In this yoga memoir, author Jessica Berger Gross details how she “lost 40 pounds with a yoga mat, fresh pineapples, and a Beagle-Pointer.” With a subtitle like that, I had to read this book.

It’s a very relatable tale. After a challenging childhood (including an abusive father and an exhausted, cowed mother), college-age Jessica finds herself an overweight, chain-smoking wallflower. Envious of her slimmer, more energetic friends, Berger Gross assumes it’s her destiny to be heavy and sluggish. However, after spending a year in Nepal, finding her true love, connecting with her yoga practice and moving to a house in the mountains, she begins to realize that she can change herself, although she has a few false starts before she finds her path.

She begins writing for yoga magazines, deepens her home practice and starts teaching classes. She attends a yoga retreat with Baron Baptiste. She gets a dog and starts walking her regularly. And she revamps her diet, starting off every day with fresh pineapple (and ending it with a lot of black bean chili).

By taking the advice of her healthier friends, severing ties with her parents and taking control of her destiny, Berger Gross eventually loses the weight and finds her happiness, though not without some struggle and a lot of hard work, proving that none of us is a slave to our past. An inspiring tale, indeed.

In this magical memoir, author Noelle Oxenhandler explores the power (and danger) of the art of wishing. After a series of tumultuous personal events, Oxenhandler finds herself divorced, spiritually bereft and raising her daughter alone in a rental house. Simultaneously envious and suspicious of her friend Carole’s ability to manifest her desires through wishing (a husband! a successful art career! three houses in France!), Oxenhandler decides to research and explore the history and power of wishing.

She embarks on a year-long journey to fulfill three wishes: to find love with a man, to buy a house and to heal her soul and spirituality. She reads all that she can on wishing in its various manifestations (prayer, magic, positive thinking, etc.) as she struggles to reconcile the sacred and the profane (is it okay to ask God for more money?) and magic versus hard work (do shrines, wishlists and ceremonies have any place in modern society?).

To her surprise, her wishes do begin to come true, in a variety of ways. She discovers that she spends as much time wishing for her friends as she for herself, and after a year of startling discoveries, begins to feel comfortable with the blessings appearing in her life. An intriguing, compelling read for believers and non-believers alike.

I’ve mentioned repeatedly that both Ani Phyo and Sarma Melngailis have new books coming out. Amazon finally has photos for both, and they are lovely!

Ani’s dessert book hits the street at the end of April, and Sarma’s will be available June 30th. I’ll definitely be purchasing them both; even if I weren’t already familiar with these ladies, I would be judging both of these books by their covers, and I wanna look as pretty and pink as they do! They both just look so summery and inspiring, and I can’t wait to try what are sure to be fabulous recipes.

One really cold evening last winter, I snuggled up with a blanket and a space heater and dove into the debut novel by an author I’d never heard of: Sarah Addison Allen. I devoured the book, Garden Spells, in a matter of hours; it captivated me from page one. Allen’s writing is somewhat similar to that of Alice Hoffman; her characters and settings are real, but her novels contain just the slightest touch of magic. In Garden Spells, two sisters reunite at their childhood home, and find both their gifts and their paths in life. Allen’s second novel, The Sugar Queen, is the story of Josey, a young woman who has lived her entire life under her mother’s thumb. With the help of the mysterious Della Lee, Josey finally begins to blossom into her own woman, finding love and friendship along the way. 

These books are great; everyone who reads them ends up loving them. I highly recommend that you pick one up today!

So, I just read a pretty fascinating book called Gluten-Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern. In this memoir-cum-cookbook, Ahern chronicles her food habits as a child, her chronic illnesses, and finally her diagnosis of celiac disease, which renders her unable to eat foods that contain gluten (typically wheat, barley, rye and spelt). Rather than adopting a poor-me attitude, Ahern embraced her diagnosis and began a journey of discovery. Armed with a well-stocked kitchen, unusual ingredients, and a healthy zeal for eating, Ahern began creating sumptuous gluten-free recipes, such as Chilled Millet Salad with Jicama and Mango and Roasted Cauliflower with Smoked Paprika and Cocoa Powder.

Okay, I know you’re wondering. Why do I, someone who wholly detests cooking, find this book interesting? Well, actually there are a couple of reasons. One is that my holistic doctor told me to stop eating gluten. While I certainly don’t have full-blown celiac disease, I am apparently gluten sensitive, or intolerant, or something. Two, Ahern talks again and again about healing herself with food, a concept I’m coming to understand more and more. As a vegetarian and lifelong picky eater, I’ve always seen eating as a chore: something that has to be done to stay alive. I’ve never relished it as the pleasurable experience that so many people seem to do.

Also, I’ve been feeling like crap for years. Literally. Years. I’m exhausted, run-down and feel malnourished, even though I’ve always thought that I followed a reasonably healthy diet. And, whereas I’ve never gotten that much joy from eating, I do love to read. And Ahern painted sumptuous pictures in my head of delicious, beautiful meals. So, I think I’m going to try to learn to cook. I want to take the time to create art out of whole, healthy foods to heal my body and restore its proper nutrient balance. I want to look at eating as a joy, rather than something I dread…