‍The Book Report by Rebecca Traver - Our Online Bookshop Curator

Included in this report is May’s Author of the Month – Jon Kabat-Zinn; a mix of New + Newly Discovered reads chosen to support + inspire you; some wonderful books for Young + Young at Heart readers, a couple of Just Because offerings from our Mother’s Day list, and a poem by Emily Dickinson.

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“Perhaps the most ‘spiritual’ thing any of us can do is simply to look through our own eyes, see with eyes of wholeness, and act with integrity and kindness.”

~Jon Kabat-Zinn

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Jon Kabat-Zinn is the creator of the Stress Reduction Clinic and the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the prestigious University of Massachusetts Medical School and has been at the forefront of the contemporary mindfulness movement for decades. I once had the good fortune to attend an introductory presentation he gave and knew in an instant that this was truly someone who was walking their talk. He has a new book out this month which prompted me to choose him as May’s Author of the Month and I couldn’t be more pleased to shine a bright light on his body of work. 

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Author of the Month – Jon Kabat-Zinn

Mindfulness Meditation for Pain Relief: Practices to Reclaim Your Body and Your Life shares a series of evidence-based practices that anyone can apply gently and effectively to address even intense forms of pain and suffering – as a complement to whatever medical treatments one might be receiving. Includes audio guidance for all key practices, accessible online and led by the author. If, like me, you deal with chronic pain issues (or know someone who does), I encourage you to add this to your library of resources.

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Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness is a newly revised and updated edition with a preface by Thich Nhat Hanh. Featured are results from recent studies on the science of mindfulness, up-to-date statistics, and an extensive updated reading list. This is a book for the young and the old, the well and the ill, and anyone trying to live a healthier and saner life in our fast-paced world.

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Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life (Revised) reminds us that no matter how busy we are, it is possible and advised to find quiet reflective moments in our day-to-day lives as a tool of primary value in reducing our stress levels.

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For more from Jon Kabat-Zinn click here.

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New + Newly Discovered

Awaken Your Multidimensional Soul: Conversations with the Z’s, Book Two from acclaimed energy intuitive, channeler, and musician Lee Harris is released on May 9, 2023 and is available for pre-order now. Included are practical practices for amplifying your heart energy, strengthening your connection with angels and guides, healing from painful past experiences, understanding and better navigating personal or global states of disharmony, and more.

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Heal the Witch Wound: Reclaim Your Magic and Step Into Your Power by Celeste Larsen helps us to live from a place where we trust that we were born to live a magical life, but all too often succumb to the call of self-doubt and fear. This uneasy part of us carries an age-old wound that keeps us from claiming our magic, owning our power, and shining fearlessly in our truth.

If this resonates for you, then you may just want to explore what this book has to offer – a diverse range of practices, rituals, meditations, and journal prompts to help uncover and work through feelings of reticence, uncertainty, and fear. We are encouraged to take what works, adapt and customize where you can, and leave the rest.

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The Stress Prescription: Seven Days to More Joy and Ease by leading wellness psychologist Elissa Epel provides a simple yet powerful plan for transforming stress into strength. Basically, this is a guide to learning how to “stress better” by training our minds and bodies to shift toward a more flexible, beneficial stress response that enhances our health and well-being.

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The Nap Ministry’s Rest Deck: 50 Practices to Resist Grind Culture from Tricia Hersey is a gem - 50 cards brimming with practices and tools to empower personal liberation as a necessary step toward building a healthier, more just world. It begins with us, people – one breath, one moment, one conscious choice at a time. 

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Awakening Your Psychic Ability: A Practical Guide to Develop Your Intuition, Demystify the Spiritual World, and Open Your Psychic Senses by Lisa Campion is a transformative and practical guide to help you understand, develop, and harness your own psychic ability, so that you can live your life with more meaning and purpose.

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One Long River of Song: Notes on Wonder by Brian Doyle is a bestselling collection of essays inviting us into the miraculous and transcendent moments of everyday life. I love this book for its candor and willingness to share a journey of deep personal crisis and growth.

Trees: An Illustrated Celebration by Kelsey Oseid is a beautifully illustrated exploration of the many magical qualities of trees – guaranteed to delight and inspire nature lovers of all ages. 

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What Looks Like Bravery: An Epic Journey Through Loss to Love from Laurel Braitman is a memoir to savor and share with your besties. This is a hero’s journey for our times in which we can learn that hope is a form of courage – one that works as an all-purpose key to the locked doors of our most cherished dreams.

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Books for Young Readers + The People Who Love Them

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Black Beach: A Community, an Oil Spill, and the Origin of Earth Day by Shauna and John Stith with illustrations by Maribel Lechuga tells the true story of the first Earth Day – told through the eyes of a fictional child.

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Dear Earth by Isabel Otter, illustrated by Clara Anganuzzi is another inspiring picture book celebrating the wonders of our world and reminds us that if we all work together to spread the message that Earth is special and worth saving, we can keep our planet beautiful for many years to come.

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Zap! Clap! Boom!: The Story of a Thunderstorm by Laura Purdie Salas, illustrated by Elly MacKay explores the life cycle of a thunderstorm and is as informative as it is engaging. This is a perfect introduction to the science of weather for the youngsters in our lives.

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The Night Tent by Landis Blair brings us the story of young Watson who is having trouble sleeping, then he notices a mysterious light coming from under his covers. When he takes a peek, he discovers a beautiful, tented night sky full of twinkling stars.

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Just Because – Just for Mothers + All the Nurturers

The Color of Roses: A Curated Spectrum of 300 Blooms by Danielle Dall’armi Hahn with photographs by Victoria Pearson is pure beauty and delight. This makes a perfect gift for any occasion – especially Mother’s Day.

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Oracle of the Roses from Cheralyn Darcey is comprised of 44 divinely illustrated cards of vintage botanical artwork, bringing the rose archetype energies alive and with that, sharing their ethnobotanical wisdom. 

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For more Mother’s Day ideas, click here.

BLOOM
by Emily Dickinson

Bloom — is Result — to meet a Flower
And casually glance
Would cause one scarcely to suspect
The minor Circumstance
Assisting in the Bright Affair
So intricately done
Then offered as a Butterfly
To the Meridian —
To pack the Bud — oppose the Worm —
Obtain its right of Dew —
Adjust the Heat — elude the Wind —
Escape the prowling Bee
Great Nature not to disappoint
Awaiting Her that Day —
To be a Flower, is profound
Responsibility —

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Please visit our online Bookshop to see our full selection of lists and titles. 

Thank you for supporting local, independent bookstores! 

We love connecting with you in the shop and online.

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May you be inspired, supported, and enriched by what you find here.

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