lory_enterenchanted's reviews
537 reviews

The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times by Pema Chödrön
Did not finish book.

This seemed a very good concise introduction to Buddhist principles and practices to awaken compassion. It just was not what I wanted to be reading at the moment but I may come back to it.

The Weeping Ash by Joan Aiken

adventurous dark emotional sad tense

3.0

“Pain was a harvest like any other, it must be used, not allowed to go to waste.”

Certainly no shortage of pain in this book, which has one thing after another on two fronts, domestic and exotic—rape and murder are just the top of the list.  However somehow amidst all the dark stuff one manages to get attached to the sympathetic characters and root for them to survive (not all do). The wildest and most exhausting of the Paget series. 

Ordinary Jack by Helen Cresswell

funny lighthearted

3.5

Not as hilarious as I remembered. Mr Bagthorpe’s abusiveness bothered me. Maybe the rest of the series improved on this one, especially as Mr B was taken down a peg at the end. 

Following the Red Bird: First Steps Into a Life of Faith by Kate H. Rademacher

hopeful informative inspiring reflective

4.0

A brief but heartfelt reflection on the experience of becoming a Christian. The personal stories were the part I liked best, as opposed to the more general discussion of faith. 

Little by Edward Carey

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense

4.0

I had no idea of the history behind Madame Tussaud’s, but this fantastical grotesque novel brought her vividly to life, if in an off-kilter kind of way. 

Anchored: How to Befriend Your Nervous System Using Polyvagal Theory by Deb Dana

hopeful informative inspiring reflective

3.5

Having just read a couple of other books on polyvagal theory and healing this may have suffered from being more of the same and not feeling so revolutionary any more. It was clearly written and included many suggestions for practice and reflection.  The one thing that annoyed me a bit was the personification of the nervous system. 

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
Did not finish book.

I got about a third of the way through, and decided that was enough. I don't like whimsical books about the child Antichrist. It's not really an amusing concept.

In an Unspoken Voice: How the Body Releases Trauma and Restores Goodness by Peter A. Levine

4.0

The Secret Language of the Body: Regulate Your Nervous System, Heal Your Body, Free Your Mind by Karden Rabin, Jennifer Derryberry Mann

hopeful informative inspiring reflective

4.0

I can’t wait to get to work with this book. I’ve been doing some of these things haphazardly and by instinct but it helps to have a path laid out so clearly. Particularly the physical movements to change nervous system states. I’ve spent ages trying to heal my mind with my mind and it just makes things worse.  This refreshing and hopeful new paradigm could truly change the world. Let’s heal!

Encounters: Moments of Destiny in the Bible by Ruth Ewertowski

hopeful informative inspiring reflective

3.5

Reflections on characters and stories from the Bible, from Genesis to Acts. Gave me some food for thought, but I couldn't say I found it amazingly insightful and revelatory. A few gems in there, plus some conclusions I would contest.