8 Books I think you need to read in 2019

I put my hands up and I admit I used to hate reading books. I refused to even read Pride and Prejudice during my high school years and was adamant that reading was not something I could ever do. Until I got married. I have to admit, that once I got married and moved thousands of kilometres across the world, reading books became an important part of 'Me Time'.

I had just moved from everything I know to a country I knew somewhat of and if I'm being honest, the change was hard. I got into reading books that would talk to me; spiritually. I also have to thank myself for building my business with Arbonne as it taught me how important personal development was. Due to that, reading has become a vital part of my day. We all read something; books, magazines, articles, social media posts.. You know the jist. So while I dove into the world of books, I managed to build myself quite a collection. If you deep dive into my Amazon order history, 80% of it, is books.

I thought the best way to tell people about the amazing books I've read is to do a blog post. 8 Books. 8 Books outs of the many I've read is what I'm going to recommend that you guys read. These books spoke to me in times of need or managed to transport me into a world where everything felt right. If you love reading books, you'll know how truely magical the words on the pages can be.

The Book Of Joy - His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu

This book is so much more than a self help book. So for all of you out there who read the book title and thought NEXT- hold your horses. The Book of Joy is deeply spiritual, but not in the sense of Religion. The Book points out that there are Eight pillars to Joy; Perspective, Humility, Humour, Acceptance, Forgiveness, Gratitude, Compassion and Generosity. Both The Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu suggested the many ways in which we can find joy in different situations in our life. How we can find happiness in the simplest of acts.

Once you read this book, I swear you'll instantly feel uplifted. At a time when life got hard, this book spoke volumes to me. It's so easy to understand so you dont have to worry about anecdotes or crazy words. If you're trying to understand and love yourself more this year, and you want to release any of the negativity that you have, then I truely recommend reading this.

The Art of Happiness by HH Dalai Lama and Howard C Cutler

The art of Happiness is another book by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. This book outlines some of the basics of Buddhism. It teaches us that all humans want and deserve happiness. True happiness that is fulfilling and calm. The Dalai Lama talks of the various methods of obtaining true happiness through E.G. Enlightment, good health and friendships. When talking about desires that us humans have in life, he defines the difference between good and bad. Which is something that I personally found eye opening. But with all this being said, the main focus on how to achieve happiness is with 'Controlling your state of mind'.

The Art Of Happiness essentially gives us the basic steps to training our minds to be happier and to baisically press delete on the things that can destroy our peace of mind. This book is certainly great to read if you want to understand the basics of what Buddhism teaches. I personally enjoyed reading this book because of how simple it was to understand and how simple the methods were that the Dalai Lama described. I've gained a new interest to understand more about Buddhism and its teachings. If you're stuck and you feel like you just need a bump to help you realise the happiness in little things, then do buy this book.

How to be a Bawse- Lilly Singh

This book is a great one! In this, Lilly Singh has taken all the lessons that she has learnt up until now in life and poured her heart out into this book. She talks about everything- bad breakups, how to be the best version of yourself etc.. The reason I think I loved reading this book so much was because it was written from true experience. Lilly Singh, an ordinary girl from Canada, has been through ups and downs throughout her life (highly documented on her youtube channel). Due to that, it felt so relatable; it was so easy for me to connect with what she was saying. She doesn't sugar coat her success and she teaches you how you have to work hard and hustle because there is no shortcut or elevator to success. You can't press 14 and reach the top floor.

She talks about everything in her book and thats why I've included into this post. No matter what you are going through, you will find a chapter that is going to speak VOLUMES to you. You'll realise that you are not the only soul who's having issues and that there are others out there. The world isn't actually a lonely place.

Milk and Honey - Rupi Kaur

Second shoutout to an Indian woman who's dominating the world. Rupi Kaur has wrote Milk and Honey which is a collection of poems about survival. Whether its from abuse, love, loss, violence and femininity. If you're into Poetry then you must buy this. I never used to be because I could never understand the deep meaning behind it. The collection of poems have been split into four parts. The Hurting, The Loving, The Breaking and The Healing.

There is so much raw emotion in the pages of the book and some are easy to understand and some aren't so easy. But one thing for sure is that you can appreciate the way she writes. Some poems speak directly to your heart and that makes this book worthwile. Even if you aren't such a big poetry fan, its a book that you should invest in. It's empowering to read.

The Goddess Revolution- Mel Wells

I bought this book because on the back of it, it said "If you've ever struggled with diets, food, body image or weight then this book is for you". I have struggled with everything. So I thought if I purchased this book, it should be able to make me have a different relationship between food and myself. The fact Mel points out that you are not the only one in this world who maybe struggling, is such a sigh of relief. The chapters in this book are short and its easy to read. That's so important for me. I should be able to read a book without spending hours trying to decode it. Mel really makes you think about the times we've wasted debating on things that really dont matter and all the fun stuff we missed out because we have a difficult relationship with food.

Mel reminds you that food is not your worst enemy and that you should'nt waste time worrying about something that only exists in your mind. Now saying this, she doesnt advocate binging 24/7; but she helps you realise how you can have a healthy relationship with food. Even if you are fine, I genuinely believe that every woman should read this book at least once because it's so fantastic!

The Alchemist - Paulo Coehlo

Now, let me start off with by saying this book is totally worth its hype. The Alchemist is a fable about a shephard boy called Santiago who desperately wants to travel the world in search for treasure. On his journey, it leads him to riches that were so much better than he could ever imagine. Paulo Coehlo, through this story emphasises the importance of following your dreams and listening to your heart. The story telling was beautiful and the fact I couldn't put the book down proves how amazing it is.

I wont tell you more because to understand the true beauty of this book - you're going to have to read it. The lessons you learn along the way are profound and Paulo Coehlo leaves a big impression on you. Infact, I ended up purchasing most of his collection straight after finishing this book.

The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari- Robin Sharma

Robin Sharma won me over with his fable of The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari. This book follows a fictional story of a legal advisor who is struggling at living his life. Professionally he was amazing but personally he couldn't build the happy family life he was after. So after coming across a man of wisdom, he packs his bags and goes to India in search of peace and happiness.

Purely to read the experiences that the legal advisor goes on is a reason to read this book because there is so much to learn. The questions of what is our purpose in life and what is the best way to live it are raised in this book. Robin Sharma writes this fable so brilliantly that much alike the Alchemist, I was unable to put down the book. I wont ruin the story so head over to your nearest bookshop or go to Amazon and buy this asap.

A New Model- Ashley Graham

This woman broke barriers down with a force. She is such an inspiration and to read her journey was incredible. Ashley was super honest, spoke from her heart and was practical about her journey into becoming the success that she is today and how she fell in love with herself. I've mentioned before that I've struggled with body image and this book made me feel so in love with myself and made me accept myself as the beautiful woman that I am. That's the power of reading another woman's road to acceptance and love. She paved her path into an industry where someone like her would never have been accepted. She showed how beautiful women can be no matter what size we are.

If there are any books that you've read that you would like me to review then inbox me or send me an email. I hope you enjoyed reading this.

Besos

x

#books #fables #poems #selfhelp