Living Alone Without Losing Your Mind with Diya Vijay

Nobody hands you a manual when you get the keys to your first place. You just get a landlord's phone number, a slightly damp bathroom, and the crushing realisation that toilet paper does not, in fact, restock itself.

Living Alone Without Losing Your Mind is the witty, no-nonsense survival guide for every girl making the leap from parents' house — or hostel, or PG — into her very first apartment. It won't turn you into an adulting genius overnight. But it will save you from at least three minor disasters, one panic-cry in the kitchen, and one deeply avoidable fight with your landlord.

Inside, you'll find real answers to the questions nobody prepares you for:

• How much should I actually spend on rent?
• What do I cook when I'm too exhausted to human?
• What do I do when the gas cylinder dies mid-tadka?
• How do I deal with my landlord without starting a war?
• What if I get sick and there's no one around to bring me soup?
• How do I stay safe living alone as a woman?
• Why am I suddenly so lonely — and what do I do about it?

Written like advice from the funniest, most no-nonsense older sister you never had, this short, sharp guide covers money, cooking, cleaning, safety, health, landlords, and the loneliness nobody warns you about — so you can go from surviving on your own to actually, weirdly, loving it.

For every girl who just moved out and is currently Googling "how to cook rice" at 9 PM.