Book reviews

Book Reviews July 2021

Book Review: The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday (Affiliate link)

This book explores how to turn the obstacles in your life into opportunities by learning how to work through them and define them instead of being defined by them. The historical tales the author shares are helpful for understanding the concepts and practices he shares. I found this book helpful in my approach to working through obstacles because it helped me see how I could turn those obstacles into a path, instead of letting them stop me.

Book Review: The Sedona Method by Hale Dwoskin (affiliate link)

The Sedona Method walks you through how to release emotions and experiences around areas of your life where you are having challenges. What I like about this book is that they focus on releasing around both positive and negative experiences for a wide variety of situations. I’ve found that applying the practices has been helpful in situations that would otherwise be upsetting.

Book Review: Sacred Geography by Marko Pogacnik (affiliate link)

This is a fascinating book which explores geomancy and how to apply it to your spiritual practice. While I don’t agree with all the author’s perspectives, I think this a valuable book that will help you connect with the spirits of the land, and with the land itself. The exercises are very useful provided you apply them.

Book Review: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk (Affiliate link)

I found this to be a very helpful book, because it gave me a different lens to understand my own traumas and triggers and provided some ideas on things I can do to address those traumas and triggers. It’s a book I would recommend anyone read who has gone through trauma, but fair warning the author is candid about the trauma that may be triggering. I still recommend reading it for the insights it may provide you.

Book Review: Why Time Flies by Alan Burdick (Affiliate Link)

Why Time Flies is an interesting book that explores our relationship with time. The author shares some of the scientific research about time and shares some personal perspectives about it. I also found the bibliography fascinating. It’s a well written book and if you’re interested in time, you’ll enjoy it.

Book Review: Wintering by Katherine May (Affiliate Link)

This is a powerful and much needed book which explores our relationship with sorrow. The author mostly speaks to this through her own journeys and experiences of wintering. I found this book to be really needed during the winter I find myself in. It is good to know you aren’t alone and to also carry some compassion moving forward.

Book Review: Stillness is the Key by Ryan Holiday (Affiliate link)

Stillness is the key is an excellent book which explores the topic of stillness and how to bring it into your life in a crazy world. We live in chaotic times, but who hasn’t done that? The author draws on historic examples to illustrate how stillness works and how it has benefitted people, nations and the world itself when people have taken a moment to be still. If you’re seeking some stillness in your life, this book can point you in some fruitful directions.

Book Review: Polysecure by Heather Fern (affiliate link)

I found this to be a very helpful book to read as I start exploring polyamory again, after a long hiatus. It helped me “catch up” on the changes, but more importantly it allowed me to examine my my past relationships with other people as well as the relationship I have with myself. I found the realizations helpful in allowing me to heal from some recent changes in my life, and it also provided me a direction to move my emotional health. I’d recommend this book to anyone, whether you’re poly or monogamous, because I think it actually unearth’s some deep issues in relationship structures that often go unaddressed. I feel like using the tools in this book are also helping me become more secure in myself so that when I am ready to date again, I’ll do it from a place of confidence and security.

Book Reviews September and October 2018

Book Review: A Beginner’s Guide to Living Kabbalah by William G. Gray

The title of this book is a bit of a misnomer, because while people just learning about Quabala can benefit from reading this book, it really is a book for anyone interested in Quabala. The insights you will get from this book will benefit your spiritual practice and help you recognize aspects of the Quabala that you might not have considered. The author makes all of these explanations very easy to understand. And you gt a treat with the last essay, which explores how spirits are communicated with and presents an innovative approach that is still not matched to this day.

My only complaint about this book is that the editors did a poor job. There are mispelled words, missing words and spaces between letters in a word, which diminishes the enjoyment of the book.

4 Book Reviews for January 2018

Book Review: On Writing by Stephen King

In on Writing, the author shares both an autobiographical account of his life as a writer as well as his tips and suggestions for being a writer. While the book primarily deals with writing for fiction, I feel the ideas shared can be applicable to non-fiction as well. It had some good insights on both the act of writing and the business of writing. If you are serious about writing then pick this book up to help you on your journey.

Book Review: The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks

I found this to be a very helpful book because it helped me recognize how I was limiting myself in different situations in my life and it equipped me with processes I could use to call that out and start working through it. Also reading this book has helped me ask what my zone of genius is and start being true to that zone of genius instead of getting distracted and weighed down by work I don't really want to do. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to discover their zone of genius and stop getting in their own way.

Book Review: The Old Sod: the odd life and inner work of William G. Gray by Alan Richardson and Marcus Claridge

I've been a fan of William Gray's magical work since the late 90s. I've also had the fortune of meeting a few of his students and learning about the actual man as well as the magician. I found this biography to be useful as well in filling in some blanks about the actual person and providing some context around his magical work. Whether you're interested in the magicians of the 20th century or a fan of Gray's work, this is a good book that shares his life, faults and successes.

Book ReviewThe Power of Ted by David Emerald

In this intriguing book, The author explores the Drama triangle that many people find themselves in and offers an alternative, The Empowerment Dynamic. He shows how the drama triangle disempowers people and creates a lot of drama because of the conflict generated in it. With the Empowerment Dynamic, the author shows you how to claim the role of creator and change your relationship with yourself and other people by choosing how you approach situations. I found this book to be insightful in terms of recognizing ways I've disempowered myself and been a victim. Implementing the concepts in this book helped me start making changes that have benefited my relationships and business. It's a short and powerful book that will change your life.