Gift Shop of Gratitude

Peter Lovenheim’s Gift Shop of Gratitude takes a refreshing approach to creating a personal testament of gratitude. Unlike other gratitude journals, this book prompts readers to list the events and people they are most grateful for in their lives, as if those items were found in a gift shop. Whimsical examples would be scented candles that evoke memorable smells from childhood or stuffed animals to remind of beloved pets.

This workbook-like publication, targeted to seniors, allows readers to record personal memories—like a reverse baby book—and create a beautiful memory of all the gifts they were given in life and a precious record to leave for those who love them.

The charming gift book begins with an expanded version of Lovenheim’s acclaimed essay that has garnered much praise since it first appeared in 2022 in various publications throughout the country either as “Exit Through the Imaginary Gift Shop” or “Exit Through the Gift Shop” in which he introduces the idea of examining life through the lens of the trinkets and souvenirs in a gift shop.

An essay on the significance of gratitude is contributed by Rabbi David A. Katz, who has served Reform congregations coast-to-coast and is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis.

Peter Lovenheim is an award-winning author and journalist whose articles and essays have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, New York magazine, Los Angeles Times, Parade, Politico, The Forward, and the AARP Magazine. He has appeared on National Public Radio, the Oprah Radio Network, CNBC, and more than 50 regional NPR and commercial radio and TV outlets. A keynote speaker at public conferences around the country, Peter has also been the invited speaker, both in person and virtually, to more than 100 book clubs in the United States.