With Thanksgiving only days away, we thought we’d share a few of the things we’re thankful for. We’ll be posting one each day — in no particular order — and would love to hear what you’re thankful for, too.
#7: More Women Who Empower Us
Debra LaChance founded The Healing Project to give people a way to make valuable emotional connections during times of crisis. She learned after her own breast cancer diagnosis the importance of having people to talk to – people who had gone through the same experience. Sharing stories is something women do really well, and Women Reinvented: True Stories of Empowerment and Change is like having a really personal conversation with your trusted best friend. These women have changed their lives in all kinds of different ways, and they show you that you can literally be whoever you want to be.
Operation Beautiful is such a simple, powerful and brilliant idea, it makes us teary every time. Sick of watching women stand in front of restroom mirrors, criticizing their looks, twenty-four-year-old Caitlin Boyle scribbled “YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL!” on a Post-it Note and slapped it on the mirror of a public restroom. This small act started a movement, and soon uplifting Post-it Notes were popping up on gym lockers, on products in the diet section of the supermarket – anywhere women might start doubting themselves. Her book, Operation Beautiful: Transforming the Way You See Yourself One Post-it Note at a Time highlights some of these moving notes from all over the world, along with interviews, tips and fascinating research on body image. Give your daughters the gift of this book and a pad of Post-it Notes to pay it forward.
It’s hard to resist a book entitled How To Rule the World From Your Couch, especially when it’s written by Laura Day, the bestselling author of Practical Intuition. Her advice is practical, easy-to-follow and, well, intuitive. Instead of having to learn a whole new set of skills, she teaches you how to tap into your own innate wisdom and heal yourself. By showing that 98 percent of success is planning, she gives you the power to completely transform your own life.
Oprah calls it a va-jay-jay. “E” borrows her friend, Marcia’s, term in her book, Shmirshsky, an irreverent but informative guide to surviving menopause. This no-holds-barred account of the author’s experience will make you feel so much better – no, you’re not the only one convinced you’re in the early stages of Alzheimer’s or a urinary tract infection, and you’ve certainly got millions of women you can reach out to in the middle of the night when you’re no longer sleeping. If you can find some humor in your mood and temperature swings, you’re already a step ahead!
We like the way Summer Pierre thinks! Her cheerleader of a book, Great Gals: Inspired Ideas for Living a Kick-Ass Life, pays homage to an eclectic – and wonderfully surprising – group of women from Cyndi Lauper and Ani DiFranco to Betsey Johnson, Sojourner Truth and Harper Lee. Using these icons as role models, she describes their special traits, quotes them and provides fun and creative exercises to get you thinking on their wavelength — with your own twist. Grab a copy, head to the bathtub or coffee shop, and get ready to kick ass!
We are pretty car-challenged, so Lauren Fix’s Guide to Loving Your Car: Everything You Need to Know to Take Charge of Your Car and Get On With Your Life is extraordinarily empowering to us. First of all, we’re so impressed by Lauren herself, who’s a nationally-recognized TV automotive expert with her own show on the Do-It-Yourself Network, as well as an ASE-certified technician and a professional race car driver. In this comprehensive book, she explains – in clear English, thank you – how to maintain your car, and describes the function of all those parts under the hood. She also gives instructions for doing simple repairs – but since we probably won’t be undertaking those, we’re glad she also tells you how to talk to your mechanic in language you both understand. This book will be taking a place of honor in our glove compartment – right next to the tampons and protein bars.
Although sometimes you just want to have a tantrum, the more productive way to handle those difficult situations is using the tools Stacy Kaiser provides in How to Be a Grown Up: The Ten Secret Skills Everyone Needs to Know. The book starts with a quiz which, if you’re really honest with your answers, will pinpoint the areas in your life that are holding you back. Once you know what to focus on, Stacy – psychotherapist for both Celebrity Fit Club and Lifetime’s Diet Tribe – offers practical steps for taking charge. Whether you need help managing time, money or your weight, this book can help you get them back in control.
Leave a comment below, and you’ll automatically be entered to win one of these empowering books or a special gift from Lauren Fix.
Thanks for the great reading recommendations. Each book offers new insights and support for women. Kudos for the reviews!
I think I need all of these, but I’m going out TODAY to get “Schmirshky” – – sounds like just what I need!
I agree – need all these books! Thanks for finding books that I don’t know about already – really appreciate the heads up you guys provide and in such an uplifting way.