Reviewer’s Bookwatch: April 2022
Carolyn Wilhelm’s Bookshelf

I didn’t think I needed any more finding joy books, so started reading thinking it would be the same old. The author suggested writing, drawing, painting, or other activities to help process the book. Not just read it through? Well, it seems I changed my mind soon after beginning to read. This is not a “preachy” text as Oelklaus explains how her thoughts helped her to find peace. She discusses being “in love” as opposed to trying to fix other people. She explains how she stopped being a fixer of other people and says it is freeing to her to mind her own business.

Yes, some of the short writing pieces with questions at the end did seem quite easy. Some seemed to be great for writing group prompts, some seemed good for a reading group discussion warm-up, or even useful for art class. I think counselors might refer to some chapters for finding discussion topics. One of her ideas to solve feeling overwhelmed is explained in terms of her practical and step-by-step system. All in a very short chapter, which others could try although it is explained in terms of her own life. Her lesson from a ceiling fan recently happened to me after I found a telescoping and bending duster online, bought it, and was able to dust our ceiling fans. The vignettes are relatable. She asks:

“When have you felt as if you were being held hostage and your world was narrowing? How did you work your way out of it?”

A wardrobe can support the life you truly want to live, according to Oelklaus. She tells about buying three pieces of clothing and donating four. No piling all the clothes you own in one room, just thinking about the life you want.

She also discusses a “God box.” Any nagging thoughts can be put in such a box until you can see it clearly for what is really is about.

With poetry, stories from real life, and questions, this book offers a chance for a new view of life. Highly recommend.

+3

Kaleidoscope: An Asian Journey with Colors

978-1-61599-034-4

$8.95

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Product Details

UPC: 978-1-61599-034-4

Brand: Loving Healing Press

About the Author

Sweta Srivastava Vikram is a multi-genre writer and marketing professional living in
New York City. She is the author of Because All Is Not Lost from Modern History Press
and the co-author of Whispering Woes of Ganges & Zambezi (Cyberwit 2010). Her
work has appeared in six countries across three continents. Sweta has held recent artist
residencies and workshops in Portugal, Ireland, and several within USA. She is a graduate of Columbia University.



"In this innovative series, Sweta Srivastava Vikram re-appropriates
color. Cultures and mythologies collide along the way, and the result
is a chapbook that feels like a quest. In the end, the colors are a map
to identity. The child's pink tonsils or the bride's red sari are not
symbols, but rather mile markers. Like Vikram's poems, they lead
toward understanding"

--Erica Wright, Senior Poetry Editor, Guernica



About the Chapbook

The book delves into the implication and philosophy of colors from
a Hindu woman's point of view, from birth until death. The color she
adorns herself with almost depicts the story of her life. Expressed
through different poetic and verbal forms, each color in the book
has its own tone and is specific to different age groups.



Learn more at www.SwetaVikram.com



From the World Voices Series at Modern History Press www.ModernHistoryPress.com

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Simple Serenity: Finding Joy in Your Life
Nancy Oelklaus
http://nancyoelklaus.com
Loving Healing Press
https://www.lhpress.com
9781615996636, $16.95 Paperback, $28.95 Hardcover, $4.95 Kindle, 168p

Carolyn Wilhelm, Reviewer
Wise Owl Factory LLC

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Read the whole review at Midwest Book Review