Smith’s latest book is a wonderful collection of practical advice for the average writer. Smith encourages writers to not fall victim to the typical aSmith’s latest book is a wonderful collection of practical advice for the average writer. Smith encourages writers to not fall victim to the typical advice—you have to write every day to be a writer!—and offers ways to, instead, slow down and pay attention. This book definitely leans more heavily toward poetry (specifically the writing practices outlined at the end of each chapter), which shouldn’t be surprising considering this is Smith’s preferred and primary method of writing, but many pieces can still be applied to fiction and other modes of non-fiction writing as well.
A lot of the advice in here, though nice to hear, felt a little too� “rah rah you can do it!� and it rubbed me weird. Still, scattered with writing prompts, reflections on the practice of writing, and recommendations on further reading, Dear Writer is a wonderful tool in any writer’s toolbox but I would mostly recommend it to those working toward writing more poetry.
Thank you Atria for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. Available Apr. 1 2025...more
For those who love to journal and for those who want to journal...
Whether or not you are familiar with Jaouad's Substack newsletter "Isolation JournaFor those who love to journal and for those who want to journal...
Whether or not you are familiar with Jaouad's Substack newsletter "Isolation Journals", you are in for a treat with this book. Born from Jaouad's love of journaling and documenting, The Isolation Journals was created in 2020 during the height of the pandemic when she started communal journaling, inviting others to contribute. Each "journal" entry—or essay—that was shared offered a prompt for the rest of the readers to get their creative juices flowing.
The Book of Alchemy is a collection of 100 of those essays from The Isolation Journals, each offering a prompt that relates back to the essay and invites readers to open up their journals and their hearts, and write their own piece. With 100 different prompts on Beginning; Memory; Fear; Seeing; Love; Body; Rebuilding; Ego; Purpose; and Alchemy; The Book of Alchemy will take readers through a slew of outsider experiences that force them to turn inward, reflect, and recognize the universal experience of being human.
This book best works as a "100 days of journaling" practice, reading one essay and prompt per day. But if you are anything like me, you don't have the patience for that. In that case, my best advice with this book would be to settle in with it and read through the whole thing—cover to cover—and see what resonates with you, what speaks to you. When you finish, start from the beginning again. Only this time, let yourself move through the prompts one day at a time.
With essays from Dani Shapiro, Melissa Febos, Erin Khar, Jon Batiste, Laura McKowen, Elizabeth Gilbert, LaTonya Yvette, Ann Patchett, and so many more, it is sure to delight. I look forward to grabbing my own physical copy when it releases so I can underline, highlight, and deeply engage.
Thank you Penguin Random House for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. Available Apr. 22 2025...more
When it comes to drinking (or rather, trying to stop drinking) not many people consider nutrition as a way to assist your journey. This is where this When it comes to drinking (or rather, trying to stop drinking) not many people consider nutrition as a way to assist your journey. This is where this book comes in so nicely because it gives people another resource in an area not yet very explored: nutrition in sobriety. Whether you have been sober for 20 years, recently sober, or just trying to cut back on your weekly drink count, this is a truly wonderful and informative book to have by your side....more
Incredibly informative. Full of useful information on how addiction forms, what it can look like, what language is out-dateAddiction is not a choice.
Incredibly informative. Full of useful information on how addiction forms, what it can look like, what language is out-dated and what to use now when it comes to people with addiction, how to identify it in yourself and those you love, and how to navigate conversations regarding pre-addiction. This book offers advice on how to speak directly to the different people in your life: friends, children, partners, etc. It also includes tips and checklists (checklists!! rejoice!!) on how to open up the conversation with someone that you worry is struggling from SUD, even if that someone is you. I would recommend this to everyone as we are all susceptible to addiction of some form and even if you think you aren’t, someone you love is.
A wonderful addition to the addiction literature world.
A great read for someone just beginning their sober or sober curious journey. Full of lots of information about how alcohol affects the brain and bodyA great read for someone just beginning their sober or sober curious journey. Full of lots of information about how alcohol affects the brain and body. As someone farther down the road in their journey, who has read many, many addiction memoirs and self-help alcohol books, the information in here wasn’t as ground-breaking for me personally. I didn’t agree with every point Grace makes and sometimes she does come off a little preachy but a fine read nonetheless. One thing that I will take with me in to my sobriety is this: Allowing the conscious mind to take out the trash that the unconscious mind creates....more
The anti-aging industry is a multibillion dollar industry. Billion. With a B. Living in Los Angeles, I am all too familiar with peoples� obsession witThe anti-aging industry is a multibillion dollar industry. Billion. With a B. Living in Los Angeles, I am all too familiar with peoples� obsession with anti-aging—the creams, the serums, the botox�
When many people think about aging, they typically relate it to a decline in physical health. In this book, Greger works to abolish that thought process by taking anti-aging research and his vast knowledge of nutrition to prove to readers that the right food can help us combat chronic illness and avoid common diseases and ailments related to aging—dementia, arthritis, Parkinson’s, etc. This book addresses not only lifespan but healthspan. How can we live longer in wellness?
I’m not particularly fond of the book’s title because I think it can be misleading and, quite frankly, we are all going to age whether we like it or not. Greger explains this in his book: “This book is not about immortality but rather how to age with grace and vitality rather than suffering from the ravages of infirmity and decrepitude.�
Now, to be fair, I didn’t read this word for word. I would lose my mind if I did that. I skipped around a bit, finding the topics of research that were most interesting to me and most pertained to my line of work. This book works best that way, I think. Keeping it around for reference rather than a cover to cover kind of read; returning when you deem necessary. I appreciate that Greger and his team did all of the work to compile this research and make it easily digestible....more
There were minor things I didn’t like. Such as when she would say “I found this great brand that dah dah dah…� and then didn’t list the brand. Some weThere were minor things I didn’t like. Such as when she would say “I found this great brand that dah dah dah…� and then didn’t list the brand. Some were listed but I would have liked to see a comprehensive list of brands and companies that she found on her journey that helped her. Perhaps listed at the end to help others who are working on their own progress in this area.
Otherwise informative and very digestible to those new to the world of environmentalism. ...more
sometimes uncomfortable, but always important, conversations that we should all be having. it's informative, educational and eye-opening. a must read sometimes uncomfortable, but always important, conversations that we should all be having. it's informative, educational and eye-opening. a must read ...more
“One of the cardinal rules of good fiction is never tell us a thing if you can show us instead�
I have read some Stephen King work that I loved and som“One of the cardinal rules of good fiction is never tell us a thing if you can show us instead�
I have read some Stephen King work that I loved and some that I didn’t love but I DID love this. The first part of this book is a collection of short personal stories of King’s life and I love that he chose to start the book this way. I had many laugh out loud moments within these stories: “During that same period I remember believing� that a bitch was an extremely tall woman. A son of a bitch was apt to be a basketball player�. I also very much enjoyed his stories of alcoholism because, of course, I love any personal reflection story from a good ole alcoholic. The second part of the book is King’s advice, well� on writing. "If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot". While some of it seems obvious, you could do worse than to spend some time reading advice from one of the most popular best selling authors of all time. Can I also say that I love the way he talks about writing for his wife.
*I haven’t read Misery myself but it is worth noting that there are definitely some spoilers for it in here so maybe read that first if you are wanting to. Spoilers for Carrie & The Stand too...more
there are lots of good little tidbits that I gained from this short book (being a tourist in your own town, giving yourself space to write without expthere are lots of good little tidbits that I gained from this short book (being a tourist in your own town, giving yourself space to write without expectation, gaining original detail simply by being a better listener/being present) but it does get a bit repetitive, ultimately boxing up the same message and wording it in multiple different ways: just keep writing. a good tool if you're wanting to write and feeling stuck ...more
Loading...
