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10 Books that Delighted, Inspired, or Shaped Me
Who’s ready to curl up with a good book and call off work for a mental health day?
Who’s ready to curl up with a good book and call off work for a mental health day? Well, that last part may not be possible but, if you’re fantasizing about sprawling out on the couch with a few good reads this weekend, here are my top ten suggestions.
The Tools by Phil Stutz and Barry Michels
I love self-development books where the authors have actually come up with ideas that are innovative and not just the same regurgitated stuff you read everywhere. Phil and Barry present the reader with hands-on tools that will — legit — change the way you operate in the world. In a good way. In a way that has you forget that a possible Illuminati exists and remember that you are a fricken good and powerful person capable of making the (your) world a better place. Pay special attention to: Reversal of Desire, Active Love, and the Fruits of a New Vision chapter.
All the Strange Hours by Loren Eiseley
Okay, remember when I told you that I found my soulmate, only to find out that he died before we could ever meet? I was referring to Loren Eiseley. I wept when I read this book because of the beauty of his writing. Loren was a deep thinker — a brilliant mid-century anthropologist, educator, philosopher, and essayist — who would rather go watch baby foxes play in the woods or offer a stray kitten a pan of warm milk than collect the copious prestigious awards at University dinners he was constantly being honored at. He loved animals and nature and he loved to write and research. If you like Thoreau and Emerson, you will love my Loren. This book is his autobiography.
Philistines at the Hedgerow by Steven Gaines
Forget what you know about the Hamptons and discover the people of the sylvan wood and backroad colonials. Steven spans three centuries of east-end history and the thing that will shock you is the uniqueness of the people who would choose to live there. Residing on a tiny cuticle of land that juts precipitously into the ocean, exposed to harsh weather conditions aplenty — the Hamps…
