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kgennuso's review against another edition
3.0
Few hidden gems in this book. Few things I will try for better self care but not blown away by this book in all.
angiolettolizreads's review against another edition
5.0
Quick and easy to read with beautiful illustrations throughout as well as just a general calming and beautiful aesthetic to the book, from its colour pallet, cover and layout. A very good introduction and simple how tos.
literarycari's review against another edition
4.0
I have been looking to find something that can help me grow spiritually with simple techniques of self care that are realistic for my lifestyle. I finally found it! This is such a beautiful book ❤
nixiethepixie's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.5
Brindle offers an introductory, accessible and fun look at adopting Yang Sheng, TCM and Taoist influenced practices into every day life. She does a good job of presenting complex practices into easy to digest, practical tools. I found the tables breaking down information helpful. This book is clearly written for a Western audience, who may have never encountered TCM ways of thinking. At times the apologetic nature of the writing, eg. 'sounds strange, but trust me...', felt like it took away from what the book was offering.
Main takeaways:
- attach new habits to things you already do daily (eg. brushing teeth)
- take care of habits, food, body and soul with the seasons
Main takeaways:
- attach new habits to things you already do daily (eg. brushing teeth)
- take care of habits, food, body and soul with the seasons
charlotteleonie's review against another edition
4.0
5 stars for the content of the book! I loved how Katie Brindle structured her work. And I also loved (!!) the practical orientation of it. Daoism and TCM can be very theoretical and complex / confusing. I think Brindle did a very good job of giving exercises and a way of practical living for all the concepts etc. On the other hand I think the explanations itself were not that good and to the point, sometimes. I understand that it is very hard to explain such "foreign" concepts and exercises simple and clearly. But even with some background knowledge I found it hard to understand some of the explanations.
My concern is that bad explanations could scare off some people who are already on the fence about such "esoteric nonsense" and let them think badly of TCM / Daoism. Which is simply not justified.
Following this I also have to mention how -while reading- I didn't like how Brindle didn't back up her (scientific) claims about TCM. Not only is this a huge pet peeve of mine but I also worried about the before mentioned concern that the book could play into the "esoteric gibberish" category (for some people and scare them off TCM / Daoism). Therefore I was very happy and relieved when I found the bibliography at the end. (But if you already have a bibliography - why not work with endnotes so the reader can easily connect which source or study backs up / belongs to which text passage?)
As I am already familiar with Daoism I personally would have loved a little bit more explanation of the theoretical backgrounds of the exercises - but I also see that I am not the typical target audience and that the theory described in the book is probably enough for the majority of readers. On the other hand, I don't quite know who the target audience is supposed to be. I have the feeling it is specifically targeted towards women (see sentences like "is your bra too tight?") and I have to admit, I don't like this. Self-care and Yang sheng are for everybody and I think the contents of the book are good for everybody.
Lastly, I am not quite sure how I like the Kindle version. I love how it worked with links and in this regard I think it probably stands out to the physical copy. But on the other hand some of the tables were really not Kindle-friendly and just not readable.
My concern is that bad explanations could scare off some people who are already on the fence about such "esoteric nonsense" and let them think badly of TCM / Daoism. Which is simply not justified.
Following this I also have to mention how -while reading- I didn't like how Brindle didn't back up her (scientific) claims about TCM. Not only is this a huge pet peeve of mine but I also worried about the before mentioned concern that the book could play into the "esoteric gibberish" category (for some people and scare them off TCM / Daoism). Therefore I was very happy and relieved when I found the bibliography at the end. (But if you already have a bibliography - why not work with endnotes so the reader can easily connect which source or study backs up / belongs to which text passage?)
As I am already familiar with Daoism I personally would have loved a little bit more explanation of the theoretical backgrounds of the exercises - but I also see that I am not the typical target audience and that the theory described in the book is probably enough for the majority of readers. On the other hand, I don't quite know who the target audience is supposed to be. I have the feeling it is specifically targeted towards women (see sentences like "is your bra too tight?") and I have to admit, I don't like this. Self-care and Yang sheng are for everybody and I think the contents of the book are good for everybody.
Lastly, I am not quite sure how I like the Kindle version. I love how it worked with links and in this regard I think it probably stands out to the physical copy. But on the other hand some of the tables were really not Kindle-friendly and just not readable.
dancingbibliophile's review against another edition
informative
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
3.5
angiolettolizreads's review against another edition
5.0
Quick and easy to read with beautiful illustrations throughout as well as just a general calming and beautiful aesthetic to the book, from its colour pallet, cover and layout. A very good introduction and simple how tos.