, avoiding aggression (passive or not) and promoting a healthy attitude to asking for what we need. 

If you haven't read this book, you've almost certainly heard of it. This book is aimed at building self-confidence, honing your social skills and the art of conversation, as well as the ability to address an audience. Building a sense of autonomy and assertiveness is paramount in each chapter. 

More than 16 million copies of this book have been sold worldwide, with many readers claiming it has altered their thought processes and thus their lives. Though the title sounds perhaps a tad manipulative to our sensitive contemporary ears, this book is actually about building and preserving strong relationships, with both customers and friends. 

Everyone's favourite visionary-slash-self-help-guru Dr Brené Brown is a powerhouse in the field of spiritual self-discovery. This book (recently transformed into a Netflix series named The Call to Courage) is written in praise of becoming more open about our flaws and vulnerabilities. 

Daring Greatly showcases the results of twelve years' research into relationships, work and home life, where Dr Brené believes she's found the key to courage; and that is clearly communicating our own vulnerability and embracing it. 

This bold and funny guide to public speaking has received extremely high praise from consumer reviewers and critics alike. Written by British journalist and comedian Viv Groskop, it's packed with tongue-in-cheek insights into the self-doubt and imposter syndrome women in the public eye face.

Examining the public addresses of formidable women such as Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey and Virginia Woolf, this is a book which will grant you the power to speak boldly to audiences and even bring those skills into your everyday life. A hardcover confidence boost you'll be lending to friends and quoting from forever more.

What we particularly like about this handy little book is the fact it's seriously lighthearted, witty and whimsical, while still packing in countless ideas for conversing and connecting (well, not countless, there are 92!)

For some of us it can be hard to relax in conversation with strangers, with a fear of silence or disagreement meaning we nod uncontrollably or ramble to hide our nerves. This book offers key words to help guide the chat in a comfortable direction, body language tips and importantly, advice on not letting things get too serious!