my mind on books

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Kindle Daily Deal on Amazon: $1.99 for '10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head…' by Dan Harris https://t.co/rmnBii9WmC via @amazon

— Debbie A Foster (@mymindonbooks) February 2, 2016

(NOTE: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)

Kindle Daily Deal on Amazon: $2.99 for 'One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way' by R Maurer https://t.co/GNAi8VEQKF via @amazon

— Debbie A Foster (@mymindonbooks) December 22, 2015

Kindle ed. only $3.99 on Amazon: ‘Screw the Zoo: Escape From Your Cage, Free Yr Mind …’ by Sam McRoberts for $3.99 http://t.co/rBwGbl5CYw

— Debbie A Foster (@mymindonbooks) June 9, 2015

Book description from the publisher:

What if you could travel back in time? What would you tell your younger self, if you had the opportunity? These are questions I’ve asked myself a thousand times, and Screw the Zoo is my answer.

If you feel trapped, stuck in a rut, or in any way disheartened by the path your life has taken, then this book is for you. It contains every lesson, shortcut, and mind-hack I’ve found on my quest for freedom, broken down into practical lessons and simple steps that literally anyone can follow.

This step-by-step guide to freedom will teach you:
• How to walk into a room, any room, and command attention and respect
• How to negotiate reality, redefine your worth, and achieve your dreams
• How to develop a Sherlockian-mind through the use of observational tricks and mnemonics
• How to control your body language and facial expressions to conceal your true feelings
• How to identify and break free from personal habits and traditions that are holding you back

If you’re ready to be free, to escape from your cage and forge your own path through life, then look no further. This is the road map through life that I wish I’d had from the very beginning.

How Dante Can Save Your Life: The Life-Changing Wisdom of History’s Greatest Poem by Rod Dreher (Regan Arts, 2015)

(kindle ed.), (amazon.co.uk),

Book description from the publisher:

The opening lines of The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri launched Rod Dreher on a journey that rescued him from exile and saved his life. Dreher found that the medieval poem offered him a surprisingly practical way of solving modern problems.

Following the death of his little sister and the publication of his New York Times bestselling memoir The Little Way of Ruthie Leming, Dreher found himself living in the small community of Starhill, Louisiana where he grew up. But instead of the fellowship he hoped to find, he discovered that fault lines within his family had deepened. Dreher spiraled into depression and a stress-related autoimmune disease. Doctors told Dreher that if he didn’t find inner peace, he would destroy his health. Soon after, he came across The Divine Comedy in a bookstore and was enchanted by its first lines, which seemed to describe his own condition.

In the months that followed Dante helped Dreher understand the mistakes and mistaken beliefs that had torn him down and showed him that he had the power to change his life. Dreher knows firsthand the solace and strength that can be found in Dante’s great work, and distills its wisdom for those who are lost in the dark wood of depression, struggling with failure (or success), wrestling with a crisis of faith, alienated from their families or communities, or otherwise enduring the sense of exile that is the human condition.

Inspiring, revelatory, and packed with penetrating spiritual, moral, and psychological insights How Dante Can Save Your Life is a book for people, both religious and secular, who find themselves searching for meaning and healing. Dante told his patron that he wrote his poem to bring readers from misery to happiness. It worked for Rod Dreher. Dante saved Rod Dreher’s life—and in this book, Dreher shows you how Dante can save yours.

Google Books preview:

Happiness: A Philosopher’s Guide by Frederic Lenoir, tr. Andrew Brown (Melville House, 2015)

(kindle ed.), (amazon.co.uk), (UK kindle ed.)

Book description from the publisher:

A huge bestseller in Europe, Frederic Lenoir’s Happiness is an exciting journey that examines how history’s greatest philosophers and religious figures have answered life’s most fundamental question: What is happiness and how do I achieve it?

From the ancient Greeks on—from Aristotle, Plato, and Chuang Tzu to the Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad; from Voltaire, Spinoza, and Schopenhauer to Kant, Freud, and even modern neuroscientists—Lenoir considers the idea that true and lasting happiness is indeed possible.

In clear language, Lenoir concisely surveys what the greatest thinkers of all time have had to say on the subject, and, with charming prose, raises provocative questions:

·      Do we have a duty to be happy?
·      Is there a connection between individual and collective happiness?
·      Is happiness contagious?
·      Is there a difference between pleasure and happiness?
·      Can unhappiness and happiness coexist?
·      Does our happiness depend on our luck?

Understanding how civilization’s best minds have answered those questions, Lenoir suggests, not only makes for a fascinating reading experience, but also provides a way for us to see us how happiness, that most elusive of feelings, is attainable in our own lives.

See also: Author’s website