What I’m Reading

I’m an avid reader and love to mix things up. One month I’m full tilt into business books. Another month I can’t put down Latina fiction. I’ve had several requests for more book reviews and since I read several books at once (fist bump to my fellow ADD’ers and mad multi-taskers!) here’s a rundown of my favorite books of late.

I’m really hungry as I write this, so let’s just go straight to why that is by introducing book #1 that’s on my shelf:

The Fat Flush Plan by Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS

I was talking to my friend Dr. Fern Kazlow about the strange muffin top that has formed in my midsection and she recommended I check out The Fat Flush Plan.

OK, it’s working but dang…. no fats (except for omega oil supplements) and no salt.

I feel like my Dad must have when he had to undergo major diet changes after quadruple bypass surgery.

Have you ever tried to cook a turkey burger in a cast iron skillet with no oil? I’m “braising” and adding wonderful “thermogenic herbs” to make me feel happy and full. Hungry!!!

I’m a very disciplined person when it comes to food yet I find myself counting the days til Phase 1 of this plan is over. (It’s 14 days long).

File this under “Aztec Warrior Queen Boot Camp” as it’s not an easy adventure.

For the fun of it, I leafed through Skinny Bitch and everything they say is 180 degrees opposite of Fat Flush. (Skinny Bitch is vegan, pro-soy, but delightfully potty mouthed). That’s what I hate about all these food/fitness books. Nobody can get on the same page with anyone else!! Just make the muffin top go away, I’ll eat bugs if I have to (hmmmm, can I start the  Oaxacan chaupulines diet craze?)

Non-Food Books on a Variety of Topics

On non-feasting/fasting topics here are some other books I’m digging on right now.

Getting Organized in the Google Era by Douglas C. Merrill

Have you ever walked into your local bookstore and asked for “the organizing book by the cute guy who used to work at Google?” That’s my mental search engine at work… but it worked and I found the book!

And that’s what this book is all about: quit trying to file everything and use search technology to find your stuff. Very interesting and bound to drive paper filers mad. The only caveat is that if you don’t have a good memory, you may not remember terms to search. But read it and let me know what you think. He gives a compelling reason to ditch Outlook and get totally immersed in Gmail.

The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance by Josh Waitzkin.

Thank you Kevin Nations for this book recommendation. Josh Waitzkin is the kid who the film “Searching for Bobby Fischer” was based on. He was the greatest chess player around. Then he left chess and became a world champion martial artist. Lots to learn here about applying yourself and achieving mastery. Anything this guy gets into, he becomes the BEST. The BEST as in WORLD’S BEST.

Hold Onto Your Kids by Gordon Neufeld, PhD and Gabor Mate, MD

Holy crap! If you’re a parent, you must read this book. These two doctors present a compelling case about the current state of kids. By attaching themselves more to their peers than their parents, kids today are getting lost in a world that is beyond their maturity level.  It’s scary to read. I think back on my wild teen years and those are nothing in comparison to what’s happening today. Yes, blame MTV and whoever else, but what’s happening is that kids are losing the connection to their parents and instead hooking up with equally as emotionally immature peers in search of connection. It’s not a self help book, it doesn’t have steps and tips to follow. But it gets the message of attachment and connection across in several eye opening case studies.

Home school sounds really good right now…

Illumination: The Shaman’s Way of Healing by Alberto Villoldo

Really good book on what a shaman really is: a humble healer with a big job to help others. Lots of people are calling themselves shaman these days, and I feel a lot of that is cultural appropriation. Why not go to a weekend seminar and become a Pope? Why do indigenous traditions always seem like the ones people can buy into? This is where my Aztec blood boils.

But this book isn’t about that. It’s about the wisdom Villoldo earned through his years studying and how he now has to apply that to his life. You can’t hide in the Amazon forever, you have to get out and walk life.

He tells wonderful stories, includes insightful journal entries, and gives meditations you can do to stay balanced and walking in beauty.

Thanks to everyone who requested more book reviews. Nothing overtly business related, but it is all information that makes up the fiber of who we are… and when you’re an entrepreneur that means everything you take in, somehow shows up in your business.

I’d love your thoughts and comments… and recommendations for my next books to read!