BOOKS
OM at Home A Yoga Journal
By Cyndi Lee (Chronicle Books, $15.95)
Have you been meaning to start a yoga practice at home, but don’t know where to start? Cyndi Lee, the director and founder of OM Yoga Center in New York City and a twenty-year veteran of hatha yoga has used her expertise and knowledge of yoga to create Om at Home, a fun and easy to use yoga journal. The guidelines are simple: begin each day with the “Daily Warm-Up” then add on the active yoga practice that corresponds with the season. In the spring, for example, as we all long for the sunshine, the practice focuses on sun salutations. Whereas in the winter, when we tend to be more withdrawn, the practice is entitled “Going Inside” and incorporates restorative yoga asanas. Each weekly practice includes cute illustrations and motivational questions with ample space to reflect your thoughts. Personally, I find that keeping a journal is very useful after my yoga practice, but Cyndi instructs that the journal can be used at any time during the day. OM at Home is a great book for beginners or for anyone who wants to reflect on their daily practice.
—Melissa B. Scott
Thai Spa Book
By Chami Jotisalikorn (Periplus Editions, $21.95)
Yes, the day spa in your hometown probably offers Thai massage or possibly even treatments, but what do these treatments do? And how can you bring the healing principles into your own home? In Thai Spa Book, Chami Jotisalikorn answers these questions as she explores the healing principles of the Thai spa. From learning the basics of Thai massage (even for your baby) and creating soothing baths at home to meditation exercises, skincare recipes, and yoga, Jotisalikorn transports you to this mystical country. The beautiful photography from five-star spas like the new Amanpuri Resort, Phuket, will not only inspire you to try a few at-home recipes but may make you purchase a ticket to experience the spas first-hand. Jotisalikorn sums it up well when she says, “The candles, flowers and luscious surroundings add to the sensory delights—but at the core of the best Thai spas is the Thai healing tradition, a special element offering the benefits of a glowing complexion, renewed energy, and a feel-good factor, inside and out.”
—M.B.S.
Your Vegetarian Pregnancy
By Holly Roberts, D.O., M.B.A. (A Fireside Original/Simon & Schuster Trade Paperback, $15.00)
Maintaining a vegetarian or vegan diet can be tricky when you’re only thinking about your own nutrient needs, but when you bring another human into the picture, the equation multiplies. Can a pregnant mother nurture a baby on a vegetarian diet? According to Dr. Holly Roberts, definitely—and she has raised three healthy children to prove it. Her new book, Your Vegetarian Pregnancy guides moms-to-be (or those trying) on an easy-to-navigate journey from pre-pregnancy planning to nutrition basics for lactating mothers. Dr. Roberts proves that vegetarian women can meet their protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamin, and mineral needs and even demonstrates that vegetarian diets are sometimes superior to non-vegetarian diets.
—M.B.S.
Island Wise
By Janis Frawley-Holler (Broadway, $12.95)
How many times have you heard the expression, “I’m still living on island time”? Although it seems that islanders have more time in the day, less stress, and more happiness, no one really understands why. In Island Wise, Janis Frawley-Holler explores twenty-five islands in search of the answers and discovers the natural wonders, practices, and people that make island life so intriguing and desirable. From Nassau we learn the value of Sunday (or a day of rest and prayer) after watching the islanders prepare days in advance for their holy day. From Prince Edward Island we witness the value of trust and while visiting Key West we see the importance of embracing our own uniqueness. My favorite words of wisdom come from the Azores islands off the coast of Portugal, where a local explained to Frawley-Holler why they are always celebrating, “We love to be happy. When you live on a powder keg, you never tire of celebrating life.” (The “powder keg” referred to is the topography of the Azores.)
—M.B.S.
