I Love These Books
Keep in mind that every author, including me, has his/her own bias and that their experience is not YOUR experience. Take what interests you and leave the rest!
SELF
A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles
Williamson, Marianne, 1992, HarperPerennial
Excellent, practical principles.
Finding Your Own North Star: Claiming the life you were meant to live
Beck, Martha, 2001, Three River Press
Martha wrote MY book. She’s funny, practical and insightful. Her exercises are ones I actually enjoyed doing. The concept of your EVERYBODY is one I use every day.
Man’s Search for Meaning: An introduction to Logo Therapy
Frankl, Viktor, 1998, Touchstone
All you need is the first 100 pages and you’ll never look at your problems the same again.
Lighten Up! Free yourself from clutter: Create the space for miracles by freeing yourself from too much stuff
Passoff, Michelle, 1998, HarperCollins
Oh boy...even if you don’t have issues with organization, this is a GREAT book that compassionately and practically describes why we hang on to things (and ideas) and how to let go.
Spiritual Economics: The principles and process of true prosperity
Butterworth, Eric, 2001, Unity House
Just holding this book makes me feel warm and cared for. Just wonderful.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful lessons in personal change
Covey, Stephen, 1990, Simon & Schuster
Another classic that has become a cultural phenomena. I especially recommend chapter 5: Seek first to understand, then to be understood.
WORK LIFE
Congratulations, You’ve Been Fired: Sound advice for women who’ve been terminated, pink-slipped, downsized or otherwise unemployed
Koltnow, Emily & Dumas, Lynne, 1990
Sadly, this gem is out of print, but you can still find it on used book sites like www.half.com or www.amazon.com. Emily has great ideas (for men too) about negotiating into and out of a job, being well prepared when you start a new gig and what to keep in mind during job interviews. Emily helped me to absolutely love doing interviews!
Driving Fear Out of the Workplace: Crating the high-trust, high performance organization
Ryan, Kathleen & Oestreich, Daniel, 1998, Jossey-Bass
Good advice for workgroups and people who struggle with office politics.
RELATIONSHIPS
Conscious Loving: The journey to co-commitment, a way to be fully together without giving up yourself
Hendricks, Gay & Hendricks, Kathlyn, 1992, Bantam
The ‘upper limit problem’ is worth the price of the book. Don't ever say again,"It can't get any better than this." Of course it can, but are you prepared to accept even better relationships than you can imagine?
Getting the Love You Want: A guide for couples
Hendrix, Harville, 1990, Ballentine Books
Relationship classic that changed my life. One of Hendrix's most important contribution to the world is the Positive, Measurable & Specific behavior request model.
How to Be an Adult in Relationships: The five keys to mindful loving
Richo, David, 2002, Shambala
David takes a Buddhist approach to relationships that emphasizes personal responsibility, forgiveness and acceptance of what is real vs. what we think life should be like.
Keeping the Love You Find: A guide for singles
Hendrix, Harville, 1992, Pocket Books
Even better than Getting The Love You Want. A later version with better exercises.
If the Buddha Married: Creating enduring relationships on a spiritual path
Kasl, Charlotte, 2001, Penguin Compass
Lovely little book with practical ideas in an easy read. Sample: “...there is no way we’ll always get it right. That’s okay. We just do our best and talk about the rest.”
Relationship Rescue: A seven-step strategy for reconnecting with your partner
McGraw, Phillip, 2000, Hyperion
I don’t like the author at all, and I don’t like much in this book, but the relationship myths section is worthwhile.
The Death of Cupid: Reclaiming the wisdom of love, dating , romance and marriage
Braverman, Nachum& Apisdorf, Shimon, 1996, Leviathan Press
Not great prose but, this book features an invaluable concept about the true foundation of a great relationship: Kindness, Loyalty and Honesty. Not much else matters.
The Missing Piece
Silverstein, Shel, 1976, HarperCollins
Charming, heartbreaking and really useful.
The Verbally Abusive Relationship: How to recognize it and how to respond
Evans, Patricia, 1996, Adams Media
A teensy bit victim oriented and anti-male, but offers valuable criteria for understanding the role verbal violence plays in relationships.
Too Good to Leave Too Bad to Stay: A step by step guide to help you decide whether to stay in or get out of your relationship
Kirshbaum, Mira, 1997, Plume
Truly excellent, no baloney approach to conscious choicemaking involved in getting unstuck, whether you decide to stay or go.
You Just Don’t Understand: Women and men in conversation
Tannen, Deborah, 1990, Ballentine
Yet another classic that changed a lot of lives. Once again, watch out for pro-female, anti-male bias. Still, the basic reality of the differences in gender language is well documented.
