Saturday, September 12, 2015

Books Read in 2015

43 books read - 2 of which were rereads
4 plays
1 poem
1 poetry collection

I plan to use this blog mainly as a place to keep track of the books read each year.  As seen from the list so far, my reading has been eclectic and varied.

  • New favorite female authors are Margaret Atwood and P.D. James. 
  • A number of books below, both old and new, reinforce my belief that death is not an end but rather a beginning to another type of existence. 
  • Read books by three poets who expressed their loss in different ways: Hirsch in a long poetic eulogy to his son; Doty in a prose memoir and Atwood in a collection of poems. 
  • Chipped away at my goal to read all the plays of the Greek tragedians (still have a few from Euripides left).
  • Finally read The Great Gatsby and did not like it at all.
  • Much to ponder from Bhagavad Gita, Tao Te Ching, Tolle, Thich Nhat Hanh and Chodron. I regret not being interested in these teaching earlier in life. Why did it take a horrible tragedy to begin what I now see as a true awakening? 
  • Been listening to the BBC World Book Club podcasts in the car where authors read from their book and answer questions (would highly recommend). As a result, read Corban, Haddon, and P.D. James. 
  • Circling back to WWII by reading about GI Brides and an incredible horse. I plan to visit the Marine Corps Museum to see the statue of Sgt. Reckless. 
  • Indulged in brain candy (Kinsella)

January

  • Bhagavad Gita translated by Stephen Mitchell (5)
  • 8 Limbs of Yoga by Bhava Ram (4)
  • The Forks Over Knives Plan by Drs. Alona Pulde and Matthew Lederman (4)
February 
  • How to Meditate: A Practical Guide to Making Friends with Your Mind by Pema Chodron (5)
  • I Know This Much is True by Wally Lamb (4)
March 
  • My Land and My People by Dalai Lama of Tibet (4)
April
  • West With the Night by Beryl Markham (4)
  • Finding Peter by William Peter Blatty (3)
May
  • Gabriel: A Poem by Edward Hirsch (4)
  • Heaven's Coast: A Memoir by Mark Doty (4)
  • The Hand on the Mirror: A True Story of Life Beyond Death by Janis Heaphy Durham (4)
June 
  • A Little History of the World by E.H. Gombrich (4)
  • Phoenecian Women by  Euripides (4)
  • Orestes by Euripides (3)
  • Bacchae by Euripides (4)
  • No Mud, No Lotus by Thich Nhat Hanh (5)
  • The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (3)
  • Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien (4)
July 
  • Six Years by Harlan Coban (3.5)
  • A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle (4)
  • Blonde: A Novel by Joyce Carol Oates (5)
  • My Story by Marilyn Monroe with Ben Hecht (5)
  • The Curious Incident of the Dog In the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (5)
  • The Map of Heaven by Eban Elexander with Ptolemy Tompkins (4)
August 
  • The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (5)
  • Tao Te Ching version by Stephen Mitchell (5)
  • Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood (4)
  • GI Brides by Duncan Barrett and Nuala Calvi (3.5)
  • Negotiating with the Dead: A Writer on Writing by Margaret Atwood (4)
  • Beowulf: A New Version by Seamus Heaney (4)
  • Morning in the Burned House: New Poems by Margaret Atwood (4)
  • The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (5)
  • Death in the Holy Orders by P.D. James (4.5)
September
  • Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen (4)
  • Sgt. Reckless: America's War Horse by Robin Hutton (4)
  • I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella (3)
  • The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan (4)
  • The Incarnations by Susan Barker (4)
October
  • The Girl in the Spider's Web by David Lagercrantz (1)
  • The Story of Art by E. H. Gombrich (5)
  • Marilyn Norma Jean by Gloria stenhem/George Barris (photos) (4)
  • An Army at Dawn (Vol I of Liberation Trilogy) by Rick Atkinson (4)
  • Re-read:  The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (5+)
  • Memoirs of the Second World War by Winston Churchill (4)
  • Re-read: The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (4)
November
  • The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (4+)
December
  • Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes (5)
  • Play: Electra by Sophocles (4)
  • Play: Electra by Euripides (4) 
  • Inside Outside by Herman Wouk (4)


Monday, January 5, 2015

New Direction in 2015

My grief journey has taken a definite turn towards inner contemplation, reflection, meditation and yoga. Inspired by my daughter becoming a yoga teacher, I am currently in a 200 hour RYT (registered yoga teacher) training at a wonderful studio called Beloved Yoga.  I have even stopped teaching my 3 indoor cycles classes so I could focus on this training.  

One thing I've learned is that yoga is MUCH bigger than what is typically done in a yoga class. Poses are just the tip of the iceberg; the philosophy of yoga is a way of life. 

Since I am a reader, the way I learn is through books. So after a binge ordering spree, the following 15 books have found their way to me. 

Meditation
Wherever You Go, There You Are by John Kabat-Zinn
The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh

Spirituality/Poetry
Anam Cara: Spiritual Wisdom from the Celtic World by John O'Donohue
To Bless The Space Between Us by John O'Donohue
No Mud, No Lotus: The Art of Transforming Suffering by Thich Nhat Hanh
Stillness Speaks by Eckhart Tolle
The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Rumi's Little Book of Life by Rumi

Yoga
Light on Yoga by B.K.S Iyengar
The 8 Limbs of Yoga: Pathway to Liberation by Bhava Ram 
Deep Yoga: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times by Bhava Ram
Yoga Sequencing by Mark Stephens
Yoga Sequencing Deck by Jillian Bobowicz

Memoir
Heaven's Coast by Mark Doty
Light on Life by B.K.S Iyengar

I am not sure what, if any additional posts will show up on this blog.  It almost feels as though it has served its purpose and I am ready to move on.  We'll see what happens....