Friday Book Club

Will  you engage this moment with kindness or with cruelty, with love or with  fear, with generosity or scarcity, with a joyous heart or an embittered  one? 

Kahlil Gibran’s masterpiece, The Prophet, is one of the most beloved classics of our time. Give yourself this special gift. 

Give yourself the gift of a new experience of freedom, true happiness, and love. This book can help! 

In  the age of the Internet, speed dating, and frantic text messaging, we  may have forgotten how to connect with others in a meaningful way. This  book of 4,000 provocative questions will help you get to know anyone and  everyone in every social situation. 

This interactive planner guide, by James Harris, LMHC, helps boys and MEN learn definitions, how to write or draw, plan for the  future, and keep notes among other things. 

In this book of poems by Amanda Gorman, she captures the human condition. 

Kelly  Fradin, MD shares practical advice about coping, making decisions about  childcare and school, helping children with social skills, and making  virtual school work better.⁣ 

This wonderful book teaches that personal success is not the outcome of  hard work, precise plans or a driving ambition, but rather of  understanding our basic nature as human beings and how to follow the  laws of nature. 

Stephen R. Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity. 

Gratitude  is the simple, scientifically proven way to increase happiness and  encourage greater joy, love, peace, and optimism into our lives. Give  yourself the gift of happiness and well-being.

Give a child Super Powers! This book helps kids feel empowered as they work  through anxiety, and uncertainty brought on by the world around them. 

In this  life-changing program, Dr. Wayne Dyer helps you align yourself with Spirit and start living a balanced and peaceful life today.

Self-esteem  is an important part of leading a happy, fulfilling life. How we feel  about ourselves affects every aspect of our lives, from the way we  function at work, in love, and in sex, to the way we parent, to what we  strive to achieve. This is a step-by-step guide for you! 

"Relax gradually and wholeheartedly into the ordinary and obvious truth  of change."  This book by Pema Chodron offers short, stand-alone  readings designed to help us cultivate compassion and awareness amid the  challenges of daily living. 

Her website: https://pemachodronfoundation.org/

These two books by Dr. Lynda Madison and  published by American Girl help understand emotions and learn how to  deal with them. Find the books here: https://www.americangirl.com/…/the-feelings-book-journal-f4… 

Having  a baby is a joyous experience, but even the best relationships are  strained during the transition from two to three. And Baby Makes Three  by experts John Gottman and Julie Schwartz Gottman shows couples how to  avoid the pitfalls of parenthood. 

https://www.gottman.com/product/and-baby-makes-three/

This book, by Dr. Sue Johnson, shows us a better way to see and shape  love relationships. The stories, ideas and exercises in the book are  based on Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy (EFT), an effective model  developed by Dr. Johnson. 

https://drsuejohnson.com/books/

 This book, by David Brooks, blends psychology, politics, spirituality,  and confessional, to provide an opportunity for us to rethink our  priorities, and strive to build rich inner lives marked by humility and  moral depth. 

https://theroadtocharacter.com/

New  York Times best-selling author and professor Brené Brown offers a  powerful and inspiring book that explores how to cultivate the courage,  compassion, and connection to embrace your imperfections and to  recognize that you are enough. 

One of my favorite communication guides for courageous women.  Lerner  outlines the steps to take so that good relationships can be strengthened and difficult ones can be healed. 

When  Brene Brown says a book is "profound ", you know it's a good read.   Please enjoy a more upbeat inspirational book by Glennon Doyle Melton. 

If we are brave enough often enough, we will fall. Brene Brown reveals what it takes to get back up and how owning our stories of  disappointment, failure, and heartbreak gives us the power to write a  daring new ending 

Gottman explains what makes couples compatible and how to sustain a happy marriage. 

An upbeat, well-organized how-to-make-your-marriage-work manual by two psychologists who've been studying marital conflict for 20 years. 

This book by Lisa M. Najavits presents a treatment approach developed  specifically for PTSD and substance abuse. The person with this  difficult-to-treat dual diagnosis, needs to establish safety--to work  toward discontinuing substance use, letting go of dangerous  relationships, and gaining control over such extreme symptoms as  dissociation and self-harm. 

AntiRacist Baby introduces the youngest readers and the grown-ups in their lives to the concept and power of antiracism.

Grief is experienced differently by each of us.  This book by Sameet  Kumar will help you discover that you are capable of transforming and healing the grief you carry and are able to find the spiritual and emotional resilience you need to move through challenging times.  

Here's a great self-help at home book by Edmund J. Bourne, Ph.D. if you're feeling anxious. 

There are so many forms of grief we are all experiencing right now. Even if  you don't personally know someone who has passed away during this pandemic, we’re hearing about deaths every day. Maybe you're missing loved ones that have gone on before. This book by Francis Dorff is one of my favorites on grieving. 

This book by Gavin De Becker is so good. De Becker is a master at helping us understand our fear.  Fearing less seems like a good idea to me right now. 

Yeppers!!  Title of this one says it all. Slow down and take good care of yourself.  Breathe in and out, and if you're looking for a fabulous book to help you, Dr. Nancy K. Schlossberg's Overwhelmed, will hit the spot. 

One of my favorites!   

Faber and Mazlisch believe that parents who demonstrate acceptance, respect and skill in their interactions with their children will raise confident, respectful, independent, responsible, and emotionally intelligent people who know how to resolve differences with others effectively.

This book by William J. Knaus is a powerful resource if you're looking for a tool to help lessen or overcome your feelings of depression.

 This book by Glennon Doyle explores  the joy and peace we discover when we stop striving to meet the  expectations of the world, and start trusting the voice deep within us. 

This is an amazing read! Quote from Silver: "Let what wants to come, come. Let what wants to go, go. If it is mine, it will stay. If not, whatever is better will replace it." Visit her website: https://toshasilver.com/

This book by attorney and politician, Bakari Sellers, is part memoir, part historical and cultural analysis. Sellers takes us on an eye-opening journey through the South's past, present, and  future. He writes of the crisis affecting the other “Forgotten Men & Women". 

"Chill Out" contains 100 original and creative ways to relax  through a variety of activities--some physical, some psychological and some practical--allowing the reader to tailor the technique to his or her mood.

There are many books that promise to help you fix a bad  relationship. This groundbreaking bestseller is the first one to help  you choose whether you should even try—or if you need to go. 

Divorce is painful and confusing. Perhaps now more than ever, you  want to give your child all the love, support, and guidance he or she  needs, but everything seems harder and more complicated. This book can help. 

This book aims to make us stop and smell--if not roses--whatever is sitting in front of our noses. It's an owner's manual of the heart, and if you follow the directions, you can be a happier, more harmonious person.

Based on the nationally successful STEP (Systematic Training for  Effective Parenting) program, Parenting Young Children focuses on parents of children under six years of age, and offers guidance on  building self-esteem, communicating with young children, and dealing  with issues from tantrums to toilet training. 

This guide is filled with easy-to-understand-and-apply skills that helps parents connect with teens and deal with their "issues."

This helpful guide can assist you in transforming an intimate relationship into a lasting source of love and companionship.  

This book is about love. What it is and what it isn't.  Leo Buscaglia reminds  us: Love is open arms. If you close your arms about love you will find  that you are left holding only yourself. 

This  book shows readers how to identify signs, behaviors, and attitudes that  indicate a fraying relationship and provides strategies for repairing  what may seem lost or broken. 

This book by Robert Sapolsky is a "Guide to Stress, Stress-Related Diseases, and Coping".  

This is the go-to book for couples struggling with ADHD who want to actively work to improve their relationship. 

Is it possible to change your brain? Norman Doidge's inspiring guide to  the new brain science, Neuroplasticity,  explains that it is, in fact, possible to change your brain. 

This book will help you learn to celebrate your body instead of feeling  ashamed of it.

Eminent psychiatrist David D. Burns, M.D. outlines the remarkable,  scientifically proven techniques that will immediately lift your spirits  and help you develop a positive outlook on life - without drugs. 

John  Bradshaw teaches us how to rid ourselves of toxic shame and to  experience shame as a healthy emotion, essential to our recovery. 

We choose the roles we play- in different situations and for different  people. We can also step away from those roles. We can reclaim our  authenticity. 

Parenting expert Jim Burns helps you navigate the toughest and the most rewarding parts of parenting your grown kids.  

Piero  Ferrucci says it is the trait of kindness that will not only lead to  our own individual happiness and the happiness of those around us, but  will guide us in a world that has become cold, anxious, difficult, and  frightening. Be kind.  

This book is a collection of essays, compiled from the author's "Dear Sugar" advice column on love and life. She now has a podcast titled Sugar Calling.

This is a great book that will help everyone remember that we are animals in a world of animals.

Through deeply personal conversations, Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain and trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry offer a groundbreaking and profound shift from asking “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?”

Alan  Watts: "You may believe yourself out of harmony with life and its  eternal Now; but you cannot be, for you are life and exist Now." 

THE  BOOK OF PRIDE not only honors an important chapter in American history,  but also empowers young people today (both LGBTQ and straight) to  discover their own courage in order to create positive change. 

This is an inspiring collection of thoughts to take with us on the paths we travel in life. 

This book is written for readers of all ages so that everyone can benefit  from this transformational lesson. This is a book and message that, when read and shared, has the power to change your life and the world around  you.  

This one has been described as a "game changer".

In this book, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans show us how design thinking can  help us create a life that is both meaningful and fulfilling, regardless  of who or where we are, what we do or have done for a living, or how  young or old we are. 

This book by author, Charles L. Whitfield, M.D., is really about relationships--healthy and unhealthy ones. Dr. Whitfield provides practical knowledge and actions that you can use in  your relationships right now. 

This book provides practical, non-theoretical exercises that will help you set healthy boundaries with parents, spouses, children, friends, bosses, coworkers, and technology.

This book by Nick Ortner outlines simple strategies that may help you release your fears and clear the limiting beliefs that hold you back from creating the life you want. 

This book by Mark Towers can give you some great ideas for change. We have to make changes in our life to keep up with the world.

Judith  Wright explains why seemingly harmless habits are so damaging and  outlines an effective plan for overcoming them to discover more passion,  love, commitment, and meaning in our lives. 

With the overwhelming amount of stress kids face today, this invaluable  guide offers coping skills, and helps strengthen children's resilience. 

This book is full of simple yet powerful meditations and movements to help center and find peace in the moment.

Keep  your brain young, healthy, and sharp with this science-driven guide to  protecting your mind from decline by neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical  correspondent Sanjay Gupta. 

Joy at Work will help you overcome the challenges of workplace mess and  enjoy the productivity, success, and happiness that come with a tidy  desk and mind.  

This  book, by Eisner Award-nominated author-illustrator, Sean Rubin, is a  deeply moving story about community and resilience, from the  point-of-view of the Callery pear tree that survived the attacks on  September 11. 

Contemporary  relationships are in a state of rapid evolution. These changes can and  should empower people with the opportunity to develop partnerships based  on their own sexualities, understandings, and agreements. This book  explains exactly how you and your loved ones can design your own life  and love. 

Master  entrepreneur, original hip-hop mogul, and New York Times bestselling  author Russell Simmons shares the most fundamental key to  success—meditation—and guides readers to use stillness as a powerful  tool to access their potential. 

This  book recounts what happened as Laura Munson set out on her spiritual  journey-and provides raw, powerful inspiration to anyone searching for  peace in an utterly unpredictable world. 

The Body Keeps the Score exposes the tremendous power of our relationships  both to hurt and to heal—and offers new hope for reclaiming lives. 

Do  you ever wonder what is happening inside your brain when you feel  anxious, panicked, and worried? In Rewire Your Anxious Brain,  psychologist Catherine Pittman and author Elizabeth Karle offer a  unique, evidence-based solution to overcoming anxiety based in  cutting-edge neuroscience and research. 

This book includes stories from families across the country, anecdotes about  identifying, nurturing, parenting and teaching children who are  unpredictable, totally out-of-sync with their age peers, blissfully  unaware of time ...topsy-turvy!. 

This book will help your children learn an easy and practical lesson about how to firmly and  assertively – yet kindly – stand up for themselves in the face of a  bully.  

What child doesn't need peace and calm in this changing world? This can help.

Maysie takes you on a mindful breathing journey and shows  you how to BREATHE ON PURPOSE to stay calm and cool regardless if you're  at home, in the car or at school.

29 Gifts shows how a simple, daily practice of goodwill and selflessness can dramatically alter your outlook on the world. 

This book shows that  the  practice of gratitude has the potential to create real positive changes  in your life, reducing stress and anxiety and improving your general  sense of well-being.

If you’ve ever struggled with your mental health, or know someone who has, this book can help. 

This little book covers a lot: Love's Initiation, The Veils of Love, All of Our Relationships, and A Love Beyond. 

During the course of  life, each of us is engaged on an inner journey. This collection of  mystical poetry focuses on one of life's core issues: coming to grips  with the inner life. 

This book offers  compassion and encouragement to readers who are struggling with the loss  of a loved one or helping a loved one cope.  

This book includes many perspectives and techniques (over 100) to  help you be your best self. As we end the year 2021, perhaps this can  help leave it all behind. 

In this inspiring, empowering book, Shetty draws on his time as a monk to show us how we can clear the roadblocks to our potential and power. 

No matter what  you're aiming for, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for  improving--every day. 

This  great book inspires and equips us to transform our emotions, our  outlook, and even our circumstances by taking control of our thoughts. 

The Gottman's invite couples on eight fun, easy, and profoundly rewarding  dates, each one focused on a make-or-break issue: trust, conflict, sex,  money, family, adventure, spirituality, and dreams. 

This book helps to discover how you and your partner are wired differently, and how you can overcome your differences to create a lasting intimate connection. 

The 80/80 Marriage is a book that offers some new ideas that can help build a happier, stronger relationship. 

This book explains that whatever you are experiencing is a doorway into a  more spacious place. So rather than resisting discomfort, you can learn  how to open to what you are experiencing and explore it, without any  need to have it be any different than what is is. 

This book covers common questions encountered by parents or carers whose child has been given a diagnosis of ARFID or who have concerns about their child. It also answers common questions using the most up-to-date clinical knowledge and research. 

My Military Mom is the story of a normal day in Connor’s life. When classmate Lenny visits his home, he discovers Connor’s mom is deployed in the US military. Who helps with his homework? Dad! Who taught him to play basketball? Mom! Who does his laundry? Dad! Lenny realizes love makes a family.

Sometimes parents divorce. Sometimes mom or dad is sent overseas to fight. And sometimes cherished members of the family live too far away to see every day. This sweet rhyming story, written from the childs point of view, is a love letter to those who may not be geographically near--but remain close at heart.

Nothing is the same when a parent has to leave home for a while. See how things are different for these military kids when their dad goes on deployment.

Triggers confronts head-on the challenges of behavior and change, looking at the external factors - both negative and positive - that affect our behaviors, our awareness of when we need to change, our willingness (or otherwise) to do so and our ability to see the change through.

This book focuses on the classification and categorization of personality types. There's a self-assessed personality questionnaire for you to take, with detailed profiles that describe the characteristics of that type. 

  Heartbreak is a remarkable merging of science and self-discovery that will change the way we think about loneliness, health, and what it means to fall in and out of love.

 In this book, Acho asks us to replace the limits set for us, and which we set for ourselves, with a world of possibility. Our horizons, he shows us, are endless. 

In  this book, Haemin Sunim offers advice on everything from handling  setbacks to dealing with rest and relationships. He reminds us of the  strength and joy that come from slowing down. 

This  practical and compassionate guide will help you: Make sense of the  chaos, Stand up for yourself and assert your needs, Defuse arguments and  conflicts, and Protect yourself and others from violent behavior. 

Gentle  Discipline debunks common myths about punishments, rewards, the  "naughty chair," and more, and presents practical, connection-based  techniques that really work—and that bring parents and kids closer  together instead of driving then apart.  

This book is a treasury of wisdom to help us go on living when we are overcome by pain and difficulties. 

 The Gift of Therapy is a remarkable and essential guidebook that illustrates through real case studies how patients and therapists alike can get the most out of therapy. 

David  Barclay Moore paints a powerful portrait of a boy teetering on the  edge—of adolescence, of grief, of violence—and shows how Lolly’s  inventive spirit helps him build a life with firm foundations and open  doors. 

After  the Fall follows Humpty Dumpty, an avid bird watcher who loves to be  high up on the city wall. But after his fall, Humpty is terrified of  heights and can no longer do his favorite things. A good one for the  young ones. 

The Rabbit Listened is about how to comfort and heal the people in your  life, by taking the time to carefully, lovingly, gently listen. 

This book champions the power of kindness, bravery, and friendship in the face of uncertainty. 

Here's a great workbook to help the teens in your life! 

This inspiring book identifies ten key ways to weather and bounce back from stress and trauma.

This book will show you how to stop working on yourself as an individual and start working on your relationship as a couple. 

In Raising Good Humans, you’ll find powerful and practical strategies to break free from “reactive parenting” habits and raise kind, cooperative, and confident kids. 

Lucy Cooke says a revolution has been brewing in zoology and evolutionary biology in the past few decades, demonstrating how the female of the species has been misunderstood by the scientific patriarchy.  

23 Techniques to relieve stress, stop negative spirals, declutter your mind, and focus on the present

If  you will learn the techniques explained in Three Minute Therapy, think  about them, and apply them to your problems, you will be able to tackle  difficulties that may have seemed impossible. 

When one child reaches out in friendship to a classmate who seems  lonely, she begins a chain reaction of kindness that ripples throughout  her school and her community. 

Have you found yourself in a dark place with no way out? Are you having trouble holding onto reality and getting out of the dumps? Sounds like you're freaking out. Simone has been there, and she made herself a book to remind her exactly what to do to get herself out of danger, and now it can help you too!

From drinking coffee to losing weight, buying a car to choosing a romantic  partner, we consistently overpay, underestimate, and procrastinate. Yet  these misguided behaviors are neither random nor senseless. They're  systematic and predictable—making us predictably irrational. 

One  of the biggest stars in tennis, Serena Williams has captured every  major title. However, her accomplishments have not been won without  struggle. Somehow Serena always manages to prevail, both on and off the  court.  

Our most precious resource isn't money. It's time. Professor Cassie Holmes demonstrates how to immediately improve our lives by changing how we perceive and invest our time.

Healthy boundaries - we all know how important they are for work/life balance, dealing with toxic people, and having healthier relationships with family and friends. This book helps define healthy boundaries, and explains how to make them work.

Do you ever feel you're being manipulated? Stern shows how the Gaslight Effect works, how you can decide which relationships can be saved and which you have to walk away from—and how to gasproof your life so you'll avoid a gaslighting relationship. 

When a storm is raging, David and George are glad to be inside the house, snug and safe. In this spectacular picture book by Caldecott Honor recipient David Wisener, a fallen tree becomes the threshold to the limitless voyage of the imagination, which David and George share as only true friends--and brothers--can.

Also -   

Time of Wonder

Rain, gulls, a foggy morning, the excitement of sailing, the quiet of the night, and the sudden terror of a hurricane are all expressed in this book.

This book is a practical guide to hypnosis, focusing, and mindfulness for the clinician. 

This book has changed the way we think about and treat traumatic events and trauma victims. 

As we head into the World Series, this is a fun read for all of you baseball fans! 

Based  on Emmet Fox's simple message that "thoughts are things", this book can  help with health, healing, happiness, and a liberated spirit -- through  the power of constructive thought.