Working with Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman (Bloomsbury, £7.99 in UK)

Goleman's Emotional Intelligence was translated into 24 languages and sold over 300,000 copies worldwide

Goleman's Emotional Intelligence was translated into 24 languages and sold over 300,000 copies worldwide. Since the voracious appetite for American self-help, cheerleader-type manuals loaded with common sense and cloaked in psychobabble jargon seems unfulfilled, his latest book, focusing on the world of work, should do just as well. We all know emotional intelligence (formerly known as "people skills") is a necessary tool in today's uncertain job market and most of us know what it's like to work with a boss lacking in emotional intelligence, but I'm not sure reading chapters with titles such as "The neurology of motivation" and "Emotions are contagious" is the way to greater job satisfaction, competency or security. Beneath the jargon, however, there are some useful insights and the anecdotes, mainly from corporate America, are fascinating.