A Book Review: 100 Names for Love

I have to go to the library and find this book by Diane Ackerman, One Hundred Names for Love: a Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing. Here is a quotation from the book:

Working from home meant we could vary snack and coffee breaks, change our desks or view, goof off, drink on the job, even spend the day in pajamas, and often meet to gossip or share ideas. On the other hand, we bossed ourselves around, set impossible goals, and demanded longer hours than office jobs usually entail. It was the ultimate "flextime," in that it depended on how flexible we felt each day, given deadlines, distractions, and workaholic crescendos.

I went to the library and found the book. I took it home and started reading. It was fascinating. I couldn't put it down! I finished reading it in 3 days.

I recommend it to anyone who has a relative who experiences a stroke. The author's husband had a stroke at age 75 and this book chronicles his 5 year recovery. The famous neurologist, Oliver Sacs, visited them shortly after he returned home from the hospital. Dr. Sacs inquired as to what they were told about the "window of opportunity." The author said 3 months. Dr. Sacs informed her that the brain can continue to heal and learn new skills as long as it is challenged. The author decided to devise her own therapy to encourage her husband to recover his verbal faculties. The book shows how successful they were.

After I finished the book, I purchased a copy and sent it to a friend, whose husband had a stroke 3 weeks ago. Her husband is much younger, but has brain damage in some of the same areas. I encouraged her to read it, because it is optimistic in it's viewpoint, and also has resources in the last chapter.

I think this book deserves 5 stars.

The vocabulary is fantastic and I will write another blog and publish it in my other blog, musinglog.blogspot.com.

Great Book

Another great book has been published, written by Mark E. Beck, the vice president of TBNGH!

It's called

Self-hypnosis, The Complete Course

and available at smashwords:
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/64408

I think hypnosis is the easiest, quickest and most powerful way there is to eliminate bad habits, learn faster, improve sports performance, relieve stress and much more. And I think this book is the easiest, quickest and most powerful way to learn how to use self-hypnosis.

Mark Beck has included everything you need, to get started right away!

I recommend this book to anyone who would like to learn how to do self-hypnosis. I am going to include this in the course materials for the students in my next Professional Hypnotist Class.

Personal Empowerment Through Meditation

I am so very excited about this book! I even love the title: Personal Empowerment through Meditation. Not Self-improvement, but "personal EMPOWERMENT." Who doesn't want to be empowered?



A very good friend of mine wrote this book. It's about meditation, which is a powerful tool for personal empowerment. It's just like having a conversation with Mark. He anticipates the questions and explains everything in simple language.

It is a great handbook for anyone who wants to slow down and enjoy life more. Meditation releases the relaxation response, and makes it easier to handle difficult people and situations. It's about meditation, a powerful tool for personal empowerment. Mark Beck has been meditating for over 30 years. He explains the many benefits he has gained through the consistent use of daily meditation. He explains his technique, and simplifies it for the average person.

Mark writes about stillness. He says that stillness is water's true nature and that the Mind is like a glass of water with some sediment in it. Your mind is like this glass of water: it can be turbulent and muddy, or still and (mostly) clear. He uses many simple analogies like this that help illustrate his technique.

He says that meditation is a "powerful tool that can help us lead happier and more peaceful lives."


This book is a treasure. It is available at Smashwords dot com. You can even download a sample for free. But I want to let you know it is a bargain. You can download the whole book for less than 5 bucks. I know I spend more for lunch every day!

Try this link: http://www.beckhypnosis.blogspot.com

Problem or Predicament?

According to John C. Maxwell, a problem can be solved and a predicament cannot.

He wrote several books, including one called The Difference Maker. I am listening to the audio version. In it he advises that there is no reason to worry about a predicament, as it cannot be changed. He has a checklist in order to determine whether it is a problem or a predicament. He also advises that a problem will have several solutions and that a problem anticipated is not really a problem, but an opportunity.

There is a very helpful chapter about Fear, and another about how to handle Change as well as motivate others to implement it.

And he reveals the origin of many stories I have heard about how to determine which will prevail, Faith or Fear. I have heard this story illustrated with wolves. It is truly a legend, that is hard to trace. It may have multiple sources, in fact.

Here it is:

Two natures beat within my breast,
the one is foul, the other blessed.
The one I love, the other I hate.
The one I feed will dominate.

According to Maxwell, the difference maker is your attitude. And he believes that a positive attitude can be cultivated.

That reminds me of one of my favorite quotations:

If you can't change your fate, change your ATTITUDE.

Amy Tan

Book Review: How Successful People Think

Due to overwhelming positive response, the book reviews will now be found here in Verbal Impact.

How Successful People Think by John C. Maxwell.

Some gems from this audio book:

Change your thoughts, change your life. That is the subtitle.

Albert Einstein said

"Thinking is difficult, that's why so few engage in it."

Classic Literature

Alice in Wonderland is a delightful tome authored by Lewis Carroll many years ago. Some might find it a bit olde-fashioned. I found it very instructional.

When speaking about his education, the mock turtle, tells Alice that he attended school every day, in order to learn the basics, Reeling and Writhing, and of course, all the branches of Arithmetic, namely, Ambition, Distraction, Uglification and Derision. He also explained that he learned Mystery, both Ancient and Moderne.

Gad Zooks! These subjects are still of interest to young people today!

Get Rich

Wallace Wattles wrote a book called The Science of Getting Rich. He said that getting rich was mathematically certain if you have faith in his “Science of getting rich,” which is in fact primarily metaphysical, despite his assertions that it is pragmatic and not philosophical, highlighting the difference between science and faith. Is belief scientific? Can it be measured objectively? Is metaphysical science an oxymoron?

He supports his ideas with indisputable logic. I like the way he thinks, but is it truly logic? Rather that expressing his thoughts in overly emphatic language, a few more examples that do not involve farming might be helpful. He gives the instructions with which to proceed to accomplish and attain all that you desire. He argues that desire is normal, natural and correct. That all life seeks abundance.

The thing I liked most about Wattles is this, that he advocates using hypnosis! Not in so many words, but he says repeated suggestions can assist the subconscious to accept beliefs that success is possible and inevitable. He believes the subconscious mind is the most significant power behind motivation.

Recent Impact

Books that have made an impact on me recently:

Leverage the Universe, Engage the Magic by Mike Dooley
The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles
Love, Passion, and the Soul from PBS with several authors: Marianne Williamson, Barbara D'angelis, Erica Jong, Deepak Chopra, John Grey, and more (inc. Moore).

The above list includes audio books or audio programs, not just the written word.

Another famous author and I read and listen to is Kevin Hogan.