Shaw mines her personal history to offer a simple guide on how readers can better navigate finding friends and maintaining friendships. She organizes friendships into categories—essentials, collaborators, associates, mentors/mentees—and addresses how to manage expectations and boundaries within each. Unwanted feelings that can arise in a friendship, such as jealousy and envy (“primitive survival mechanisms that are often no longer relevant to our physical well-being”), are explored, and to help deepen and maintain existing friendships, Shaw advises paying attention and asking follow-up questions. The easy-to-follow guidance will be of particular use to those who are unhappy within their friendships but can’t quite figure out why.

Publishers Weekly

There are all kinds of friends: childhood buddies, workout pals, office mates, and social media followers. But what makes an authentic friend? And how do you hold on to a true friend? Shaw sifts through studies and personal experiences to find the answers. She sorts friends into four categories: essential, collaborators, associates, and mentors/mentees, and offers defining characteristics for each. She warns about the things that put stress on friendships, including envy, money, competition, politics, and such life transitions as divorce, illness, and unemployment. There will always be misunderstandings and hurt feelings among friends, and Shaw goes through some common complaints. But she also suggests trying to see things from the friend’s perspective and outlines practical steps to address and resolve issues and set boundaries before friendships are destroyed or take over our lives. Perhaps the greatest insights Shaw offers are suggestions on how to find new friends by following your interests and how to strengthen friendships by being the kind of friend you wish you could have. In this time of COVID-19 and unrest, we need all the friends we can get.

Booklist

To TV talk-show producer Shaw, the role of friendship isn’t terribly appreciated although friends are a vital part of life. To that end she writes to help readers understand these bonds and become a better friend. She describes the different levels of friends (e.g., acquaintances, associates) and discusses how to navigate through issues such as jealousy, feelings of rejection, money imbalances, and conflicts in general. In the final chapter Shaw suggests techniques for finding and making new friends who help explore and celebrate different parts of one’s personality.

Library Journal

Just when you thought you knew who your friends were, you read this book and realize you don’t know the half of it. This book taught me that friendships aren’t the cure for loneliness, but a gateway to knowing yourself better. Better You, Better Friends is a compelling query on the dynamics of your life relationships and an enlightening journey on how to manage them.

Idalis De Leon, writer and director

Glenda Shaw takes us on a deep journey of self-examination as she delves into the complex, joyous, and sometimes painstaking aspects of friendship. As many of us are revamping, restructuring, and reinventing our lives in these changing times, Glenda reminds us that reassessing the value of our friendships is just as important for a long and happy life.

Rolonda Watts, actor, author, and talk show host

An inspiring and thought-provoking read about the most important relationships you choose in your life—your friends. Shaw's Better You, Better Friends will challenge you to think about the choices you make in your friendships and how small adjustments can have a meaningful impact on the relationships in your life.

Colet Abedi, bestselling author and producer