OK, so maybe I read a couple of these last month as this is actually quite a few books. But these are the books I’ve read recently and I thought you might enjoy taking a look – most of them I really liked.
Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World
by Micheal Hyatt
I wasn’t really planning on buying this book, but I’m glad I did. Maybe cause I kinda stink at “selling” myself, it just makes me all around uncomfortable. But the ideas he presents are not so much “how to schpeal like a used car salesman” but more “provide quality products and tips on getting it out to interested people”.
I love the small bite size chapters and the simplicity in how he writes this book as it makes it easier to look back through and find the tips I need to work on. Though I do disagree completely with his decision to use Disqus as a commenting system. He mentions how he gets all these comments and my only thought is “yea…..but how much more would you get if you used something else!” Because everytime I’ve ever tried to use Disqus to comment on other blogs it doesn’t work. Fellow bloggers say the same. I don’t know – I’ve never used it myself and maybe it’s changes int eh last year or so.
The one thing I don’t love about this book is that it gives me all sorts of ideas that I just plain old don’t have time for! Instead I’ll work on it bits at a time. It also was a much stronger start than finish with the first two sections more informational than the last three for me. Goodness knows I don’t need adrenal fatigue again!
Food Cures
by Joy Bauer
*gasp* I read a conventional health book?!
Why yes, yes I did. Her publisher asked if I would like to read it and I thought it’d be an interesting book.
Actually I read parts of it and skimmed through the rest.
In reality I was hoping that she pointed more towards how food sensitivities can affect our health. I liked that she mentioned gluten intolerance in the chapter on IBS, but I really think that more people need to realize that the other ‘trigger foods’ are usually there because of a gluten intolerance, not a separate issue. I’m also a bit bummed that in the section on PMS that she basically said that herbal remedies are normally a fad and not enough research can back up whether they work or not.
(My question is – who’s going to pay for research when they can’t patent it? Hmmmmm….)
But with the chapter on migraines she includes some of the triggers like MSG and artificial sweeteners that many doctors tend to leave out.
And of course it touts the benefits of low fat foods – I am an advocate for full fat foods since lowering my cholesterol and increasing my fertility due to eating real fats.
I love the fact that someone is teaching that foods can affect our health, and much of her advice is very good, I just wish the information was different.
Banks of Plum Creek
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Last fall I started reading this series out loud with my kids, and I remember why I fell in love with them when I was in elementary school. And the fun thing is that now as an adult, it opens up even more for me.
I love reading about the food preparation in particular.
And in this book she describes a weather pattern much like the one we’re currently in: a warm winter with little to no snow and a very hot dry spring and summer. (one of the reasons I don’t believe in global warming to the extent some people do – we’ve had these weather patterns for a long time.)
I just think it’s ironic that I grew up wanting to be her and live like her, and now we’re all realizing how much healthier their way of life was. Not that I’m giving up my iPhone and computer and air conditioning any time soon!
Vitamin K2 and the Calcium Paradox: How a Little Known Vitamin Could Save Your Life
by Dr. Kate Rheame-Bleue, BSc,.ND
This mostly unknown vitamin was one of the biggest discoveries I made when I started learning about traditional diets. I’d never heard of it before reading about Weston A Price. And yet, this nutrient is so important for our health.
The sad fact is that we rarely find it in ample amounts in our food anymore because it’s found in grass-fed animal products.
I thought I would just be skimming the book, but the first chapter drew me in, and I began learning about Vitamin K2 in news ways.
“Millions of people take vitamin D and calcium supplements for bone health. New research shows that this actually increases the risk of heart attack and stroke because the added calcium builds up in arteries—the calcium paradox. The secret to keeping bones strong and arteries clear is vitamin K2, a little-known supernutrient that humans once thrived on and that has been ignored by scientists for almost 70 years.”
I found it to be a great book that covers information on naturally dealing with everything from heart disease to infertility.
Grain Free Meal Plans
by Cara Faus
I’ve known Cara for a few years now and love what she has going on over at Health, Home, and Happiness. I often look to her recipes when I need to make something grain-free and have loved her meal plan service as well.
She now has a new book out with the best recipes from her meal plans, and it contains over 70 recipes for grain-free meals. The recipes are simple to make and when she says family-approved, I tend to agree. I can see each member of my family enjoying these.
Most of all I love that I now have another source of easy to make recipes to help me expand my meal plans. Does anyone else have this issue? I always make the same things and easily grow tired of them, and I’ve had no meal inspiration for some time now. Opening this book was like opening a dam of inspiration.
And since these recipes are the “best of” her meal plans, you know that they are tried and true – that even her readers love them as well.
The Complete Idiots Guide to Fermenting Foods
by Wardeh Harmon
I’ve been a friend of Wardeh’s for a few years now and her knowledge of foods and how to prepare them surpasses mine by leaps and bounds.
One area that I haven’t really gone head first into has been fermented foods, though I desire to learn.
So I was really excited when she asked if I wanted to read her new book, recently released this spring and I honestly can’t imagine a book more thorough on the subject! She covers everything from the basic information of why to ferment foods, to how it works, to including a zillion recipes for making your own.
My goal this summer is to put this book to good use and begin fermenting some of the produce that comes out of my garden as well as learning to make other foods items like condiments and work on cultured dairy products as well.
The Infertility Cure
by Randine A. Lewis
Are you with me when I cringe because I hear the word “cure” associated with infertility?
Yea……this book isn’t what I thought it was.
Her easy going styling of writing drew me in right along with her story, her own struggle with infertility and loss. As a practitioner of Chinese medicine who has also studied Western medicine she draws from a lot of experience and knowledge, articulately outlining steps to take based on different symptoms.
She also outlines different acupressure points that one could use, but I think I’d prefer to work with a practitioner instead of trying to figure it out myself. But the herbal and nutritional information is great.
Hair Gone Wild
by Diane Kidman
I’ve read her other two books and this one doesn’t disappoint either. Diane outlines some great ways to take care of your hair naturally and fix any problems that come up. I especially like that she outlines how to treat different colored and textured hair differently. Because how I treat my curly hair will be very different from how you treat straight hair.
How to Be Social {a social media manifesto}
by Claire Diaz Ortiz
I thought this was a well thought out book that cover the top ten mistakes that people make when using social media (for business). it’s a very quick read, but important to understand that social media is about relationships – not a one way street.
Donielle Baker
Zinc and fertility, what it does and why it’s important