15 Minute Drawing by Erin McManness

 

This is a short yet comprehensive introduction to line drawing. It covers all you need to know in order to create your own illustrations, including the tools you’ll need, shading techniques, different layout styles and guidance on creating commonly found motifs like leaves, flowers, animals and insects. There are also sections on architecture and everyday objects. Each chapter finishes with an exercise for you to do so you can use what you have learned to create your own illustration.

The drawing style of the author is accessible and her instruction is easy to follow. If you think you can’t draw, all you need to do is follow the steps in this book and you will produce an instagram-worthy piece. There is a short section on hand lettering which teaches enough to help you to complete the prompts later on in the book but the subject is only lightly touched upon - this is a book about drawing, after all. How to draw borders and banners is also covered in an easy to follow way.

I am reviewing the ebook version but if you think you may want to complete the prompts actually in the book, you may be better off buying the hard copy because there is space within the book to do your own drawings. I recommend this book for beginner artists and for people who have always thought they can’t draw but who have a dream to be able to create their own work. Everyone can draw, some just need to be shown how. This book will do that for you.

With thanks to Netgalley and Quarto-Walter Foster for providing an advance review copy. All opinions in this review are my own.

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rooms of their Own by Alex Johnson

 

This is a really lovely book that tells us all about the preferred writing rituals of fifty well-known authors. It is the sort of book you can leave on your coffee table and pick up when you have five minutes, and become absorbed in the writing life of your favourite author. It has a nice balance of modern and traditional writers and is punctuated with fun, full-colour illustrations that bring a sense of light playfulness to the book.

This book would make a perfect gift for both writers and readers and it introduced me to several authors that I had not heard of before. It is full of interesting facts about each writer but more importantly, it made these great writers into real human beings - the portrait in Roald Dahl’s shed of his daughter who died aged seven; Colette’s habit of procrastinating and how she attempted to overcome it by being locked in a room for four hours to make her write; Emily Dickinson’s need for solitude; and I loved Margaret Mitchell’s envelopes! Many of the writers made efforts to create their own spaces in which to write. As a writer myself I felt a kinship with these authors as I realised that they struggled too, but they pushed through these struggles by ensuring they had the best conditions for them to write in. It has inspired me to take a good look at my own writing space!

I really recommend this book if you like to have a peek into the lives of other writers. There is much to be learned here. With thanks to Netgalley and Quarto-White Lion for providing an advance review copy. All opinions are my own.

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Path to Kindness by James Crews (ed.)

 

It is very hard to review an anthology of poems. There are always going to be some of the poems that don’t appeal or that we don’t connect with. As the reader we are reliant on our tastes and preferences matching up with those of the editor of the anthology. If they do not it can be hard to enjoy the volume.

Unfortunately, in this instance, this is what happened to me. The poems in this anthology are, mostly, not to my taste. I felt many of them just ended, hanging in midair. I turned the page expecting more but no. I personally like my poems to conclude, to take me somewhere. I also felt the poems were very American in subject and context, which is fine if you like that sort of thing but I don’t.

There were some poems in the anthology that I did enjoy such as 'The Summer You Learned to Swim' by Michael Simms, 'My Father’s Hands' by Zeina Azzam, 'Vain Doubts' by Julia Alvarez and 'The Raincoat' by Ada Limon. I also enjoyed the reflective pauses and the invitations for writing and reflection. The foreword by Danusha Lameris and introduction by James Crews were a lovely read and perhaps set my expectations too high for the rest of the book. 

With thanks to Netgalley and Storey Publishing for providing an advance review copy of the book. All opinions in this review are my own.

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐

Earth Magick by Lindsay Squire and Viki Lester

 

This book is about magic and things you need to know to perform it effectively. It covers witchcraft basics like spell and circle casting, then goes on to a detailed look at the four elements. The chapter on the four seasons was refreshing - instead of the usual rehashing of the Wheel of the Year, it looks at how we can work with the seasons to strengthen our magical practice.

The section on Earth magic is comprehensive but doesn’t overwhelm the reader with endless lists of correspondences. Instead, there is a look at herbs, flowers, salt, gums and resins, incense, metals and crystals, in enough depth that you feel you are sufficiently informed to be able to use them in your magic.

I enjoyed the chapter on divination as I am currently learning tarot (although the book does not mention tarot; it is too large a subject), and was particularly taken by the part on divination dice, which I shall be looking into further. The chapter on empaths was very detailed and informative and I took a lot of advice from it. There is also an in-depth section on shadow work which I have not come across before in other witchcraft books and which I found very useful.

A special mention goes to the beautiful illustrations in the book, created by Viki Lester. They are full colour and each section of the book is accompanied by an illustrated summary, which is good for people who prefer visuals over blocks of text. Each herb, flower and crystal has its own illustration and this made the book stand out for me from other similar books. It is definitely a good reason to buy a hard copy of this book rather than the ebook.

Overall, this book is an excellent reference and guide to earth magic; it is not a one size fits all book, but rather accepts that everyone practices witchcraft in their own unique way and attempts to address these differences sensitively, while providing a guidebook to follow. Lindsay Squire does this brilliantly, and I would recommend this book to all witches, both beginners and more experienced.

With thanks to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing Group - Leaping Hare for providing a review copy of this book. All opinions in this book are my own and the review is given freely.

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Wild Card by Jen Cownie & Fiona Lensvelt

This is an excellent book for those new to the tarot.  It goes through each card one by one, offering interpretations and questions to ask yourself to help unravel the meanings of each card. It is very detailed and written in easy to read language - it is not heavy or dry like some tarot books, nor is it heavy on mysticism and esoteric details. This makes it a very accessible and enjoyable book. It is a modern take on the tarot and I think that more experienced tarot readers could find something new in this book.

You are encouraged to have a go at reading the tarot in a really friendly way; it doesn’t bombard you with rules or scare you into thinking you might do it wrong. Instead, this book makes the tarot accessible by giving gentle encouragement and clear guidance. It also gives advice about reading for others and how to cope if you get stuck during a reading. This is highly recommended for all users of the tarot and is definitely a book to buy in hard copy so it can be used for reference.

With thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for providing an advance review copy. All options here are my own.

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Phosphorescence by Julia Baird

 

This is a truly wonderful book. When I first started reading it I admit I wasn’t keen - the first few chapters seemed to contain a lot of different examples referencing the same point but with little context as to how to learn life lessons from it. But I kept reading and the next chapters contained more memoir and personal experience of the author, with fewer referenced examples, and I began to enjoy it a lot more.

Fundamentally, the book is all about how to find joy in life, with a new idea in each chapter. Even though the author has suffered dark periods in her life, and she does talk about these in the book, it is an uplifting read and really makes you feel grateful for what you have, as well as feeling inspired to look at exploring the new ideas discussed in the book.

I enjoyed the chapters about beauty and I loved the letter the author wrote to her daughter - it had a few lessons in it for me too! Chapters range from enjoying poetry, to rebelling against the norm and finding our true selves, to simply having a dog. The chapter on finding your purpose resonated with me; I just wish it had been longer!

This is a very well written, easy to read, uplifting book. There are so many different ways to find joy and I suspect everyone will find at least something here that speaks to them. Highly recommended.

With thanks to Netgalley and William Collins for providing a free review copy. All opinions here are my own.

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Master Your Core by Dr Bohdanna Zazulak

 

This is an incredibly in-depth, fascinating book all about training and strengthening your core muscles. It is aimed at women although the information and exercises are also suitable for men. It is written in a very tight and succinct style - it feels like every word is there for a reason and there is no waffle. I liked the fact that the author is clearly writing for both sportspeople and people like myself who have poor strength after having children several years ago.

The first half of the book is a detailed look at the importance of core muscles in all aspects of our life and why we need to make sure they are strong. It is really interesting and I learned so much that I didn’t know before.

The second half is the exercises. They are explained in words and accompanied by pictures so you get a really clear idea of what you have to do. The reasons for doing each type of exercise are outlined in detail so you understand not just how but why you are doing them. At the end of the book the exercises are all put together into a training plan of different levels depending on if you have a weak core or already have some strength there and want to build on it.

I was very impressed with the level of detail and explanation in this book. It really is the only book you will need if you are serious about increasing your core strength. Although it is tempting to go to the exercises first, I recommend reading the first part to find out why you need to do the exercises; I think it will make you more likely to continue with them once you start!

Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐