Building mental wellness on a foundation of strength
The Vintage Bookshop of Memories is a novel by Elizabeth Holland, who you may know from her blog Anxiety & Liz. The main character is 24-year-old Prue Clemonte. The book opens at her grandmother's funeral. With her death, Prue becomes Lady of the Manor and owner of the village. Class tensions between Prue and the… Continue reading Book Review: The Vintage Bookshop of Memories
The Ups and Downs – A Bipolar Picture Book by Kat Owens is an adult-oriented picture book, although there's no "adult" content and it would be very appropriate to help younger people understand bipolar disorder. The author aims to show the ups and downs of everyday life with bipolar. She herself lives with bipolar II.… Continue reading Book Review: The Ups and Downs – A Bipolar Picture Book
Shame Ate My Soul is Susan Walz's personal story of rising above stigma, suicide attempts, addiction, and misdiagnosis, and eventually finding recovery. I've known Sue, who blogs at My Loud Whispers of Hope, since the beginning of my blogging journey. The book opens with a heartbreaking conversation with 2 of her 3 children, as they… Continue reading Book Review: Shame Ate My Soul
The Enervation of Eve is a young adult novel by Meg Kimball, who blogs at Where Good Advice Happens. I have no idea what number book this is for her, but she's written a lot. Eve is a teenager who stared experience fatigue after her twin brother's bungee jumping accident on their birthday. Early on,… Continue reading Book Review: The Enervation of Eve
Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life by Marshall B. Rosenberg describes a form of compassionate communication. The foreword is by Deepak Chopra, which wasn't a great start for me, as New Age really isn't my thing. Rosenberg and I seem to look at the world very differently, so this is less book review and more… Continue reading Book Review: Nonviolent Communication
This Voyage of a Lifetime is the third book in the Learners at Love trilogy by Melody Finch of Caramel, Learner at Love. The books revolve centrally around Annabelle Grainger, her husband Robin, and her close friend Chris. The story is told from a third person objective point of view, but the three main characters… Continue reading Book Review: This Voyage of a Lifetime
Be Kind: A Year of Kindness One Week at a Time is by Melissa Burmester and Jaclyn Lindsey, the founders of Kindness.org. The book is based on their mission to "educate and inspire people to choose kindness." The book is divided into 52 weeks, and for each week there's something to learn, do, and reflect… Continue reading Book Review: Be Kind
To be clear right from the get-go, as a white chick, I'm not the intended audience of The Unapologetic Guide to Black Mental Health by Rheeda Walker. It's written by a Black woman and explicitly directed at Black people. However, it also offers interesting cultural insights that are relevant to all audiences. The author explains… Continue reading Book Review: The Unapologetic Guide to Black Mental Health
How to Tell Depression to Piss Off: 40 Ways to Get Your Life is written by James Withey, who has experienced depression personally and as a mental health professional, and is the creator of The Recovery Letters project. He draws on both perspectives in laying out 40 different strategies that can be helpful in overcoming… Continue reading Book Review: How to Tell Depression to Piss Off
My Bipolar Mind: Surviving the Chaos is by Samantha Steiner, who you may know from her blog My Bipolar Mind. This is her second book, and both are memoirs in the form of compiled blog posts. This book is based on 2018, and is laid out in chronological order. The book covers Samantha's struggles with… Continue reading Book Review: My Bipolar Mind: Surviving the Chaos