By Nancy Bilyeau
Meta: Books to Feed Your Soul
First Sheryl Sandberg taught us to “lean in;” now she’s helping us build our resiliency muscle in Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy, by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant (Knopf) … Springboarding from a viral speech at a University of Texas commencement, this book on overcoming challenges is taking the country by storm: Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life…and Maybe the World, by William H. McRaven (Grand Central Publishing) … Captivate: The Science of Succeeding With People, by Vanessa Van Edwards (Portfolio), reveals the findings of a human-behavior researcher who’s cracked the social-skills code…Unleash your inner scarlet, or harness your secret turquoise in Your Life In Color: Empowering Your Soul with the Energy of Color, by Dougall Fraser (Hay House) … If you want to meditate but can’t seem to quite figure out how, there’s a “tool kit” in The Mind Illuminated: A Complete Meditation Guide Integrating Buddhist Wisdom and Brain Science for Greater Mindfulness, by Culadasa (John Yates), Matthew Immergut and Jeremy Graves (Touchstone).
Physical: Books to Feed Your Senses
Absolutely everyone can draw inspiration from the how-to’s in Every Body Yoga: Let Go of Fear, Get On the Mat, Love Your Body, by Jessamyn Stanley (Workman Publishing) … Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism, by Fumio Sasaki (W.W. Norton), shares the much-talked-about story of a man who found focus through an epic purge… In Full Flower: Inspired Designs by Floral’s New Creatives, by Gemma and Andrew Ingalls (Rizzoli), shows how to incorporate the new “back-to-nature” aesthetic…your spirit will take flight after paging through Birds, by Hunt Slonem (Glitterati) … If you adore French cuisine but wish you could find lighter versions of favorite dishes, start those sauces stat with Simple Nature: 150 New Recipes for Fresh, Healthy Dishes, by Alain Ducasse (Rizzoli) … Dinner With Georgia O’Keefe: Recipes, Art, Landscape, by Robyn Lea (Assouline), is like being hand-delivered an invitation to a New Mexico meal with one of the 20th century’s greatest talents.
Fabulous Fiction: Stories for Every Taste
· If you’re looking for the novel everyone will be talking about … Bed-Stuy Is Burning by Brian Platzer
· If you fancy a juicy historical epic … House of Names by Colm Toibin
· If you crave a stay-up-all-night page-turner … The Marsh King’s Daughter by Karen Dionne
· If you desire a sexy romance … It Happens in the Hamptons by Holly Peterson
· If you want to revel in a literary triumph … Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane
· If you’d like to luxuriate in a classic … The Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway
· If you’re dying for a perfect beach read … Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid