What I Should Have Done

What it's about

R.L. Atkinson explores the intersection of personal regret and the sensory details that anchor our memories. The author uses intimate, often jarring anecdotes to argue that our most vivid recollections are tied to physical experiences rather than abstract life lessons.

Key ideas

• Sensory Anchoring: Memories are not just mental concepts, but physical residues that linger through taste, smell, and touch.
• Radical Honesty: Owning the bizarre and unglamorous moments of your past is necessary to move forward without shame.
• The Specificity of Regret: Large life regrets are actually collections of small, distinct sensory moments that we failed to process correctly at the time.

You'll love this book if...

• You appreciate memoirs that bypass traditional self-help tropes in favor of raw, unfiltered storytelling.
• You are interested in how physical sensations shape our personal identity and retrospective judgments.

Best for

Readers who prefer unconventional, visceral narratives over structured advice when reflecting on their own past mistakes.

Books with the same vibe

• Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain
• The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
• I Drink for a Reason by David Cross