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THE UPTOWN LOCAL

One of our recommended books is The Uptown Local by Cory Leadbeater

A brilliant debut memoir about a young writer—struggling with depression, family issues, and addiction—and his life-changing decade working for Joan Didion

As an aspiring novelist in his early twenties, Cory Leadbeater was presented with an opportunity to work for a well-known writer whose identity was kept confidential. Since the tumultuous days of childhood, Cory had sought refuge from the rougher parts of life in the pages of books. Suddenly, he found himself the personal assistant to a titan of literature: Joan Didion.

In the nine years that followed, Cory shared Joan’s rarefied world, transformed not only by her blazing intellect but by her generous friendship and mentorship.

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GENTLE

From an expert on simplicity and minimalism, a collection of 30 practices to overcome chronic overwhelm, cultivate self-compassion, and find permission to do less-perfect for readers of Rest is Resistance and Wintering.

Being Gentle is about being grounded in self-compassion and a fierce commitment to less–becoming the Gentle You isn’t about taking the easy road. Organized into three parts–Rest, Less, and Rise–Courtney Carver’s Gentle provides simple challenges and practices that will help readers radically and gently shift their pace, headspace, and heart.

Becoming the Gentle You is a practice of real self-care that,

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AMERICAN MOTHER

With National Book Award–winning author Colum McCann, Diane Foley courageously returns to the story of her son, American journalist James Foley, who went abroad and never came home.

In late 2021, Diane Foley sat at a table across from Alexanda Kotey, a member of the ISIS group known as “the Beatles,” who pled guilty to the kidnapping, torture, and murder of her son James Foley seven years before. She asked the legendary writer Colum McCann to be there.

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THE WAITING GAME

One of our recommended books is The Waiting Game by Nicola Clark

A colorful and authoritative narrative history of the often-overlooked–yet hugely influential–figures of the Tudor court: the ladies-in-waiting.

Every Tudor Queen had ladies-in-waiting. They were her confidantes and her chaperones. Only the Queen’s ladies had the right to enter her most private chambers, spending hours helping her to get dressed and undressed, caring for her clothes and jewels, listening to her secrets. But they also held a unique power. A quiet word behind the scenes, an appropriately timed gift, a well-negotiated marriage alliance were all forms of political agency wielded expertly by women.

The Waiting Game explores the daily lives of ladies-in-waiting,

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GOOD NATURE

One of our recommended books is Good Nature by Kathy Willis

A ground-breaking investigation into newly discovered evidence showing that remarkable things happen to our bodies and our minds when our senses connect with the natural world.

We all take for granted the idea that being in nature makes us feel better. But if you were a skeptical scientist–or indeed any kind of skeptic–who wanted hard scientific evidence for this idea, where would you look? And how would that evidence be gathered?

It wasn’t until Dr. Kathy Willis was asked to contribute to an international project looking for the societal benefits we gain from plants that she stumbled across a study that radically changed the way she saw the natural world.

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UNLEASHED

One of our recommended books is Unleashed by Amber Swenor

Calling all visionary entrepreneurs and rebel-spirited changemakers!

It’s time to break the chains, step away from the “shoulds,” and let the REAL you out to play!

Claiming your rockstar identity and embracing your authenticity is the key that will unlock everything you desire in your life and work-and Amber Swenor, founder of Soul Seed and frontwoman in the band Morningstar, is here to show you how to do it in total alignment with your soul.

With humor, heart, and razor-sharp insight, Amber dissects the patterns and norms that keep so many of us locked in fear,

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