Blog Archives
Motion: The Art of Moving Forward by Creating Change
In Motion: The Art of Moving Forward by Creating Change, author Aileen Sideris shares ideas for a better life and tips that can help readers elevate their situations. In this motivating book, the author takes the reader through different steps that can help one achieve their goals as she explains why each step is crucial. Aileen Sideris introduces the reader to the book by giving definitions of fundamental terms that will be used throughout the book. The author starts by discussing motion and explaining in detail what motion is and how it can help you attain your goals. This style of writing is replicated throughout the book as the author brings in more new topics.
Every new topic has an easy-to-digest breakdown as the author shares her knowledge in both bullet point form and in prose. By doing this, the reader easily follows the discussion and even highlights key parts of the text. Aileen Sideris also shares how she pursues her goals and the paths she has taken. The personal experience feels intimate and gets the reader to further connect with her words. One of the primary things I like about Sideris is how assertive she is. Even when discussing challenges, the author uses affirming words that get the reader to be motivated. Her soft tone while discussing important topics and the inclusion of day-to-day events make the text more relevant.
This well-written book will be your ladder to success. More importantly, the author will help you find the right path in life and get you to make constructive life-changing decisions. I like that the author uses real-life examples of renowned and celebrated icons worldwide to get her message. The author writes about successful individuals like Barack Obama, Stephen King, Oprah Winfrey, and Kate Winslet and how they made a name for themselves despite coming from humble backgrounds.
Motion: The Art of Moving Forward by Creating Change is a motivational and inspirational self-help book. The author’s humility in her writing and precision when discussing the various subjects make this book unique from others. No matter what stage of life readers are in, there is something in this book to help them improve their quality of life and achieve personal growth.
Pages: 404 | ASIN : B0B7X6GRQ2
Scamper And The Magic Of Appreciation
In Scamper and the Magic of Appreciation by Michal Y. Noah and Loren Noah, we are taken on a journey by Scamper, the squirrel who allows us to see the beauty in everyday little moments and to appreciate all we have around us.
The poetic prose of the story from start to finish is impressive. Just like the author’s note at the beginning of the story, we read impactful words of empowerment and feel motivated by every word throughout. The illustrations by Favreau are enchanting and sweet, literally beaming joy from every page.
I agree with the author about the importance of empowering young children and knowing their happiness and self-worth are in their own minds. I believe we sometimes forget as parents or caretakers how critical it is for an adolescent mind to learn the value of self-esteem and tend to only teach our children to just be ‘good kids.’ This book helps me remember that although, yes, we want our kids to behave nicely, especially around other people, to be good to themselves and enjoy life is just as equally relevant.
I would recommend this book to anyone with children or even someone who is looking for a confidence boost or great motivational quotes. The story has loads of them strewn about its length. This quote in particular, “Above me a blank canvas, a sky that’s clear and blue; On it I can paint my dreams, each day I will start anew.”, fills me with such hope and rapture that I will very likely repeat that as a morning mantra from now on.
Scamper and the Magic of Appreciation is a beautifully written picture book that encourages children, and adults, to look for the beauty within themselves. This children’s book is empowering as well as entertaining and will be a book that the whole family will want to read more than once.
Pages: 36 | ISBN : 0996775757
I Am Woman
I Am Woman by author Mrs. Anthony is a powerful memoir that will take readers on an emotional journey. Readers follow Mrs. Anthony from her childhood to her coming of age years when she meets her husband, Tony. Falling in love, they vow to start a life and family together. Tony begins his career while Mrs. Anthony is still trying to start hers. In the early years of their marriage, she spent time taking care of the household while letting her own dreams and career fall to the wayside. She slowly puts off more things that make her who she is to support her husband and his career. She thought she had the perfect love with beautiful children until Tony’s battle with alcohol slowly ruined their marriage. Despite all of the disappointments Mrs. Anthony and her family endured to his disease, they continue to support and love Tony.
I Am Woman: Book One: My Journey, My Tony is an eye-opening read that I found hard to put down. I didn’t expect this book to impact me, but this is a true testament to the author’s ability to infuse emotion into her writing. I felt as though I was reading Mrs. Anthony’s private journal. I was able to experience a true sense of what she was feeling. The disappointment in her husband for not being present in their marriage due to alcohol abuse came through her writing clearly. Mrs. Anthony’s sense of loss for herself because she was focused on her husband and ignored her own dreams was heartbreaking at times.
The author’s life story is one that many women will be able to relate to. The constant need to put family and spouse ahead of themselves makes this memoir especially poignant. As women strive to support their husbands and their careers, like Mrs. Anothony, their own careers and dreams get put on hold. I felt sorry for the author because she felt bad for being angry at her husband for getting sick, and she had to be both a mother and father and take care of their household. The guilt women feel is real, and the author shows how deeply that guilt can run and control how they live their lives. The guilt often turns to anger when in situations like this, the woman is left with no partner and the additional task of caring for the one she vowed to share life with. It seemed her husband did not appreciate the sacrifices she made, and it consumed her in frustration and pain, all while trying to make it appear like things were okay for the outside world and her children.
The author’s writing immersed me into her world, and I could clearly imagine each scene, making this an impactful read. I highly recommend this book to those who enjoy memoirs from women who share the personal journey of self-discovery and balancing an ever-complicated life.
Pages: 328 | ASIN : B09LHBQPWW
You Are The Driver Of Your Own Life
Grip Life is a self-help book that will help readers find balance in the key areas of their life using a Christian-based approach backed with research to guide them. Why was this an important book for you to write?
This book was important for me to write because it raises awareness of the need for a person to care for his or her health, in all seven elements of health- physically, mental, family, vocational, spiritual, financial, and social and to remind all humanity that one element can influence the status of the other health elements.
What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?
Life offers choices in every element of health regardless of quality. If one is breathing one is participating in life. Thus, one needs to evaluate self/ health to maintain or improve his or her health.
What Is one piece of advice someone gave you that changed your life?
You are the driver of your own life. Don’t allow anybody to sit in your seat.
What is one thing you hope readers take away from this book?
Life is precious because you only get a chance to live it one time. Grip Life by caring for all seven elements of your health.
Author Links: Facebook
•physical health: body wellness
•mental health: mind wellness
•family health: relative contacts
•vocational health: employment skills
•financial health: budget mastery
•social health: group participation
•spiritual health: Christian living
Use the suggestions in this book to help yourself to maintain or to acquire a normal, productive life by not neglecting any element of your life. Use the spaces provided to write your improvement plan or maintenance plan for each element for a healthier you.
Look Within
A young boy feels lost and alone when a stranger shows up and asks what he can do to help him. The boy tells him that he wants to become like him, strong, confident, wise, wealthy, kind, and giving. The man’s name was Kim, and he agreed to help the boy become like him, as long as the boy committed to following three steps that Kim would give him. Feeling motivated and encouraged, the boy agreed to the conditions and followed Kim to a place where there were many people to learn from and ask questions to. Kim’s plan for the boy includes three steps, set a goal, make a plan, and create daily habits that will move you towards your goal.
In Look Within: A Story About Discovering The Key to Success by author Miles McAlister is the story of a boy growing into the man he wants to be. The lesson of achieving your ultimate goal lies within yourself and is shared with young readers in an easy-to-understand way. Broken out into three steps, children and even teens can learn how to make their dreams a reality through hard work and dedication.
It is not often you find a self-help book for children or one with such a compelling story to teach the ideas. I found myself enchanted by the process, watching the main character devote himself to this goal. The daily habits setting is a key idea that many goal planning books just gloss over. I also liked how the daily routines focus on a well-rounded body approach; children are encouraged to grow their minds and body together and build healthy hygiene habits.
Look Within is a well-written and entertaining coming-of-age self-help book for children and teens; adults could also learn a few things from this enlightening book as well.
Pages: 35 | ASIN : B09WD48J2B
Grip Life
Grip Life by Elizabeth Grubbs helps readers to look within themselves and find areas that need improvement based on the seven elements of life. These seven elements are physical, mental, family, financial, vocational, social, and spiritual health. The author discusses each element by providing her experiences and her professional opinion, which is backed by science. At the end of each chapter is a biblical thought that relates to the seven elements and a checklist for readers to create a plan to better themselves in these areas.
Author Grubbs has written a mentally stimulating short read that doesn’t waste time with extra fluff. The author gets to the point, and I appreciate that she included her own experiences based on these elements as it helped make her advice believable. The author also provides research to back up her claims making this a credible read.
The seven elements listed are great points to help you become a well-rounded person as it touches upon your mental health, work, physical health, and even your social life. This is the perfect read to guide us to bettering ourselves in certain areas of our lives especially since we are all picking up the pieces from dealing with COVID. I appreciated that the author included a health self- checkup list after each element, as this allowed me to score myself in this particular area and list my thoughts on what I just read. This helped me to reflect on the information that was provided to me as well as the areas I need to improve.
I highly recommend Grip Life to everyone in different stages of their life as there is always something to improve within ourselves. The fact that this is a short read is perfect for our busy lives.
Pages: 34 | ASIN : B0916ZYK3V
Meditations for Modern Man
In Meditations for Modern Man author Michael Cook provides readers with inspirational quotes that cover a variety of enlightened and humanistic topics from logic to morality and more. These intellectually stimulating quotes empower readers with timeless wisdom that anyone can use in their daily lives.
Author Michael Cook has written a unique and thought-provoking book that many readers will find encouraging and uplifting. While reading the quotes in the book you feel as though you are getting advice from a mentor or someone who has experienced so much in life and has a wealth of knowledge to share.
I encourage readers to, as I did, stop and reflect on what is read, because while some quotes are subtle but potent, like this one “When Logic fails, Emotion reigns.”, I found others to be layered and profound. I’m sure that some of these keen aphorisms will echo in your mind as you go about your daily life.
This is a great book for readers who are looking to grow as a person and for those seeking an enlightened opinion on how to be the best version of themselves. I enjoyed the author’s candid and unapologetic voice in his book. Readers will be able to sense his personality, and I think these aphorisms hold more value because of it.
As I was reading, I found myself agreeing with many of the maxims, but I would have enjoyed a bit of an introduction to each section if only to dive deeper into the authors thoughts on the topic. There may be some quotes in the book that readers may not agree with, but I like that the author’s writing can spark debate, either within a group or within your mind.
The author has written an observant and enlightening book of maxims that can easily become common adages. I recommend this book to parents and to young adults who are ready to go out into the world on their own and find out what kind of person they really are. This is a fantastic book for anyone that is about to embark on a personal transformation journey, as these will help guide them.
Pages: 167 | ASIN: B09BQ9FWW1
The Fabric of Our Lives
105 Steps is a memoir of not just the time your wife was in the hospital, but of your journey together in life, with all the ups and downs it took you on. Why was this an important book for you to write?
It’s often said that just before you die, your whole life flashes before your eyes. With my wife on life support in ICU, I knew regardless of the outcome, my life would also never be the same. As a songwriter, words and tunes have always been my chosen outlet, however sitting bedside and faced with losing my wife, I felt compelled to remember and relate every moment we shared together. The recollections, dates and experiences constituting the fabric of our lives together seemed to write themselves and, at times, I felt like it wasn’t me actually writing, I just painted the picture, immersed in and reliving each moment of our 51 year relationship. The journey we were on was too big for a song so 105 Steps was born and written in 6 weeks (on my iPhone), because I couldn’t bear to lose one single valuable memory.
I appreciated the candid nature with which you told your story. What was the hardest thing for you to write about?
I tried to be as honest as I could. My fear and vulnerability was exposed in the front pages when I wrote;
“Imagine yourself standing before a wide, deep, dark river. It’s night time but, for some unknown reason, you know you must cross the river. You are alone and afraid. A large, white stepping stone slowly rises from the deep and you step out. It’s firm and solid. Another white stepping stone appears in front of you. It too, is firm and solid. You take it. Then another, and another and another. The river is wide but your path is now long. You turn around to see how far you’ve come. There are no stones. There is only one stone, the one you are standing on”.
Readers familiar with ICU and long hospital stays will understand the metaphor of the river and the stones. After my fear had been exposed and, with nothing to hide, the words flowed freely. That one paragraph (above), was difficult to write, but established the parameters for the rest of the book. Emotionally, the time of most anguish and mental trauma was when we were, as a family, called into a meeting with Doctors, expecting we would have to make a decision on whether my wife might live or die.
What is one piece of advice someone gave you that changed your life?
“Never lose your childhood innocence”
… always a font for bravado and courage, often a call to not be afraid to “step up to the plate”. Told to me by Carlos Santana, but (loosely) a famous quote by Federico Fellini
After knocking on various doors (no particular person but thru books, meditation) … I came to understand that Space, Time, Energy and Matter are all manifestations of the same thing. This realisation freed my mind and opened up a lifetime source of creative positive energy and thinking. I could believe in and mould my own future.
What do you hope is one thing readers take away from your story?
There is always hope, and Love is the solution. We only have control over our own thoughts but, with that, comes great power. Power to only hold positive thoughts, positive images, positive outcomes. Power to refuse to entertain negativity. The human brain will manifest whatever is held within it and doesn’t differentiate between good and bad. No matter the adversity, readers can create their own future, readers can mould and manifest their outcomes. No matter how bad things appear, a positive outcome can always be had if readers nurture their thoughts in a sea of love and have faith.
Author Links: Amazon | Website
Steve sits bedside with his wife Glen, as she lies unconscious fighting for her life. Forced to face the prospect of a future without her at his side, he recalls their entire lives together, from the moment they met. In remarkable colour and detail, Steve cleverly intertwines a memoir and their 51 year relationship with the tension of real time hospital drama as it unfolds.
Beginning in the 1970’s, the story follows a young, long haired, guitar playing dreamer on a spontaneous and eclectic backpacking journey through Africa, the UK, Europe, Australia, Hawaii, mainland US, Canada and Mexico in a coming of age. Steve finds first himself, then faith and positivity, belief and, finally the love of his life and their place together in the Universe.
Besides telling a story of how love unfolds, 105 Steps reveals how life really is what happens to us when we are busy planning other things. Steve’s desperation as he diarises the events surrounding his wife’s condition is palpable but, through all of this, 105 Steps leaves an indelible feeling of positivity. It’s a tense but heartwarming tale of how adversity can galvanise an entire family to find love, strength and courage.
A seemingly ordinary life becomes a remarkable journey when juxtaposed against the tension of ICU and illustrates how life can be joyful … if you want it to be.
105 Steps will show you how the power of positive thinking and prayer really can make a difference.
LITERARY TITAN 