I Hope So: How to Choose Hope Even When It's Hard

Globe and Mail Bestseller

Hope isn't just a feeling--it's the key to rewiring your brain for resiliency and well-being, even in the toughest times.

When the world feels divided and the future uncertain, does holding onto hope seem unthinkable? In I Hope So, Dr. Robyne Hanley-Dafoe, the award-winning author of Stress Wisely and Calm Within the Storm, shows you how to use the power of neuroscience, physiology, and psychology to access a well of hope that already exists within you. As an acclaimed behavioural educator and resiliency expert, Dr. Robyne has taught countless individuals and organizations to face the future with confidence, and now she's here to help you live hope-filled even on your darkest days.

I Hope So proves that hope is not a luxury or toxic optimism--it's the essential force propelling the human experience by inspiring action and igniting personal transformation. Dr. Robyne illustrates how hope has helped people and societies rebuild through some of the toughest chapters of human history. Revealing the scientific evidence for how hope makes you stronger, braver, and kinder, she gives you practical tools to access and cultivate it in your own life. You will also learn how hope activates the brain's natural ability to bounce back from setbacks, gain tools to build resiliency in challenging circumstances, and discover the most content, well-resourced, and successful version of yourself.

Choosing to live hope-filled in a struggling world is a radical act of resistance. With practical, evidence-based exercises and plenty of warmth and humour, Dr. Robyne teaches you how hope can become a daily practice and transform your relationships, workplace, and community. Whether you're facing personal struggles, navigating uncertainty, or simply seeking a more positive outlook, this empowering and inclusive guide offers proven strategies to help you live truly well.

Author: Robyne Hanley-Dafoe
Publisher: Page Two Books, Inc.
Published: 02/10/2026
Pages: 296
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.60lbs
Size: 6.90h x 5.00w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781774586792


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 02/01/2026

About the Author

Dr. Robyne Hanley-Dafoe is on a mission to make life's toughest challenges not just manageable but meaningful. She blends cutting-edge research with real-life wisdom to teach resiliency, stress navigation, and optimal performance--all with a dash of humour and a whole lot of hope and heart.
An award-winning behavioural educator, Dr. Robyne's debut book, Calm Within the Storm, earned the 2022 Silver Nautilus Award for Psychology/Mental & Emotional Well-Being. Her second book, Stress Wisely, won the 2023 Silver Award in Self-Help from the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards, the 2023 Bronze Award for Self-Help (Adult Nonfiction) by the Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards, and the Grand Prize in the Nonfiction Contest by the BookLife Prize.

Dr. Robyne's calling is bold and simple: to prove that hope is a strategy, resiliency is a skill, and better days are always within reach. She is a proud mom to teenagers Hunter, Ava Lesley, and Jaxson, and lives in Central Ontario with her husband Jeff.