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Non-Fiction

The Five (by Hallie Rubenhold)

This book is not about Jack the Ripper, who has already gained a lot of notoriety. This book is about the lives of his victims. Their names were Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine, and Mary Jane. I felt overwhelming sadness while reading it, and this was due to the deplorable conditions in which these women lived. There was clearly a great deal of research behind this book. It was heart-wrenching and enraging to learn that just over a century ago, women were considered less important than… Read More »The Five (by Hallie Rubenhold)

Buddhism Plain and Simple (by Steve Hagen)

If you are curious about Buddhism and seeking a simple, accessible introduction to its basic concepts, this book is for you. I really enjoyed reading it and found it insightful. My favourite part was the explanation that there’s no permanent “self”. This really got me thinking about the impermanence of everything around us. Everything changes, even the concept of “I”. Another aspect that I liked about this book was its modern and pragmatic style. While it’s rooted in ancient Buddhist philosophy, it speaks directly to… Read More »Buddhism Plain and Simple (by Steve Hagen)

A Londra con Virginia Woolf (by Cristina Marconi)

By accompanying the reader on a journey of discovery through the places that were part of Virginia Woolf’s life, the author offers an interesting glimpse into her existence. The writing is engaging to the point that it gave me the feeling of taking a real journey through time, reliving the atmosphere of London in the early twentieth century. I also greatly appreciated the intelligent use of quotes within the text. Well-structured, well-written, and well-researched, this beautiful book provides a passionate read that I highly recommend.… Read More »A Londra con Virginia Woolf (by Cristina Marconi)

Virginia Woolf (by Quentin Bell)

I immersed myself in the pages of this intimate and comprehensive portrait of Virginia Woolf, one of the most celebrated writers of the 20th century. The author, Quentin Bell, had a close personal relationship with her – he was her nephew. Divided into two parts, the first covers Woolf’s childhood, adolescence, and goes until she was 30 years old. While this section contains undoubtedly valuable background information on Woolf’s upbringing and later years, I found it to be a bit slow-paced. The second part of… Read More »Virginia Woolf (by Quentin Bell)

Culinaria Hungary (by Aniko Gergely)

Hungarian food is much more than goulash and paprika. It’s a rich cuisine that you can learn about through the pages of this book. While presented as a cookbook, I think that the recipes could have been a bit more detailed. For example, when I tried making one of them, Paprikás Csirke (chicken paprika), I felt I needed more instructions as they seemed too vague, perhaps more aimed at experienced cooks. What I found enriching was that I learned a lot about Hungarian culinary traditions… Read More »Culinaria Hungary (by Aniko Gergely)

10 Days to Faster Reading (by Abby Marks Beale)

As you might have guessed by now, I love reading. It’s never enough; I only stop reading because I must do something else, not because I’m tired of it. I mainly read non-fiction because I’m curious about the world and have an insatiable appetite to learn. I read every day, but the more I read the more I want to read. So, I looked for something that could help me read faster without compromising comprehension. Based on my research, this book came up as the… Read More »10 Days to Faster Reading (by Abby Marks Beale)

Heal Thy Self (by Saki Santorelli)

As someone who has been interested in mindfulness for a few years now, I was excited to read this book and learn more about how mindfulness can be applied in the context of illness and medicine in general. The book follows the structure of the eight-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program developed at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in the 1970s by Jon Kabat-Zinn. I found the book less useful than I had hoped because I struggled to follow the format. There was little… Read More »Heal Thy Self (by Saki Santorelli)

As a Man Thinketh (by James Allen)

It’s probably taking me longer to write this review than to read the book, but despite being a short read, it’s packed with powerful concepts that are still relevant today. For example, the metaphor of the mind as a garden that must be cultivated, or the notion that our minds become calm in proportion to our understanding of ourselves as thought-evolved beings. The central idea of the book is that our thoughts shape our lives. A person is limited only by the thoughts that he… Read More »As a Man Thinketh (by James Allen)

A Room of One’s Own (by Virginia Woolf)

There is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind. A classic work of feminist literature, this book explores the issue of women’s place in society. Specifically, that they have faced a scarcity of opportunities – this book raises the question of what women could achieve if they were given the same opportunities as their male colleagues. Woolf argues that centuries of financial and educational disadvantages have inhibited women’s creativity. She uses vivid storytelling to paint a… Read More »A Room of One’s Own (by Virginia Woolf)

Women Who Think Too Much (by Susan Nolen-Hoeksema)

I was hooked on this book from the first page as it got straight to the point.  The first part explained the concept of overthinking and provided potential explanations for why women tend to overthink.  The second part offered practical steps to overcome overthinking in three phases: 1) breaking free of its grip, 2) moving to higher ground and gaining a new perspective, and 3) avoiding future traps. I found the author’s use of the quicksand analogy to be spot-on and effective.  The third part of the… Read More »Women Who Think Too Much (by Susan Nolen-Hoeksema)