Mind, Body & Spirit

This is easily one of the most important Buddhist books of 2015. Thinley Norbu Rinpoche, a world renowned Tibetan Buddhism Lama revels in his humanity while simultaneously exemplifying the dharmic way of life. His storytelling is akin to listening to your grandpa tell the tales that weave the tapestry of his life.

As a yoga teacher, I’m super discerning when it comes to books about yoga in American culture. Here is a truly diverse, honest, and intelligent collection of essays considering how yoga relates to body image and beauty standards, unafraid to ask challenging questions about race, gender, and the commercialization of what is, at its heart, a spiritual AND physical discipline.  

The term psychopath instantly brings to mind thoughts of Hannibal Lector or Ted Bundy, but in reality, psychopaths live among us and look like our neighbors and CEOs. In this fascinating book, Ronson examines the world of psychopaths and those who study them. Ronson is such a charming, witty writer that what could have been a terrifying book is instead funny, engaging, impossible to put down, and filled with fodder for discussion. In fact, if you read this, you’ll be desperate to talk to about it, making it perfect for book groups. I absolutely loved this book.

Montross is a poet and a psychiatrist, and it is that fascinating junction between literature and medicine that makes it such a searing, important book. Montross illuminates those we most want to turn away from, patients for whom medicine does not have a clear answer. I couldn't put this book down, and when I finished I was grateful for the experience.

The evolution of Liza Long’s blog post about Adam Lanza and the mental illness crisis, this book seeks to educate, address misconceptions, abolish stigma, and above all humanize the great fear of mental illness. Long proposes, through meticulous research and personal experience, how society may begin to address a widespread problem without convenient solutions. 

Surgeon and author (The Checklist Manifesto) Atul Gawande confronts one of the toughest problems facing doctors and patients: what to do when medicine reaches its limits. When it comes to the inescapable realities of aging and dying, medicine often runs counter to what it should, and medical training does not prepare doctors for the death of their patients. Gawande became determined to change medicine so that the medical world not confuse living with dying. For fans of Oliver Sacks, this is a powerfully moving and informative book.

Using examples from around the world and from the first written scriptures to yesterday’s newspaper, Armstrong demonstrates how the same impulses that lead religious movements to promote peace with compassion have also been used—one could say commandeered—to justify annihilating neighbors, enforcing social inequalities, and punishing dissenters. I found more food for thought about the complicated relationship between religion and violence in this book than I did in four years of history and comparative religion lectures.

I read an advanced reading copy of this having just heard hard news; without knowing it I had retreated some, turned my face to the wall. And then came Anne Lamott with Small Victories, written in that honest, slightly pushy way she has, telling her own story of the “too much” of things, and suddenly I had company. And not just any company, but real, faithful, slightly grumpy company, and it was like salve, her reminders about crawling out, facing the world, and trusting again.

Zealot is a must-read for anyone with a pragmatic interest in Jesus Christ. Reza Aslan intrepidly and clearly elucidates the radical nature of Jesus’ sociopolitical influence, which shakes up the established ideas about the person he was, and gives us a fresh perspective on both Christ and Christianity.

On Immunity is literary nonfiction at its best, an all-encompassing exploration of a socially divisive subject, intelligent, contemplative, beautifully written, and utterly mind blowing. Using mythology, philosophy, literature, medical histories, and cultural constructs, Biss teases apart every thread that makes up the fabric of the immunization controversy and presents us with an honest and important look at why we stand where we do and how we can thoughtfully move forward together.