Book Review: February 2025
February was 54 days long, right? Oh, what's that? Only 28…had me fooled. Here are the books that kept me company in the darkness. Maybe I’ll get back to reading fiction in March so send me some suggestions!
“Being with Dying” by Roshi Joan Halifax
5 stars
I read this book for the Death Doula training I am currently in. The course has been really fascinating and the book gives a safe container to the feelings and emotions that I find are coming up. No, not everyone wants to read a book about death, but yes, we will all die. To be prepared for the end, that's a part of living. And yes, I am Scorpio rising ;)
“Games and Rituals” by Katherine Heiny
4 stars
Some good laughs and clever story telling. After reading an emotional book about death, this was an enjoyable pallet cleanser. I actually laughed out loud at a few points. And the short story format keeps it interesting and quick moving, I was able to get to know more characters, all of whom were quirky and real. It wasn't sugar-coded or fake, it just felt real. Which today, reality seems to be slippery.
“Forager” by Michelle Dowd
4 stars
I am very intrigued by cults and who joins them. But what happens when you're born into the cult, the leader is your grandfather. That's the story shared here. I am in awe of the determination and bravery of the author. To leave after years of abuse and neglect took such resiliency.
“Hooked” by Michael Moss
5 stars
I am floored by this book. In 2019 I changed my relationship to booze and now that gave me the courage to look at my relationship to other food. Here’s the wild part: I'm a Health Coach.and yet I still struggle with my relationship to sugar. Sugar is just a lot more available than booze., it’s literally in everything. And Moss tells us how and why chemicals that weren’t around even 50 years ago are now in soooooo many products. I wish he would have been more direct in saying "processed food is killing us slowly" but the implication is certainly there. If you're not mad, you're not paying attention. We have to take a hold of our health, even when the government, Big Ag and Big Pharma won't offer us real help. It's book like this that are the reason I'm a Health Coach. Read it, call me and then let's get mad > work on next steps together
"The Message" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
4 stars
I love Coates' writing style, so straightforward without losing the deep emotion. The author travels to different continents to discover our humanity and the compassion that we "could" share with each other...could if we didn't let our own ideas, dogma and politics get in the way. It hit differently living in America under the current oppressive administration. Are we working towards a common good? And good for whom? It got me thinking about the communities I show up in and if I do so with my whole heart.
Monthly book total: 5
Annual book total: 9