Fine Print – April 2018

Summer brings prosperity and a proactive consciousness. Your customers will be more assertive than usual. Don’t try and market to them. Follow their lead. If a title doesn’t catch their eye, you’ll have a very difficult time selling it to them. Put books that are action-oriented front and center. The title should tell the story, or at least trigger a compelling question. The masses are claiming their power and they are serious about it. Be ready to give them a leg up.

Dodging Energy Vampires: An Empath’s Guide to Evading Relationships That Drain You and Restoring Your Health and Power

Christiane Northrup, MD (ISBN 978-1-40-195477-2) Hay House

www.hayhouse.com

Northrup describes energy vampires as “master manipulators, getting what they want from others without giving anything in return.” She tells readers that these people are extremely good at targeting those who will try to help them, generally people who are very empathic. The good news is that the mental health professions are finally pinpointing the behavior of these energy sappers and developing strategies for helping people remove them from their lives. Northrup has combined research in this field with her personal experiences to help your customers recognize unhealthy, life-force-draining relationships, to get out of them, and to heal from the trauma. Many highly sensitive people are so in tune with other people’s suffering that they have trouble putting their own needs first. They are sitting ducks for energy vampires. Fortunately, there is a movement afoot in the mind/body/spirit world to make self-care a top priority. I see reminders about that every day on Instagram. This book moves that trend to a new level. Northrup shows off her clinical background with lots of facts and specific information, but she does it in keeping with the style of the title. The book is not only clearly understandable, it is fast-paced and interesting to read. It is also rich with references to other books related to the topic. This one is the beginning of a conversation that needs to be had before the body count gets any higher.

Marketing to Gen Z: The Rules for Reaching This Vast—and Very Different— Generation of Influencers

Jeff Fromm & Angie Read (ISBN 978-0-81-443928-9) AMACOM

www.amacombooks.org

Gen Z will be the last white-majority generation. Rather than fighting to hold on to the past, they are already embracing that future reality. They were born into a world overshadowed by terrorism. Black presidents, same-sex marriage, and the possible collapse of the U.S. financial system are commonplace in the world that they inhabit. They expect 24/7 digital access.  It is the only reality they have ever known. Their eight-second attention span doesn’t mean they’re getting dumber. It means that it only takes them four seconds to determine whether or not the information you’ve sent them has value. As a Baby Boomer, I’m thinking that Gen Z has absorbed the Baby Boomer legacy of free-spirited limitation busting and filtered it through a very pragmatic lens with a full awareness that anything worth achieving requires hard work. But how do you sell to them, you ask? By listening to them—and by reading this book.

No Recipe: Cooking as Spiritual Practice

Edward Espe Brown (ISBN 978-1-68-364054-7) Sounds True

www.soundstrue.com

This is a book about spiritual practice. It uses interaction with food as the spiritual teacher. It offers your customers an antidote to our competitive, disempowering, and isolating world.  This is not in contradiction to accomplishment in the world. This is an expansion of activity in the world to include manifestation of our innermost being. It is the component that is up to us. We can choose habitually, or we can choose thoughtfully. Whether they are cooking, eating, or both, your customers will welcome this encouragement to engage their five senses on their own terms (in the privacy of their own homes) and welcome food into their lives as a partner, rather than an adversary. In a world full of diets, rigid cooking instructions, and the search for the most perfect ingredients, Edward Espe Brown offers your customers a chance to relax and enjoy the simple act of cooking in tandem with the Divine (as they understand It). The bonus is renewed connection to, and acceptance of, our bodies as a gift from God.

Untwisted: How to Use the Power of Love to Straighten Out Your Life

Dr. Ted Anders (ISBN 978-0-75-700453-7) SquareOne Publishers

www.squareonepublishers.com

Combining elements of A Course in Miracles, developmental/transpersonal/cognitive psychology, Buddhist mindfulness, and just a touch of physics, Untwisted seeks to take us through the mire of misbelief most humans accumulate in childhood so that we can reconnect with the spiritual/light/love core of our beings. At about eight months of age, human beings begin to gather information about their caregivers in an attempt to ensure that those caregivers continue to care for them. For many of us, that means that we learn to work around the defense mechanisms of fear-based people and then apply those strategies to the rest of the world. We begin the pursuit of what Anders calls “shadow love”, reinforcing the false sense of separation that has been instilled in us. The real purpose of enlightenment is not to make us “happy.” It is rather to help us give up the fear-based pursuit of pseudo-happiness. After a very understandable description of the above process, Anders carefully spells out the steps he uses in his seminars to help clients approach the door to release from self-imposed limitations. He then lets us know what we need to do to walk through that door into a world of freedom and sustainable peacefulness. There are lots of books talking around this subject today. This one stands out for its directness, brevity, and loving direction toward a less stressful life that also contributes to a world which empowers, rather than enslaves.

The Headache Healer’s Handbook: A Holistic, Hands-On Somatic Self-Care Program for Headache and Migraine Relief and Prevention

Jan Mundo (ISBN 978-1-60-868513-4) New World Library

www.newworldlibrary.com

This book is first and foremost a testament to the mind/body connection and how an awareness of that connection can literally change your life. It begins by dealing with the physical. It contains an analysis of headache triggers, cutting-edge diet suggestions, and a detailed section on keeping a Headache Diary. Moving toward the world of mindfulness, it next offers a whole chapter on breathing. Finally, the book arrives at mindfulness/meditation practice. This down-to-earth, comprehensive discussion is followed by sections on touch healing and connecting with core issues like trauma and embodied wisdom. Let your customers know that if they only get as far as the mindfulness chapter, they will have gotten their money’s worth. The rest of the book is icing on the cake, and very special icing it is.

The Age of Overwhelmed: Strategies for the Long Haul

Laura van Dernoot Lipsky (ISBN 978-1-52-309473-8) Berrett-Koehler Publishers

www.bkconnection.com

The truth is that there is almost no place left to hide from overwhelm. The media is constantly asking us to be upset about something new. Our neighbors attempt to relieve their stress by making nerve-shattering noise all night. If you move to an unpopulated rural area to escape the overstimulation, the next thing you know they’re building a high-density housing development next door, or illegally dumping toxic waste in your backyard, or using eminent domain to take your home and put a superhighway through. Overwhelmed is becoming the definitive problem of our age. This book asks readers who are overwhelmed to begin their recovery process by believing in change (individual and collective change). But before you cross this book off as just another “change yourself, change the world” musing, consider the real-world applications which Lipsky has created. Building on her cutting-edge work with trauma exposure (Trauma Stewardship), she has developed clear-cut guidelines for digging out from under overwhelm and reclaiming a sense of balance and empowerment. Let your customers know that she’ll help them learn how to recognize what they can and can’t control, how to take a moment to recalibrate, and how to remember that they are ultimately responsible for responding appropriately to their situation. With examples, from the segregated south to The Gates Foundation, she shows how seemingly small individual actions, ripple through people’s lives with ongoing manifestation. Lipsky shows us that we can do this if we are willing to try.

The Little Book of Saturn: Astrological Gifts, Challenges, and Returns

Aliza Einhorn (ISBN 978-1-57-863628-0) Red Wheel-Weiser

www.redwheelweiser.com

This lively, nostalgic, easy-going introduction to the planet Saturn begins with a synopsis of astrology. It probably won’t be necessary for most of your customers, but better safe than sorry, and it serves to give us a personal glimpse of the author. Einhorn writes in the concise, get-to-the-point style created by social media. Beginners will find the essence of astrological science in a nutshell. Experienced readers will find a quick review with some surprising insights. When she gets to Saturn, Einhorn’s competency really becomes clear. Saturn tends to scare young people, to instill respect in those approaching thirty and their first “Saturn return,” and finally, to inspire gratitude for those who have recognized Saturn as the powerful teacher it is. Saturn isn’t warm and fuzzy; Saturn is the planet that looks you in the eye and tells you the truth regardless of the consequences. Saturn isn’t the one that has the most fun at a party; Saturn is the one that’s still there when things have taken a turn for the worse and everyone else has bailed. Just ask Einhorn. She’ll walk you through it.

My Magic Breath: Finding Calm Through Mindful Breathing

Nick Ortner and Alison Taylor, Michelle Polizzi, illustrator (ISBN 978-0-06-268776-0) Harper Collins

www.harpercollins.com/childrens

Designed as an entry-level mindfulness tool for preschoolers, this carefully thought-out book, with its dynamic illustrations, is sure to become a favorite for mindful adults and the children in their lives. Breath and emotion are not easy things to draw, especially for a young audience, but Polizzi has not only captured the joyful, calming exhale of mindful breathing and the power of emotional states, she has also made the pictures captivatingly dynamic. Her sophisticated choice of colors adds to the engaging quality of the book. The illustrations of children are inclusive, and the story line guides readers through breathing in response to a range of emotion without judgement or spiritual dogma.

I Am the Rain

John Paterson (ISBN 978-1-58-469616-2) Dawn Publications

www.dawnpub.com

Paterson’s rhyming story begins with a child looking out through a rain-covered window and ends with a pair of lime-colored boots in a puddle. It perfectly bespeaks Dawn Publications’ commitment to getting children out into the world to explore nature firsthand. It’s a large task to steer young children through the cycle of condensation-precipitation-collection-evaporation. Paterson’s spacious illustrations and animated narrative do a brilliant job of just that. As usual, Dawn has included follow up activities for teachers and parents and online links for further study.

Yoga Friends: A Pose-by-Pose Partner Adventure for Kids

Mariam Gates and Rolf Gates – Sarah Jane Hinder, illustrator (ISBN 978-1-62-203816-9) Sounds True

www.soundstrue.com

The creators of Good Night Yoga and Good Morning Yoga have done it again. This time they’re showing young readers how to do yoga in pairs: sitting back-to-back, locking arms, and balancing against each other. Hinder’s inclusive drawings once again capture the physical and mental essence of the poses, while the imaginative surprises to be found on each page will keep fidgety readers engaged. There is a page of “instructions” for adults, but I’m guessing the kids will just dive into the book and take off before adults have a chance to help them. It’s an important step, learning to maintain concentration while working with a partner. Mariam Gates enlisted the help of her husband Rolf for this one. Don’t let the playfulness of the illustrations and the simplicity of the narrative mislead you. This is serious yoga instruction, perfectly formatted for a very young audience. If you read the review of Selling to Gen Z above, this is a perfect example of getting the message across in the first four seconds.