Books you might enjoy
The Blue Zones
This was a great book. It left me a bit sad, however, to see how far away from Nature we are going. Instead of embracing our natural resources, we are destroying them at rapid rates. Our Western culture has even reached it's greedy hands in ancient villages. The author is Dan Buetter and has done a great job coll
ecting this valuable information on how to live a longer, healthier life.
How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
I am listening to this book. Dale Carnegie’s message is timeless. My husband has always been a fan of his and now my son, William, has discovered Carnegie and William James on the dusty shelves of his university's shelves. I have seen the books from this library; they are books that served another generation, but have, still, an important and reoccurring message.
While I love the hardcopy approach to reading, I find the audio works well for me. I don’t care to run errands and drive around town, so being able to listen to Dale’s timeless message is motivation to get in the car.
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
The sub title to this book is A Year of Food Life; this title works better for me. I really enjoyed the journey Barbara Kingsolver shared with the reader; the concept is somewhat romantic, but certainly refreshing. If, after reading this book, you only turn over a 4x8 patch of backyard soil and scatter some carrot seeds, you have gained something positive from the book.
My two favorite rooms in my house are my kitchen and the little “left over” room off of the kitchen, which I have claimed for my studio. These two rooms pulsate for me. Something is most always cooking and something is most always sitting on my easel. Because of this preference, this book worked for me. The significance of the kitchen in family life and whole food is a point well made by Barbara Kingsolver.
Gift From the Sea
Gift from the Sea is, for me, the ultimate handbook on how to live simply and genuinely. One summer, in 1955, on a beach in New England, Anne Morrow Lindbergh found solitude and space for meditation and inspiration. She spent the summer writing about seashells and life, comparing the two. Even then, she spoke out about the trappings of our contemporary world and the paradox of our modern gadgets; things that should aid us really become adversaries in our lives by taking from us time, time we use to tend to our “stuff” instead of our life. The sea and the sand and the peacefulness of the beach are everpresent and her words are soothing and rhythmical and take the reader to a place of contemplation and peacefulness. Tuck it in your sun bleached straw tote and take it to the beach.While you sit near the ocean and walk in the sand, search your soul and find your essence.
Lust For Life
This is classified a fictionalized biography written by Irving Stone, but it rings true for me and is very effective in portraying the fervor that Vincent Van Gogh lived with and the genius he possessed. I first read this book as a twenty year old art student and I have since reread it (twice) as an adult, two very different interpretations, yet one conclusion; the book is tremendous. While it is certainly poignant, it is encouraging (for the reader) to know that his work and his life are revered today. It is very frustrating to think how he and some that knew him died never really knowing the brilliance that was Van Gogh. When I read about his life (he wrote many, many letters to his brother Theo), I am able to see the essence of art. He had to paint and he did, regardless of what else he had to do or sacrifice, including food and relationships; he painted. I attach myself to this because it seems “we’ always have an excuse as to why we can not do things – not enough money, not enough time, I don’t feel just right, when my kids are older, it is too late, I have to clean the kitchen, etc. Van Gogh never had a reason not to paint. I could never live a life as extreme as his life, but I take from it lessons, lessons about “taking” life and not waiting for that illusive perfect moment to do what I love to do. If you choose to read this book, you will have a deeper understanding of Van Gogh and perhaps he will not just be the iconic artist that cut off his ear, but a person that lived by his own rules and refused to give up on his passion.
The Invisible Garden
Four summers have passed since I last read Dorothy Sucher’s The Invisible Garden. I discovered this literary treasure by suggestion of my one and only cousin on my dad’s side. To date, it is the best literary recommendation I have ever received. This little book, with the electric blue house on the cover, is reflective and encourages placidness and stillness; it is a good place to stop and feel summer in the garden. The author has come upon a farmhouse in rural Vermont and, although she has never really gardened, she begins. She takes you through the bramble that surrounds her little blue house and we discover how she transforms it and herself into a place of beauty. This book is very much about coming to terms with a garden and subsequently yourself.
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