12 books to change your life

Books are my life!

No really! I write them, review them, sell them professionally... and, of course, read for pleasure. I tend to have at least eight on the go at once!

You might have noted in my Books for the Soul page that I refer to myself as a book medicine woman. If someone has a need, I usually know the book that will help them. I inherited this from both sides of my family: we are shameless book pushers! I share a lot of books with my special people...

But...

image: eventkeeper.com 

There are a few of my books that I will not lend out. I recommend them, sure. But they are always either on my desk, nightstand or my mind...

And so, dear friends, I want to share them with you too...

Each of these books marked a gateway to transformation for me: creating a paradigm change and new way of seeing the world. They are classics, the bibles of a generation, many of them are best sellers. Others are less well known.  I re read each at least once a year. Each time I am at a cross roads, needing answers, or uninspired by life, I come back to them.

Now, most of these are self-help, hippy-dippy books! That is my specialty! So let your inner hippy out, align your chakras, beat your bongos and off we go in our tie-dyed glory to find our true selves!!




You Can Heal Your Life - Louise L Hay. Listen folks, I resisted this book for a LONG time, it was just TOO way out. But since rediscovering it (see here and here!) it has become my number one "go to" book. It works. End of. If you want to see how your thoughts impact on your physical health and emotional well being, and then how to transform them, this is your book!



A New Earth - Eckhart Tolle - a truly insightful book on the functioning of the mind and the misery it makes for itself. He explores really useful concepts of the ego and pain body - and then giving practical insight on how to interact with them which draws on Christian, Buddhist and perennial philosophies

Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom - Dr Christiane Northrup 
A book which focuses more on the biological health and wellbeing of the female body, written by a practicing ob-gyn who has tremendous insight into the emotional impact our lives have on our health. This book was what started me on the path to writing my second book - here's why


Conversations With God - Neale Donald Walshe 
OK this one makes me cringe to add it - because it is such a classic. And a god book. But it totally shifted my way of writing when I first discovered it. Through it I became able to access my writing source (not its intention at all!!) and "channel" my writing. I read it at university, when I was immersed in academic writing, both tone and approach of this book totally shook my world.


The Aquarian Conspiracy - Marilyn Ferguson
This is a classic of the New Age movement in the late 1970s, early 80s, that a lot of us slightly younger bunnies were not exposed to. As a student of history of ideas, I loved that it wove the strands of transformation - from Emerson, through Timothy Leary and the laws of physics together.


Spiritual Midwifery - Ina May Gaskin
This book more than any other transformed my view of birth and what it can be. I love its totally way out hippy language and images of long-haired lovers birthing their babies the way nature intended. It was such an honour to interview her this year.


The Prophet - Kahlil Gibran
My father got me to read this book, as my first foray into alternative philosophy, aged about 14. We had readings from it at our wedding (us and most of the rest of the hippy world!!) and I regularly refer back to it for its balanced wisdom - especially this on children:

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Women Who Run with the Wolves - Clarissa Pinkola Estes
This classic uses the medicine of folk tales to give insight into ourselves as wild women. Too long to read in one go, but great medicine to have beside the bed. 


Circle of stones - Judith Duerk 
This was the book that inspired me to start our women's circle. I sent one of the opening paragraphs out as invitations to call my circle: “How might your life have been different, if, through the years, there had been a place where you could go? …A place of women away from the ordinary busy-ness of life…a place of women who knew the cycles of life, the ebb and flow of nature, who knew of times of work and quiet… who understood…in the dark of winter, that your energy would return as surely as the start of spring…Women who could help you learn to light a candle and wait…How might your life be different?” See my review here part of the Circle of Stones series.


Eastern Body, Western Mind - Anodea Judith
An incredible weaving of the Eastern system of chakras and the Western science of psychoanalysis to give a broad, balanced insight into ourselves.


Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
I so identified with this book of travel, food and philosophy. It mirrors so many of our own adventures around the world. It is incredibly profound, humourous and engaging. I wish I had written this book!!


The Road Less Travelled - M Scott Peck
Another book based on psychoanalysis which is a wonderfully old fashioned feeling insight into the good life.




And finally...
It is my avowed hope as an author that my books become handbooks of transformation, trusted guides to the journey, books of practical wisdom which beg to be returned to again and again. I have been so touched by the feedback of so many women to my first book Moon Time:a guide to celebrating your menstrual cycle, who have said just this.If you've read it and it's touched you, please do add a review to Amazon  I know that my second book on Creative Mamas (which is currently being considered by agents and will be out in 2013) will do the same!

I'd love to hear your classics, so that I can discover new gems...