Self Help Book Mania!

Here are five books I've read over the past year that I haven't blogged about, but are worth reading.


"Steering by Starlight" by Martha Beck. I checked this out of the library last week. Martha Beck is a columnist for "Oprah" Magazine and a "life coach." I've read her column ocassionally,but never read her books. There is a self help book prior to this one called "Finding Your Own North Star". It doesn't seem necessary to read that one first though. I like her stories about clients she's had and I appreciate the knowledge she bring to the table. I did not fill out all of the worksheets in the book..it's a library book for god's sake! I like some of her psychological concepts like feeding your inner lizard, the ring of fire, backwards living contrarians, and the defense against the dark arts. I loved this quote by Gandhi she uses:

"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall-think of it, always."

"Painting the Walls Red" by Judy Ford. I picked this book up at TJMaxx for a dollar! Yes, I'm over 40 so I qualify! Some of the chapters are: Creativity is a Miraculous Matter, Mourning Glory and Sacred Spaces, On not Taking yourself so Seriously" A quick fun read. I think I got my dollars worth!

"Change your Thoughts- Change your Life" by Wayne Dyer. I read this book slowly throught a long time period. There is much here. The subtitle is "Living the Wisdom of the Tao". He takes each verse of the "Tao Te Ching" by Lao-tzu and put an updated spin on it. There are 81 verses. Read it slow.

"A New Earth Awakening to Your Life's Purpose" by Eckhart Tolle. Who didn't read this book last year? I enjoyed it. I find it a bit hard to now look back at all of the craziness surrounding this book and to identify what it meant to me personally. Lots of talk about egos and overcoming it.

"At the Root of this Longing" by Carol Lee Flinders. A friend loaned me this book. It is a look at spirituality and women. There are two main concepts that I took away from this book. One is that change comes in a three-phase cycle: enclosure,magnification and emergence. Obviously a caterpillar to butterfly pictoral, but if you think about it deeply it is true. We all need private spaces to examine life and emerge with a new outlook. The other concept this book introduced to me was the three Islamic Gates: Is it True? Is it Kind? Is it Necessary? I find myself needing this filter system alot!

The Case of Abraham Lincoln -Julie M. Fenster

To celebrate Lincoln's birthday this month, I thought I'd read something about his life. This book appealed to me because it is mostly about his life in Springfield, Illinois before he becomes President. The subtitle of the book is "A story of Adultery, Murder, and the Making of a Great President". It shows what Lincoln's life was like as a circuit court lawyer and how the politics of the times were rapidly changing with new political parties rising up. I like that the book includes what his neighbors thought of him. The book covers a scene in which a new lawyer comes to town and watches as Lincoln examines a "self-raker" a new farm tool on the town street.

The author goes on to say, " Lincoln possessed the mind of an engineer, having taken out a patent in 1849 for means of easing riverboats over shoals. Though he never pursued his interest in mechanical inventions professionally, some of his characteristic traits were those of a scientific mind: his dependence on logic as a means of renewal, for example; his indifference to material comforts; and his ability to entirely lose himself in thought, as though in a different world." I love this!! I never knew Lincoln had a patent. The fact that he thinks like an engineer I find flaterring having been one myself.

Another thing I found interesting in this book is all of the various political parties that are floating to the surface in 1856, most around the slavery issue and whther new states could be slave states. The "Know Nothing Party" existed based on a hatred of catholic people. Thankfuly most of the radical parties died off.

The book also tells the story of a Springfield murder mystery that Lincoln get pulled into and which side he represents. A worthy read.

House Of Dance -Beth Kephart

Rosie Keith coexist in the same house with her wayward mother one summer as her grandfather lies dying across town. She passes a dance studio everyday as she walks to visit her grandfather. While visiting with her grandfather, she learns of his love for jazz music and dancing and how much he misses his wife who has died. She vows to take money which her own absent father sends her every week to give her grandfather a dance party. She uses the money for dance lessons at the studio.

I love this book for many reasons. First, it shows a relationship spanning generations which has become rare in our society. Second, it show that gifts which come from the heart and are very intangible are some of the best gifts of all. My favorite part of the book is as Rosie sits talking with her grandfather and trying to help him dispose of some of his life's clutter, they put special things "In Trust". She learns why some old record albums may have special meaning to him and he exposes her to artists of his era which she also learns to appreciate. Not everything is sacred much of it does get cleared out as they make way for a hospital bed.

This book is so full of life even though it is ultimately the story of a dying man!

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