Guest Review - Ash, by Malinda Lo, reviewed by Sissy

Ash is a wonderfully written story about a girl who loses her mother at a young age. She dreams of fairies and wishes them to take her away from her life, even if it's only in her dreams. When her father passes away, her step-mother takes her away to live with herself and her two daughters. Ash finds hope and love in places she never would imagine. Ash is a new twist on the Cinderella tale.

Guest Review: Bright-Sided by Barbara Ehrenreich, reviewed by Steve

Ms. Ehrenreich strikes a decisive blow to the “positive thinking” phenomenon that seems to have supplanted rational thought in our culture. She exposes the pseudo-science that the many motivational speakers and writers present to prove that visualization and positive thinking will get you whatever you want. From positive thinking promoters like the founding fathers, Dale Carnegie (How to Win Friends and Influence People) and Napoleon Hill (Think and Grow Rich), to the breast cancer support groups, the push is on to erase negativity from our lives. Her research exposes a primary use for the motivational positive thinking model as a distraction to the real world problems of job loss and poverty. Ms. Ehrenreich presents a convincing argument for returning to a reasoning, rational approach to improving one’s life and the world, and exposes the intolerance that many of these motivational speakers seem to promote.

Guest Review: The Healing Art of Storytelling, by Richard Stone, reviewed by Steve

This is an excellent introduction to the importance of storytelling our mental and emotional health. Stone provides examples in the form of personal stories and explains how telling the stories helped him come to terms with issues from the past that continued to adversely affect the present. Mr. Stone also addresses the importance of stories told to teach a lesson. He explains how people learn from stories and why many spiritual teachers taught with stories and parables. The reader is also given a wide range of topics to begin telling their own story as well as encouragement to begin. Stone includes a section with cautions about what to avoid, and what to watch for. He points out that some stories are too painful and that sometimes one needs to speak to a professional if a story is too difficult for a friend to handle. I found this book to be inspirational and practical and would recommend it to anyone interested in emotional healing, storytelling, and teaching.