Book Recommendations
Categories
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Chinese Classics
• I Ching, translated by Richard Wilhelm
• The Illustrated I Ching, by R.L. Wing
• Tao Te Ching, translated by Gia-Fu Feng & Jane English
• Tao Te Ching, translated by Stephen Mitchell
Creativity
• A Year in Practice, by Jacqueline Suskin
• How to Not Always Be Working, by Marlee Grace
• Make Ink, by J. Logan & M. Ondaatje
• Morning Altars, by Day Schildkret (& all books)
• Steal Like an Artist, by Austin Kleon (& all books)
• Syllabus, by Lynda Barry (& all books)
• The Artist’s Way, by Julia Cameron
• The Organic Artist, by Nick Neddo
• The Shape of Ideas, by Grant Snider
• Your Art Will Save Your Life, by Beth Pickens
Writing
• 1000 Words, by Jami Attenberg
• Before and After the Book Deal, by Courtney Maum
• Bird by Bird, by Anne Lamott
• Every Day Is a Poem, by Jacqueline Suskin
• Murder Your Darlings, by Roy Peter Clark
• Never Say You Can't Survive, by Charlie Anders
• Novelist as a Vocation, by Haruki Murakami
• On Writing, by Stephen King
• Scratch, edited by Manjula Martin
• Several Short Sentences about Writing, by Verlyn Klinkenborg
• The Writing Life, by Annie Dillard
• The Business of Being a Writer, by Jane Friedman
• What It Is, by Lynda Barry (& all books)
• Writing as a Path to Awakening, by Albert DeSilver
• Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg (& all books)
• Write It All Down, by Cathy Rentzenbrink
• Write for Life, by Julia Cameron
East Asian Medicine
• Applied Channel Theory, by Wang Ju-Yi & J. Robertson
• Dragon Rises, Red Bird Flies, by Leon Hammer
• The Spark in the Machine, by Daniel Keown
• The Web That Has No Weaver, by Ted Kaptchuk
Five Elements
• Archetypal Acupuncture, by Gary Dolowich
• Between Heaven and Earth, by H. Beinfield & E. Korngold
• Classical Five-Element Acupuncture, by J.R. Worsley
• Five Element Constitutional Acupuncture, by A. Hicks, J. Hicks, P. Mole
• In the House of the Moon, by J. Elias & K. Ketcham
• Kigo, by Lori Dechar (& all books)
• Power of the Five Elements, by Charles Moss
• The Five Element Solution, by Jean Haner
• The Way of the Five Elements, by John Kirkwood
• The Tao of Trauma, by Alaine Duncan
Diversity - Equity - Inclusion
• How to Be an Anti-Racist, by Ibram Kendi
• Me and White Supremacy, by Layla Saad
• My Grandmother’s Hands, by Resmaa Menakem
• So You Want to Talk About Race, by Ijeoma Oluo
• White Fragility, by Robin DiAngelo
• Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race, by R. Eddo-Lodge
Fiction
• Lady Tan's Circle of Women, by Lisa See
• The Overstory, by Richard Powers
Memoir
• Alone on the Wall, by Alex Honnold
• Barbarian Days, by William Finnegan
• Becoming, by Michelle Obama
• Between Two Kingdoms, by Suleika Jaouad
• Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner
• Educated, by Tara Westover
• Gratitude, by Oliver Sacks
• Heavy, by Kiese Laymon
• Kook, by Peter Heller ( & all books)
• Kitchen Confidential, by Anthony Bourdain
• Know My Name, by Chanel Miller
• Minor Feelings, by Cathy Park Hong
• Mixed Plate, by Jo Koy
• My First Summer in the Sierra, by John Muir
• Slow Noodles, by Chantha Nguon
• Soil, by Camille Dungy
• Somebody’s Daughter, by Ashley Ford
• Subculture Vulture, by Moshe Kasher
• Surf Is Where You Find It, by Gerry Lopez
• The Art of Adventure, by Galen Rowell
• The Audacity of Hope, by Barack Obama
• The Beauty in Breaking, by Michele Harper
• The High Sierra, by Kim S. Robinson
• Two Trees Make a Forest, by Jessica Lee
• The Great Failure, by Natalie Goldberg (& all books)
• When Breath Becomes Air, by Paul Kalanithi
• What Bravery Looks Like, by Laurel Braitman
• Wild, by Cheryl Strayed
Mindfulness
• A Year to Live, by Stephen Levine
• Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity, by Ronald Epstein
• Heal Thy Self, by Saki Santorelli
• How to Breathe, by Ashley Neese
• Jack Kornfield, all books
• Joseph Goldstein, all books
• Pema Chodron, all books
• Standing at the Edge, by Joan Halifax
• Tara Brach, all books
• 10% Happier, by Dan Harris
• The Art of Gathering, by Priya Parker
• Thích Nhất Hạnh, all books
• When Things Fall Apart, by Pema Chodron
• Wherever You Go, There You Are, by Jon Kabat-Zinn
• Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, by Shunryu Suzuki
Movement
• Anatomy Trains, by Thomas Myers
• Maps to Ecstasy, by Gabrielle Roth (& all books)
• Practices for Embodied Living, by Hillary McBride
• The Expressive Body in Life, Art, and Therapy, by Daria Halprin
• This Very Moment: Teaching Thinking Dancing, by Barbara Dilley
Nature
• Bill Mollison, all books (permaculture)
• Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer (& all books)
• Coyote’s Guide to Connecting to Nature, by J. Young, E. McGown, E. Haas
• Grounded, by Ruth Allen
• Joanna Macy, all books
• Soulcraft, by Bill Plotkin
• The Field Guide to Nature Meditation, by Mark Coleman
• The Smell Of Rain On Dust, by Martín Prechtel (& all books)
• The Power of Myth, by Joseph Campbell
Plants | Botany
• Botany in a Day, by Thomas Elpel
• How to Identify Plants, by H.D. Harrington
• Plant Identification Terminology, by James & Melinda Harris
Plants | Botanical Medicine
• Aphrodisiac, by Kimberly Gallagher
• Aromatherapy, by K. Keville & M. Green
• Asian American Herbalism, by Erin Wilkins
• Body into Balance, by Maria Groves (& all books)
• Earth Medicines, by Felicia Ruiz
• Herbal Formularies for Health Professionals, by J. Stansbury (series 1-5)
• Holistic Cancer Care, by Chanchal Cabrera
• Medical Herbalism, by David Hoffman
• Michael Moore, all books (western USA bioregional herbalism)
• Rosalee de la Foret, all books
• The Green Pharmacy, by James Duke
• The Healing Garden, by Juliet Blankespoor
• The Modern Herbal Dispensatory, by T. Easley & S. Horne
Plants | East Asian Herbalism
• Dan Bensky, all books (reference)
• Eric Brand, all books
• Thomas Avery Garran, all books
• The Chinese Medicinal Herb Farm, by Peg Schafer
Plants | Food as Medicine
• Pascal Bauder, all books
• Sandor Katz, all books
• The Korean Vegan, Joanne Lee Molinaro
Poetry
• e.e. cummings
• Gary Snyder
• Joy Harjo
• Mary Oliver
• Pablo Neruda
• Poetry of Presence, compiled by P. Cole-Dai & R. Wilson
• Rainer Maria Rilke
• Rumi
Psychology
• How to Change your Mind, by Michael Pollan (& all books)
• No Bad Parts, by Richard Schwartz
• The Body Keeps the Score, by Bessel van der Kolk
• Tiny Beautiful Things, by Cheryl Strayed
• Trauma and Memory, by Peter Levine
• Waking the Tiger, by Peter Levine
Women's Health
• Botanical Medicine for Women's Health, by Aviva Romm
• Hagitude, by Sharon Blackie (& all books)
• Herbal Healing for Women, by Rosemary Gladstar
• The Wild Woman's Way, by Michaela Boehm
• Women Who Run With the Wolves, by Clarissa Pinkola Estes
Yoga
• Anatomy of Hatha Yoga, by David Coulter
• Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha, by Swami S. Saraswati
• B.K.S. Iyengar, all books
• Embrace Yoga's Roots, by Susanna Barkataki
• Outdoor Adventurer’s Guide to Yoga, by J. Kilgore
• The Scientific Keys Collection, by Ray Long
• Yoga Adjustments, by Mark Stephens
• Yoga of the Subtle Body, by Tias Little
Amazing books abound. This is not a complete list, nor will it ever be. Please contact Jiling with your favorite books to savor, and visit Jiling’s events, articles, podcasts, blog, resource links, and local Ventura resources. Select books listed on Bookshop, for your viewing pleasure: