Book Review: Calm, Learn How to Calm Your Mind
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I’m going to say it once and for all, I am a bookaholic. I buy books all the time, my nightstand has two piles of brand new books waiting for me (including the new Harry Potter
But here is the thing, I absolutely hate nonfiction. I only read speculative YA. So you might be wondering why I bought this book and why I’m doing a book of the month on Hello Peaceful Mind.
How I ended up reading Calm
When I first showed this book to my husband. He convinced me to get it, not because of its aesthetic but because he is actually into meditation and kept trying to convince me that meditation would be good for my stress.
So I got it… And it stayed on my nightstand for months, lost between copies of the Throne of Glass series
After my trip to the doctor, we both took a week off and headed to Yellowstone. Since the drive was eleven hours, I brought a huge bag of books. In my defense, I was just starting week two of antidepressants, so I had some trouble making up my mind. And guess which book ended up there! You got it, Calm.
Calm is a good beginner guide to meditation
Since I was in the mood to work on having a happier life and wanted to read something easy, I picked up Calm.
What I absolutely love about Calm is that it’s very easy to read. It’s not like your usual boring nonfiction book. For one, Calm is full of images. But the cherry on top is that it’s composed of very small essays, easy to read and supported by real life studies. Michael Acton Smith goes straight to the point without boring you with unnecessary filler.
The book is separated into eight sections that you can read in any order:
- Nature
- Sleep
- Travel
- Relationships
- Work
- Children
- Creativity
- Food
In each one of them, you will find a step by step guide for a meditation related to the subject. But there is so much more than just the meditation talk, it’s also filled with tips and tricks to get a healthier mind and happier life.
I started to meditate after reading calm
Okay… when I say I started to meditate, I don’t mean I do it every day for ten or so minutes. I’m just starting to work on my well-being, so I need to take one step at a time before completely changing my life.
What I do, is when I cannot sleep I focus on my breath and do a full body scan. Guess what? It works every time!
If you want to learn how to do a full body scan, I recommend the Calm app available on iOS and Android. They have a free seven day guided meditation where they explain step by step what you need to do to meditate. And it’s also a beautiful app!
Further Reading
- 11 Meditation Tips You Need To Know When You Start
- The Best Audiobooks That Will Change Your Life
- Everything You Need To Know To Stop Stress
- 5 Powerful Summer Reading Books To Make You Happier
- Learn How to Live a Healthy Life and Love Your Body
Over to you!
Do you have any book recommendations? Share it in the comments below.
Kate Voss
October 6, 2016 at 9:28 amGreat blog, Julie! I am obsessed with the book “The War of Art”. It’s a really easy read and even though it is targeted towards artists, it is meant to help you push forward in your life no matter what your field. You’re awesome!
Julie
October 6, 2016 at 7:59 pmFunny you say that, Donna got it for my birthday a couple of years back and this weekend I put it on my nightstand to finally read it!
And YOU’RE AWESOME!
Salt & Life Blog
October 8, 2016 at 10:13 amThis sounds so cool!! I really like your writing style too. It’s very well organized & easy to follow. Thanks for sharing this review!! Now I wanna go check it out!
Julie
October 8, 2016 at 11:59 amThank you so much! I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did!
Marika
October 8, 2016 at 11:31 amOh Julie this is so wonderful! I have struggled to keep up my meditation routine, but you are inspiring me to get back to it. I second Kate’s recommendation of The War Of Art. I’ve read it many times. The Miracle Morning by Hal Alrod is a good suggestion for motivation and self improvement too.
Julie
October 8, 2016 at 12:04 pmThank you Marika!! You should definitely check the book or the app Calm. The app is also beautiful, it has scenery videos with peaceful sounds to help you meditate.
I think you guys convinced me to finally read the War of Art! And I added the Miracle Morning to my Amazon wish list 😀
Julia
June 29, 2017 at 11:44 pmThis sounds pretty good but I’m definitely much more skeptical of non-fiction books as well, I feel like it takes a lot for me to really like a NF book. Meditation is something I bloody hated the thought of as well until someone taught me that there are a lot of different ways to meditate and I just had to find one that I liked. It took me a few months actually but now I finally enjoy meditating and don’t just roll my eyes at it.
Julia // The Sunday Mode
Julie
July 16, 2017 at 5:05 pmHi, Julia, it feels good to see that I’m not the only one having trouble starting meditation. I would love to hear what way is working for you! Would you mind to share it with us?