Weekend Book Review: I Am, I Am, I Am

Keeping with the theme of my earlier post on how death can bring about the opportunity to appreciate the beauty in life, I bring you a review of Maggie O’Farrell‘s memoir, I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death. O’Farrell is the author of multiple international best sellers, including, Hamnet, Winner of the Read More

In Dying, We are Beautiful

Those that follow my blog know that I love to unearth life lessons from my gardens. Here is my latest observation. I have a few different varieties of agave in my cactus and succulent garden and recently, one took on a drastic change. These plants are special to me, because I collected them from my Read More

Weekend Book Review: Crossroads

Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen My rating: 5 of 5 stars Genre: Fiction, Historical Fiction Edition Reviewed: Hardcover, 592 pages Published October 5th 2021 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux “It’s like there are these words, they’re out there in the world, and you start wondering what it would be like to say them. Words have their own Read More

Weekend Book Review: The Gospel of Wellness

The Gospel of Wellness: Gyms, Gurus, Goop, and the False Promise of Self-Care by Rina Raphael My rating: 4 of 5 starsGenre: Nonfiction, Health, Self-help Edition Reviewed: Hardcover, 352 pages Published September 20th 2022 by Henry Holt and Co. The Gospel of Wellness by journalist Rina Raphael is a much-needed close up look at the $4.4 Read More

Weekend Book Review: Memphis

Memphis by Tara M. Stringfellow My rating: 5 of 5 stars Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction Edition Reviewed: Hardcover, 252 pages Published April 5th 2022 by The Dial Press Memphis by Tara Stringfellow is the beautiful outcome of a poet-turned novelist. Packed with color, imagery, and figurative language, this is a story of three generations told Read More

Who’s in Control?

I come to you today, humbled, after having my grand plans for the month subdued by, you guessed it, Covid. My daughter came down with it the day after I declared my intention to awaken and join the world. Within days I found myself miserable and dormant. I am surprised at the extent to which Read More

September’s Word of the Month: Awaken

Washing dishes at the kitchen sink, mind wandering, my gaze falls on a healthy potted hydrangea offering up the last of its fading blooms. But this isn’t a sad sight; it’s amazing. I had long since given up on this plant, as the past few years all it could muster were a few leggy leaves Read More

Weekend Book Review: Bad City

A Deep Dive into Scandal Bad City: Peril and Power in the City of Angels by Paul Pringle My rating: 5 of 5 stars Genre: Nonfiction, Investigative Journalism Edition Reviewed: Hardcover, 304 pages Published July 19th 2022 by Celadon Books Upon reading Bad City by Paul Pringle, my first thought was that it might have better Read More

Weekend Book Review: The Untethered Soul

The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself Author: Michael A. Singer Genre: Self-Help, Spirituality Page Length: 186 pages, auidiobook is 6 hours, 10 minutes Publisher/Publication Date: New Harbinger Publications, Oct. 3, 2007 “There is nothing more important to true growth than realizing that you are not the voice of the mind – you are the Read More

Weekend Book Review: The Glass Castle

The Glass Castle by Jannette Walls Page Length: 288 pages Publisher/Publication Date: Scribner, 2006 Rating: 5 of 5 Stars In the opening scene of Jeannette Walls,’ The Glass Castle, we are invited into an NYC taxi cab with Jeannette on her way to an important business dinner. As we are stuck in traffic, our gaze Read More