Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett's book "The Spirit Level: Why Equality is Better for Everyone" has become the most influential and widely discussed work on society in recent years. This updated edition includes a new chapter addressing the controversies sparked by the book. It asks compelling questions: Why is there more mistrust in the UK compared to Japan? Why do Americans experience higher rates of teenage pregnancy than the French? What factors contribute to Swedes being thinner than Australians? The answer lies in inequality.

Drawing on extensive research, this groundbreaking book presents compelling evidence demonstrating:

• How nearly every aspect of life, from life expectancy to mental health, violence to literacy, is influenced not just by a society's wealth, but crucially by its level of equality.

• That societies with larger gaps between rich and poor are detrimental to everyone within them, including the affluent.

• Ways in which positive solutions can be found to pave the way towards a happier, fairer future.

Urgent, thought-provoking, and genuinely inspiring, "The Spirit Level" has been acclaimed for offering a new perspective on ourselves and our communities, potentially transforming how we perceive the world. As the Guardian noted, it presents "a big idea, big enough to change political thinking," while the Economist remarked that "the evidence is hard to dispute."

Richard Wilkinson, with a background in economic history and epidemiology, is Professor Emeritus at the University of Nottingham Medical School and Honorary Professor at University College London. Kate Pickett, a Professor of Epidemiology at the University of York and a National Institute for Health Research Career Scientist, collaborated with Wilkinson on this seminal work, which was recognized as a finalist for Research Project of the Year 2009 by the Times Higher Education Supplement and listed among the Top Ten Books of the Decade by the New Statesman.