Off-Topic Winter Reading 2021-2022

[lreidgreen]

Originally Posted by sherry7899

I am on goodreads but I always forget to log my books!

Me too! I just got an email from Goodreads listing the two books they think I read in 2021. Well I didn't read lots of books but it was more than 2 so I logged in and entered the other ones I read. I was a real slacker this year but I have been mostly reading magazines. That needs to change for 2022.

[lreidgreen]

Test

ETA: I am trying to post something in response to Erica and Sherry's posts and am getting an internal server error.
ETA again. I was able to post below but I was getting the error when quoting Erica and Sherry's posts.

[BunnyHop]

Today I finally finished Dan Harris's Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics.
I've enjoyed it so much I took notes throughout, and plan to copy the various meditations written in the book for my future references. I'd dawdled and delayed finishing my note taking process, but bit the bullet today and worked steadily til I was done. (2 hours? yikes.)

This book has helped me have a better understanding of the process, and to make a more consistent practice part of my daily life.

The basic idea for all of them is very similar but they go over a good many different ways to approach the thing, various ways to shift your perspective.
I've found that very helpful in my search to learn how to incorporate mindfulness into my daily life a bit more easily.

I even lucked out and found a hardback copy in the bargain bin at the bookstore today. It's got a future as a Christmas gift, for sure.

If your library doesn't have it, used copies seem to be cheap and plentiful just now.

And apparently in celebration, I sought out more info on the Stillness Meditation technique that I'm working with in the mornings, and found that the basic approach is being given serious academic study. It's one of the sort that seek a goal-state similar to other "contentless meditations" like TM, Thai Forest Meditation and Shamatha practices, and is based in clinical practice, not spiritual traditions. Just thought I'd share that info in case anyone else wants to explore those subjects and finds themselves in need of keywords for searching.

[lreidgreen]

I finished Crying in H Mart and loved it. Very well written but sad. It is about the author's complicated relationship with her mother and described how she took care of her mother during her battle with cancer. A large focus was the role food played in her relationship with her mother and how she learned to cook the Korean dishes her mother made to cope with her loss.
Sherry, I need to research her band. I have not been keeping up with music. I also want to check out the YouTube channel she mentioned where she learned Korean cooking techniques. There was a porridge described in the book that I want to try.

I am within 100 pages of finishing Battle Cry of Freedom.
My book group is reading "Valentine" by Elizabeth Wetmore next month. I reserved it at the library.

ETA: Anna thanks for your review of Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics. I may give it a try! I think he has a podcast "10 percent happier"

[toaster]

Anna, I thought Dan Harris did an excellent job with his books - I even got DH to read Ten Percent Happier (which I liked a bit better than Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics, maybe because it was more personal and I read it first). I like how Harris and others apply the tenets of Buddhism from a secular perspective; another of my favorites in this area is Dr. Rick Hanson. I definitely recommend both Dr. Hanson's blog and the Ten Percent Happier blog.

[BunnyHop]

Originally Posted by lreidgreen

...ETA: Anna thanks for your review of Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics. I may give it a try! I think he has a podcast "10 percent happier"

He does, but I've dragged my feet about exploring it. From what I've seen of reviews, the 10% app is free for a few days, but then charges, so I'm giving that a pass. I've found plenty of other good guided meditations that seem to be serving me just fine.

I mostly like podcasts when I'm in the car on long drives, but haven't taken many of those lately.

Originally Posted by toaster

... I like how Harris and others apply the tenets of Buddhism from a secular perspective; another of my favorites in this area is Dr. Rick Hanson. I definitely recommend both Dr. Hanson's blog and the Ten Percent Happier blog.

Thanks for the recs!!

The secular perspective is just what I'm looking for. Knowledge and wisdom, if I can find them.

I know a good many people who are freaked out at the idea that any aspect of yoga came from some not-orthodox-christian perspective and tiptoe around the concept of meditation to make their practices fit within the rigid limits of whatever they believe to be the boundaries of acceptable practice within their denomination.

Me? I just want to explore various ways to manage the anxiety and depression that seem to have ruled my daily life for as long as can remember. Not gonna fuss about where the knowledge or technique comes from, but I also want to be respectful of the source material by not pretending beliefs I don't possess.

There's a LOT to learn and I really want to be as clear eyed as I can about it so I don't miss the point. The past few decades have taught me how easy it is to get distracted, and I'd hate to keep going down that path if I don't have to.

[BunnyHop]

May I ask if others have read books that really impressed or inspired them this past year???

Beryl Markham's memoir West with the Night in audiobook was wonderful! It's a shame she didn't write more. (Editing to add: She and Out of Africa's Karen Blixen were contemporaries. Markham was also lovers with the character played by Robert Redford in the film, but the author does not address any of those aspects of her life in West with the Night. It's still an enthralling story to listen to.)

Two books impressed me so much I took notes from cover to cover for future reference:
Mimi Kuo-Deemer's book Xiu Yang: The Ancient Chinese Art of Self-Cultivation for a Healthier, Happier, More Balanced Life

and Dan Harris's Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics

This past year I made a habit of taking the time to read in short bursts on a regular basis and take notes. As I was doing it it felt as though I wasn't accomplishing much, but I did that through two entire books! So neat.

In my experience, this only works well for me with books I feel are well written and well structured.

Anybody else have extra fun with their books this year?

[toaster]

Anna, I had the Ten Percent Happier app when it was free, and I thought it was just so-so. I really like Insight Timer because there is SO MUCH free content.

I love the idea of taking notes on books, especially on moving passages. I want to do that eventually.

You asked about impressed or inspired...here are a few of my thoughts.

Non-Fiction
Gratitude by Oliver Saks - a short moving work about his last days
Quiet by Susan Cain - about introverts; made me realize that I am more introverted than I usually admit (I have good extroversion skills, but it's not my preference)
Yoga for Healthy Aging by Baxter Bell and Nina Zolotow - influential for me because I did an online training by that same name (with Baxter and his wife) that I loved
Caged Lion by John Steel - a fascinating story about Joseph Pilates; got me back into Pilates again!
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah - I learned a lot that I didn't know about him and about Africa
My Read Life by Pat Conroy - another very interesting memoir
Pay Attention, For Goodness Sakes by Sylvia Boorstein - one of my favorite Buddhist authors

Non-Fiction
The Mr. & Mrs. Darcy series by Carrie Bebris - influential because it has made me want to go back to read Jane Austen's originals! (I recently read Sense and Sensibility)
The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister - one of my favorite fiction reads of the year; I will definitely read more by her
The Hypnotist's Love Story by Liane Moriarity - loved this and a new author for me
A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy - re-read at the start of the year and loved it again; glad I found she has a few posthumous books (now I'm reading a book of her stories, A Few of the Girls)

Hmm, I read a lot more fiction than non-fiction, but I guess the non-fiction is more influential!

[patrice]

Originally Posted by ardnas

Finished Santa Cruise.

Started reading The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo since the movie comes out in Jan and I have read & enjoyed the rest of her 6 classic children's novels.

I read this because of your post. Mixed emotions. Sad but healing.

Patrice

[Pat58]

I just finished a page turner murder mystery/suspense, "Good as Dead" by Susan Walker. I couldn't put it down!

It was my 49th book of 2021 so I'm one away from meeting my Goodreads challenge. Can I make it?