By Lydia Smith, Open Democracy
In fact there’s a wealth of evidence to support the idea that books can help to boost good mental health. ‘Bibliotherapy,’ a term first coined by American essayist Samuel Crothers in a 1916 issue of Atlantic Monthly, means the art of using literature and reading as a healing activity. It’s widely accepted as a way to enhance wellbeing.
By Jack DuVall, Open Democracy
Henry David Thoreau said: “Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth.” And for that we need books, newspapers and other print media that esteem the truth and with it, create new generations of readers, writers and listeners.
By Damaris Zehner, Integrity of Life
Despite the fact that I am recommending shorter school days and fewer subjects, I am convinced that reading aloud should be a big part of every class plan. Reading and writing are a fundamental part of the curriculum, and have been for many centuries, we know that; but we forget how unnatural they are.
By Bart Hawkins Kreps, An Outside Chance
The Case for the Green New Deal (by Ann Pettifor), and A Planet to Win: Why We Need a Green New Deal (by Kate Aronoff, Alyssa Battistoni, Daniel Aldana Cohen and Thea Riofrancos) each clock in at a little under 200 pages, and both books are written in accessible prose for a general audience. Surprisingly, there is remarkably little overlap in coverage and it’s well worth reading both volumes.
By John R. Platt, The Revelator
With that in mind, this month sees the publication of an amazing array of books on a wide range of environmental issues, covering everything from climate change to burning rainforests to protecting our water.
By Brian Miller, South Roane Agrarian
Here are 10 books from the past year (numbered by chronology, not preference) that meant the most to me. Books that took me out of my small world, connected me to the broader course of humanity, and made me glad to have had the experience.
By Kea Wilson, Strong Towns
But what cities would be wise to do, I think, is to recognize the powerful neighborhood-wide effect of the independent bookstore model, and soften the ground for more small businesses operating, by their nature, on small margins and small bets.
By John Michael Greer, Ecosophia
Having a list of books that everyone more or less agrees that young people should read in school doesn’t just provide a common ground of ideas that fosters communication; it doesn’t just help budding readers find really good books to read; it also teaches them how to think.
By Odessa Piper, Slow Money
These are books radiating grand evidence of intelligent life at work in our overheated world. Oh, such as the ideas that launched this journal—Woody Tasch’s integral vision as presented in Inquiries into the Nature of Slow Money.
By Brian Miller, South Roane Agrarian
Reading this weekend: a list of the titles referenced occasionally at the end of my weekly blog from 2015. I make no claim that these are worth your time.
By Adrian Ayres Fisher, Ecological Gardening
A whole range of people will find Heather Holm's book useful, from gardeners, organic farmers, and permaculturalists, to garden and landscape designers, as well as those restoring and managing natural areas.