Bookstuff: Resource Preferences

I'm such a reader! So, yeah ~~ I wrote a list of my favorites!

My first sober books were:
(once I could again focus enough to read, that is)
Living Sober
Alcoholics Anonymous (the Big Book)
The Tao Of Pooh
The Road Less Traveled
The Greatest Miracle In The World
And whatever assortment of novels....
Not necessarily in that order....

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The book list:

THE SHORT VERSION:
Alcoholic's Anonymous, Third Edition (AA World Services)
Living Sober: Some Methods AA Members Have Used For Not Drinking (AA Wld Services)
Drinking: A Love Story (Caroline Knapp)
Adult Children Of Alcoholics (Janet Geringer-Woititz)
The Intimacy Struggle (previously titled Struggle For Intimacy) (Janet Geringer-Woititz)
Language Of Letting Go (Melody Beattie)
Journey To The Heart (Melody Beattie)
Miracles (Stuart Wilde)
Living In The Light (Shakti Gawain with Laurel King)
The Greatest Miracle In The World (Og Mandino)
What's Drunk, Mama? (for children) (Al-Anon World Service)
Days Of Healing, Days Of Joy (Ernie Larsen & Carol Larsen Hegarty)
The Joy Of Imperfection (Enid Howarth & Jan Tras)
The Road Less Travelled (M. Scott Peck)
The Tao Of Pooh (Benjamin Hoff)
Each Day A New Beginning (for women) (Hazelden)
Touchstones (for men) (Hazelden)
How To Forgive When You Don't Know How (Jacqui Bishop & Mary Grunte)
How To Survive The Loss Of A Love (Melba Cosgrove, Harold Bloomfield, Peter McWilliams)
The Artists's Way (Julia Cameron)
The Laws Of Sprit (Dan Millman)
Wouldn't Take Nothing For My Journey Now (Maya Angelou)
The Paradigm Conspiracy (Denise Breton & Christopher Largent)

THE LONGER VERSION (IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER):
(I left out "The" at the beginning of titles)

Adult Children of Alcoholics (Janet Geringer Woititz, Ed.D.) This now-deceased author, professor, and counselor in the field of alcoholism has written profoundly yet simply about what happens to children growing up in homes where there is parental alcoholism, what happens to them as adults, and how to break the cycle. (c1983, c1990)
Alateen -- A Day At A Time (Al-Anon Family Groups Headquarters, Inc.): written in a daily format, it also has an extensive index of topics -- it's the personal sharings of anoymous Alateen members struggling with the difficulties and pain as well as the joy, strength, and hope of recovery from being affected by someone else's alcoholism. (c1983)
Alcoholic's Anonymous, Third Edition (AA World Services, Inc.):� the basic text of AA recovery, also known as The Big Book ~~ basic how-to-stay-sober info as AA sees it, plus stories of how people got sober: what it was like for them, how they got here, and what it's like now (c1976)
Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path To Higher Creativity (Julia Cameron): Daily writing, artist dates with yourself, a fun series of exercises & lessons revolving around reclaiming lost aspects of yourself -- recovering a sense of safety, a sense of personal power, a sense of integrity,a sense of abundance, a sense of autonomy, a sense of faith..... How to unblock your inate sense of creativity and inner freedom! The Introduction tells where she came from, and what it's like now.... She's a writer/director who teaches creativity workshops; The Artist's Way is a creativity workshop in a book! (c1992)
Days Of Healing, Days Of Joy (Earnie Larsen & Carol Larson Hegarty): Daily meditations for adult children of alcoholics -- has a topic index in the back of the book. Reminders of how to live my new life emotionally & spiritually sober, as I continue living physically sober. Concrete things-to-do in order to regain/keep balance & serenity in my life, no matter what others are or are not doing. (c1987)
Don't Sweat The Small Stuff....and it's all small stuff: Simple Ways to Keep The Little Things From Taking Over Your Life (Richard Carlson, PhD): Poignant & frequently humorous essays about personal boundaries "stuff" that keeps me from feeling/acting like an inappropriate 48-year-old-center-of-the-universe-toddler, reminding me of the value of being happy over being "right", of becoming more patient, & living in the here-and-now just the way it is as opposed to the way I think it "should" be, and of the benefits of not interrupting others or or presuming to finish their sentences even when I "know" what they're going to say (& I'm proven "right")..... (c1997)
Drinking: A Love Story (Caroline Knapp): it's this journalist/writer's story and more -- a description of the physiological, psychological, and spiritual aspects of alcoholism, and 12-step recovery, are inter-woven with her own personal experience. I found it to be extremely well written! Been there, done that.... (c1996)
Each Day A New Beginning (Hazelden): A daily meditation book for sober,recovering women. Quotes by women accompanied by a meditation and an affirmation.... Can be used as a daily reading, or by topics such as acceptance, anger, action, change, envy, letting go, lonliness, recovery, shame..... Topic Index at the back. My copy is heavily high-lighted! (The men's version is called Touchstones.) (c1982, c1991, c1996)
52 Things You Can Do To Raise Your Self-Esteem (Jerry Minchinton): Short reminders on how to stop calling yourself names, on how perfect does perfect need to be, on not comparing my insides to other peoples' outsides, on saying "no" to guilt.... (c1994)
Greatest Miracle In The World (Og Mandino): A "little" story that packs a whallop; about an executive whose life is changed by the "chance" encounter with Simon, the rag-picker. And if God, as we understand him, were to talk to modern humanity , it would most like be done in an office memo, hence "The God Memorandum" chapter. In 1984, I had no idea that I was the greatest miracle in the world! Some days, I still don't. So I haul out this much-read book yet once again & remind myself that I, and each one of us, is indeed the greatest miracle in the world. (c1975)
How To Forgive When You Don't Know How (Jacqui Bishop M.S. & Mary Grunte R.N.): An incredible little book that spells out how & why to forgive the unforgiveable, that describes & dispels 13 myths about what forgiveness is and is not, and some pratical things to do to help yourself heal. Best one I've ever found so far.... And I've needed it! (c1993)
How To Survive The Loss Of A Love (Melba Colgrove PhD, Harold H. Bloomfield MD, & Peter McWilliams):� Written by a psychologist, a psychiatrist, and a poet, this book's semi-subtitle says it all: "58 things to be done when there's nothing to be done", the newer version makes the same claim with 91 things.... I loved that there WAS something I could do after all, even though I still had the loss and I hurt badly. Obvious as well as not-so-obvious losses are defined. Then come the ways to survive, then ways to heal. Sometimes just reading the pages and identifying with them and knowing that I wasn't going to "die" made an intolerable loss a bit more bearable. (c1976, c1992, c1993)
Intimacy Struggle -- revised & expanded version of Struggle For Intimacy /c1985 (Janet Gerringer Woititz): Revised for all adults, not just for adult children of alcoholics..... Who do we attract in relationship, and to whom are we attracted?� What messages, beliefs, fears, misunderstandings, and myths are behind our choices?� What's a healthy relationship, anyway.... and some guidelines for creating one. If I could only have one relationship book on my shelf, this would be it. (c1993)
Journey To The Heart: Daily Meditations On The Path To Freeing Your Soul (Melody Beattie): is the sequel to Language Of Letting Go. I call Language of Letting Go the book that helps me build my emotional-sobriety foundation, and Journey to the Heart the book the book that helps me maintain my emotional health. (c1996)
Joy Of Imperfection (Enid Howarth & Jan Tras): Imperfection being good for me? Not what I grew up with!!! Yet it's what I've been re-framing for some 15 years of sober living now.... Focuses on self-acceptance instead of obsessive self-improvement.... Each chapter addresses/"exposes" a cultural myth, then states the truth, then explores what it used to be like when we were children and what it's like now as adults, and includes a "fairy tale" adaptation that is frequently hilarious in it's blatant extremes & obviousness.... The chapters end with a goal, "stretch-yourself" suggestions, and affirmations. Wonderfully literary and witty! (c1996)
Language Of Letting Go: Daily Meditations for Codependents (Melody Beattie): this author in the field of codependency & effects of alcoholism has taken parts of her previous books (Codependent No More and Beyond Codependency) & created this daily format, topic-oriented (great index!) book of practical ideas for what can be done to maintain one's emotional, spiritual, and mental health no matter what other people's behavior; it covers acceptance, problem-solving, feelings, relationships, self-esteem, and lots more. (c1990)
Laws Of Spirit: Simple, Powerful Truths for Making Life Work (Dan Millman): an "allegorical journey" that exemplifies the many Universal Laws/Truths in story -- the law of balance, the law of choices, the law of integrity, the law of action -- just to name a few. Acceptance is in there, though not necessarily named as such..... (c1995)
Life Happens: A Teenager's Guide To Friends, Failure, Sexuality, Love, Rejection, Addiction, Peer Pressure, Families, Loss, Depression, Change, and Other Challenges of Living (Kathy McCoy):� In addition to all the life issues mentioned in the subtitle, it also includes what to do when a teen lives with an alcoholic parent. It's incredibly comprehensive and readable without over-simplification. Compact chapters keep the book from overwhelming at least this reader! Basic coping skills for these various aspects of teen life are presented, with an emphasis on self-esteem and dealing with one's feelings. Wish I'd had this book when I was a teen! Surprisingly, I found it useful as a recovering adult -- for "stuff" I didn't get back then, and can use now. (c1996)
Living In The Light: A Guide to Personal and Planetary Transformation (Shakti Gawain, with Laurel King): Living in the light, in possiblities, as opposed to the darkness,fear, & limitations I grew up in.... This is where I learned about the world and other people as mirrors from whom I could learn, about trusting my intuition, about what my feelings were telling me, about tyrant & rebel, about victim & rescuer, about relationship as spiritual path, about money as energy..... a very powerful book.... (c1986)
Living Sober: Some Methods AA Members Have Used For Not Drinking (AA world Services. Inc.): 31 specific "things-to-do" to not drink, in short paragraphs -- great for early sobriety when anything else is just "too long"! (c1975)
Mean Soup, (Betsy Everitt): Mom helps a young boy direct & dissipate his anger appropriately -- great drawings! Makes me laugh!� For ages 4-8 years. (c1992)
Miracles (Stuart Wilde):� It's a little book with a lot of basic metaphysical information: understanding universal law, one's purpose in life, the nature of energy, and personal empowerment..... It's the book that taught me the world is much bigger and more "user-friendly" than I had any clue. (c1983)
Paradigm Conspiracy: How Our Systems Of Government, Church, School, and Culture Violate Our Human Potential (Denise Breton & Christopher Largent): For me, this book continues what When Society Becomes An Addict (Anne Wilson Schaef) began. Soul loss, addictions, control/power-over, micro recovery without macro recovery, denial.... blame society's problems on the individual and heaven forbid don't look at the Systems or the Beliefs & Assumptions in/by which the individuals were raised!� This book "hit" me emotionally just as hard as did the AA Big Book when I first read it. I could not just read this book -- I studied it. It "kicked my butt". I felt so incredibly validated by this book. It upset me as well as exhilarated me, and reminded me of why I don't much like being out in the world anymore, and gave me huge amounts of growth work. The first line, "Recovery: it's not just for 'addicts' anymore", joins to other famous lines with which I am familiar: "I am born." (David Copperfield by Charles Dickens) and "Life is difficult." (The Road Less Travelled by M. Scott Peck). A vision of the kind of world I would love to live in, and it's here in small pockets, nowhere near mainstream.... a vision of what the world could look like according to the 12 Steps of AA and the Iroquois 12 Cycles of Truth.... Page 36 says:� "A big piece of what we're doing in this book is exploring how the wisdom and experience gained from personal recovery applies to the paradigm shift we face in our social systems." What a book! (c1996)
Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values, and Spiritual Growth (M. Scott Peck):� Ah, yes, the famous first line: "Life is difficult."� The rest of the paragraph then describes why understanding & accepting that truth makes it a moot point. I have thus far read and reread the first two sections of this book, on discipline and love, and over all the years, never touched the last two sections, on religion and spirituality -- got that topic covered elsewhere so far.... The first two parts cover instant vs delayed gratification, problem solving, responsibility, dependency, what love is & what love is not, the various levels of listening & attention, the risk of commitment..... One of my favorite reference books..... (c1978)
611 Ways To Boost Your Self-Esteem (Bryan Robinson & Jamey McCullers): Read and take in a few of these and try to stay depressed or in despair! Literally, 611 "one-liners" to change the "I-am-going-to-hurt-you-again" garbage-voice-in-my-head directives back into the "oh-yes-I-remember-how-to-be-kind-to-myself" messages of emotional recovery. No, it doesn't change the externals in your life, yet regaining internal perspective makes them not hurt so much! More acceptance "stuff"...... (c1994)
Tao Of Pooh (Benjamin Hoff): Taoism according to Winnie-the-Pooh.... There is so much "program" in this book! Chapter 5, "The Pooh Way", is Pooh's version of AA's step 3 as well as the slogan Let Go Let God -- absolutely incredible!!! Chapter 6, "Bisy Backson", is all about Easy Does It. And funny! Very readable even if you haven't read A.A. Milne's children's books Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. If you have read them, then you get an additional level of enjoyment :) (c1982)
Touchstones (Hazelden):� A daily meditation book for sober, recovering men. Quotes by men accompanied by a meditation and an affirmation.... Can be used as a daily as well as by topics such as acceptance, action, anger, beauty, change, recovery..... topics similar to the womens' version..... Topic Index at the back. I liked the women's version so well that I decided to see what the men's version had to say.... lots! (The women's version is called Each Day A New Beginning.) (c1982, c1991, c1996)
What's Drunk, Mama? (Al-Anon Family Groups, Inc.): a small girl asks the question, through which alcoholism (in this case, the dad is the active alcoholic) is explained to young children using the 12-step point of view. For ages 4-7. (latest printing c1988)
Wouldn't Take Nothing For My Journey Now (Maya Angelou):� From the author of I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings and many others, this world-renowned author reminds me that it took all of my personal history to get me to the place in my life that I am today, and to have changed any of it would have put me in a different place, and damn it was hard back then, yet it's worth it now, and I'm glad to be who I am! (c1993)