Books I love

YOGA, MINDFULNESS, MEDITATION


This was the first yoga related book I ever read, so just for that reason it has to be in my recommended list. My first yoga teacher, Doris Blum, spoke about this book and I purchased it and was hooked. I wanted to learn so much more about the mysteries of yoga, meditation and self realization. I am so grateful for the path this book and Doris set me up on. Its an old classic and I really recommend giving this a go if you are interested in yoga history.

This is hands down the best chakra book that is accessible for everyone who wants to explore their yoga practice or energy body further. Anodea takes us through the chakras in a systematic way and I felt that everything was explained so well it made it easy to grasp the concept and work through the suggestions to balance our chakras. Defenitly on the must have list. I have this well marked and dog eared book in my storage boxes in New Zealand as well as on Kindle as I like reminding myself of the practices and wisdom in this book.

Any books from Jon Kabat Zinn are great if you want to explore Mindfulness meditation. This one is the most comprehensive one with the full program that they teach at the stress reduction clinics. I highly recommend all his books. They are well written and easy to understand. It takes practice and persistence to untangle our complicated, fast paced lives and Joh’s books help us to find a way within.

One of my favorite books on Yin Yoga. I refer back to this book all the time. It has all the poses explained well and sample sequences.

Sarah Powers book was my first yin yoga book and is similar to the one by Bernie Clark. It has a bit of info about the philiosphy and history of yin yoga and all the poses explained well and sequence suggestions for all the different Meridians.

 

This book is one that every yoga teacher should read and a great inspiration for every serious yoga practitioner. It addresses the issue that one size fits all doesn’t work in yoga, e.g. that not all the poses are accessible in the same way for all bodies. Its super interesting and educational and one of the best yoga related anatomy books I have come across.

This book is a must have if you want to study the spine and how the yoga poses relate to spinal mobility. Again a must have if you want to further your studies of anatomy to keep yourself and students healthy and happy.

I listend to the audiobook version of Breath by James Nestor. Lots of the concepts in this book where already familiar to me through my yoga practice and other books I read over the years. But this book is a great compilation of research on breathing and how important it is for our overall health and well being to breathe correctly and pay attention to this important pillar of health

SELF-HELP, PARENTING

This is a fairly recent read and I just couldn’t put the book down. Working on a constant basis on my own stuff I find it fascinated to read other woman’s stories of shedding all the layers that don’t serve us anymore. It feels like cheering each other on. Glennon writes in a very engaging, entertaining and uncomplicated style and there were so many moments where I felt like “yes this is just like me” and just being happy for her being happy. I have written a blog with my favorite passages from this book and you can read them HERE.

 

Putting these 2 books below each other I realise how similar the covers are – both of them are favorite authors and empowered woman of mine. I seriously don’t know why I didn’t read Big Magic sooner. Its a book about how to let go of Fear and live creatively. Its a book about discovering and following your creative endeavors. Its a book that really addresses all the lies we tell ourselves as to why we can’t draw, paint, write etc. and what it means to be successful and if we need to be successful. Is it just enough to do something that we enjoy? I really loved this book, as I am exploring my own creative projects like drawing and writing and often battle with doubts if its all a waste of time and that other people do the same thing much better anyway. If you want to start living more creatively, this is the book for you. Highly recommended.

I do recommend all Brene Brown’s books, but my favorite by far is Braving the Wilderness. Its almost a culmination of all her work before this book. I have highlighted so many parts of this book and truly wished this was compulsory school reading for teenagers. Definitely a must read.

  I highly recommend both these books and started reading them simultaneously. I don’t know anybody who is no stressed in some way, shape or form. It explores the relationship between stress and chronic disease or disease in general. Written by a doctor the book is well researched. Through my lifetime and especially since I have had children well-being has become so important to me and it lightens my heart that there are so many clinicians looking outside the mainstream box now. Everything in this book makes sense. It should be made compulsory to read this as basic life education. Hold on to your Kids has really opened my eyes on the fact that peer influence and pressure can wreak havoc on the relationship with our kids, just as I felt our teenager slip away. I can’t wait to finish reading these – they are in the boxes of our belongings still to come to Greece. They made it in the small selection to be stored on the boat.  I highly recommend any books from Garbor Mate.

Dr. Joe Dispenza’s books are great if you really want to create change in your life and nothing seems to be working. You are getting quantum physics explained, examples from real life scenarios and what you can do to break the habit of being yourself or even better to become super natural. All his books are highly recommended.

I read The biology of Belief many, many years ago and it really opened my mind to whole new world. This was before I become a yoga teacher and was interested in meditation and spirituality.   It was one of the books that set me off on journey to learn more about what is beyond what we can see.

This book is full of contemplations by Mark Nepo from his personal journal entries. Its not a book that you read from back to front, rather one that you pull out to get some inspiration while you have a cup of tea. I often used this for readings in yoga sessions. Full of great ‘mindsmacks’

I used this book as inspiration to explore different tools to manage stress and just be inspired. Its not a book you necessarily read front to back. I sometimes just opened it on a random page to find exactly the the message and practice I needed. All other books by Gabrielle are inspiring, uplifting and empowering as well.

I thoroughly love this book and it will be one I will gift to my daughter when she is the right age. I have also listed the card deck that goes with the book below in the feed. Its a book you can randomly open on a page for inspiration, journal prompts or read from front to back. There is so much wisdom and empowerment in here.

I could list this beautiful journal by my mentor Elena Brower under almost every category in this feed. A beautiful way to reflect with journal prompts and stunning art work throughout. I gifted this to my daughter as well and I think this should be a tool in all schools and universities. Already schools are using it, which is great. I highly recommend this for yourself or as a gift for someone special.




These 2 books by Sir Ken Robinson are a must have in every household, school and university. I can’t recommend them highly enough. To warm up you could watch his TED talk and I would be very surprised if it wasn’t love at first sight. Unfortunately Sir Ken Robinson has since passed, but we are so fortunate to have his wisdom forever.

HEALING

Homeopathic Self Care  by Robert Ullman and Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman is by far the best Homeopathic Guide book if you want to look after your general health needs or help your kids. I had about 50 different Homeopathy books when I studied and this was always my first go to and I still use it on a regular basis. I highly recommend having this at home if you are at all interested in trying out a more natural way to look after yourself and your families. I have successfully used Homeopathy for the past 12 years for myself and my family.

This is a great reference book if you want to low tox the show in your home and life. Well explained and researched sections in the book – e.g. kitchen, bathroom, food, cosmetics and offering alternative low tox recipes and suggestions. I refer back to this book often and highly recommend to anyone who is looking at detoxing their bodies and homes.

An old classic that I pull out on a regular basis. There are still so many people unaware of how emotions, especially the suppressed ones and hidden traumas can effect out physical health. It has been popular for many, many years, because its still as relevant as ever.

I could have literally highlighted almost every sentence in this book. A book for all of us, but especially those who have been dependent on mediation for depression, anxiety and other “mental disorders”. Filled with many real life healing stories of real people who managed to detox from the pharmaceuticals and rebuild their life in a natural and empowering way.

Another empowering and enlightening book for those who struggle with depression and anxiety and finding no or little relief from the pharmaceutical pills they are prescribed. It really helped me to get a better picture of mental “illness” volunteering as a yoga teacher in a hospital in the Mental Health Unit.

MONEY / FINANCE

I really wished I had some proper education or inspiration around money, saving and investing. Unfortunately that was not really the case. I faked it most of the time and these books have all helped me to get understanding of how to better manage money and finances. I just wished someone had given them to me 30 years earlier…


NOVELS

I read this book many years ago while still living in Germany in german, I also watched the movie in German. I kind of liked it but it didn’t leave a huge impact on me – I couldn’t really relate at the time. I just re-read this just when we moved on the boat in Greece and really loved the story. I could relate to so many things – how she felt lost, her dysfunctional relationships, the travel pause and the rediscovering in the India and finally finding a new path and love in Bali. My life version is slightly different but similar. I really liked the book this time around and I am sharing my favorite passages from this book in a blog HERE.

Once I was on a roll with my Elizabeth Gilbert reading of course had to read her latest novel. I am not a novel reader at all. I can’t stand violence, murder, drama etc. But this sounded promising and I was curious about the story, because I follow Liz on Instagram and had seen the process of this book unfold. Its a great story about showgirls in New York, relationships and a life unfold with all the ups and down and exciting bits in between. I think it is great novel. There is quite a bit of sex involved, so if you are adverse to reading about it, this book is not for you. I felt entertained, gripped and couldn’t put it down. I do recommend the read.

ART AND POETRY
I don’t actually own this, as just it was released we packed up to live on a boat and owning books on a sailboat other than on a Kindle is not really practical. So I look at Charlies art on Instagram instead. If I ever move into fixed abode with the possibility of a bookshelf this will definitely be an addition to my collection.

I became aware of IN-Q through Elena Brower’s podcast Practice You. I fell in love this his poetry straight away. Again a poetry book is something I want to have in paper, so this gem will have to wait until I have a bookshelf again. Until then I enjoy snippets of this men’s genius on Instagram.

I followed Yung for many years on Instagram and love his thought prompts and reminders. This is the book resulting from his work on instagram. You can listen to an interview with him on the Practice You podcast. A beautiful collection of wisdom and thoughts.

 I loved these books of drawings and poetry by Rupi Kaur. They are in one of my storage boxes in New Zealand. I used these often to find inspiration for my meditation, my own practice or for yoga sessions. I highly recommend them.

INSPIRATION CARDS

I love to use inspiration cards before my meditation, or before sleep or offer them in my yoga sessions. These are my favorite card decks: