#awakening

See tagged statuses in the local bookrastinating.com community

quoted Mindfulness in Plain English by Henepola Gunaratana

Henepola Gunaratana: Mindfulness in Plain English (AudiobookFormat, 2016, Audible Studios)

With over a quarter of a million copies sold, Mindfulness in Plain English is one …

Meditating your way through the ups and downs of daily life is the whole point of vipassana. This kind of practice is extremely rigorous and demanding, but it engenders a state of mental flexibility that is beyond comparison. A meditator keeps his mind open every second. He is constantly investigating life, inspecting his own experience, viewing existence in a detached and inquisitive way. Thus, he is constantly open to truth in any form, from any source, and at any time. This is the state of mind you need for liberation.

It is said that one may attain enlightenment at any moment if the mind is kept in a state of meditative readiness. The tiniest, most ordinary perception can be the stimulus: a view of the moon, the cry of a bird, the sound of the wind in the trees. It’s not so important what is perceived as the way in which you attend to that perception. That state of open readiness is essential. It could happen to you right now if you are ready. The tactile sensation of this book in your fingers could be the cue. The sound of these words in your head might be enough. You could attain enlightenment right now, if you are ready.

— Mindfulness in Plain English by 

What a wake-up call!

#mindfulness #enlightenment #awakening #awareness #meditation #Buddhism #vipassana #perception #attention

reviewed AITA? by Cassie Alexander

Cassie Alexander, Avery Caris: AITA? (2022)

Dear Schmedit: This past weekend my fiancé (24 M) and I (23 F) were at …

Very cute and sweet

4⭐️/5

Honestly, my only complaint here is that the story is too short, so we don’t get much build-up and end up with an insta-lust/love-at-first-sight combo, which really doesn’t do justice to the vibe. I would absolutely read a sequel, or an expanded version.

I mean, who doesn’t want a Quenalith in their life?

Tags: #Awakening #DualPOV #FirstPersonPOV #HalfUnavailable #HiddenRelationship #InstaLust #LoveAtFirstSight #NonHumanMC #RomCom #SexWork

reviewed Just My Luck by Andrea Bramhall

Andrea Bramhall, Rachael Beresford: Just My Luck (AudiobookFormat, 2022, Tantor Audio)

Genna Collins works a dead end job, loves her family, her girlfriend, and her friends. …

Could have been pretty decent, if not for all the body shaming

3¾⭐️/5

When including body self-image issues into a story, there’s a fine line between presenting sympathy and actively body shaming. That line’s going to be different for every reader, based on their own life experiences. For me, this story was well over that line — I just couldn’t get past how often one MC just has body image denigration completely take over her internal narrative pages at a time. Others may find this very true to their own experiences, but for me it was too much.

Tags: #Awakening #CinnamonRollMC #ConfrontingHomophobia #DualPOV #FamilyIssues #FirstPersonPOV #FriendsToLovers #HalfUnavailable #MoneySolvesNothing #MyKidsBeforeMe #RichPoor #SexWork

reviewed When You Least Expect It by Haley Cass

Haley Cass: When You Least Expect It (Paperback, 2020, Haley Cass)

Caroline Parker knows three things to be true. First, she is going to be Boston's …

The slowest of slow burns, but well worth it.

4¾⭐️/5

The only reason this isn’t 5⭐️ is just some personal preference stuff. This is an otherwise perfect story. No notes.

Tags: #Awakening #FearOfRuiningFriendship #HalfUnavailable #MyKidsLoveYou #NuisanceEx #SharedBed #SingleParent #SinglePOV #ThirdPersonPOV #WorkplaceEthics

reviewed One Simple Refrain by Nancy Ann Healy

Nancy Ann Healy, Xe Sands: One Simple Refrain (AudiobookFormat, 2021, Bumbling Bard)

Dr. Jillian Byers only considered two careers: indie rock sensation or physician. Both dreams led …

Perfect. No notes.

CW: on-page slow decline of a parent due to dementia and other health issues. Xe Sands’ emotional narration makes this brutal.

Tags: #Awakening #BackHomeAgain #BondThroughBadTimes #FamilyIssues #FamilyIssues #JoinMyFamily #NuisanceEx #SecondChance #SingleParent #SmallTown #ThirdPersonPOV

reviewed Face It by Georgette Kaplan (Scissor Link, #2)

Georgette Kaplan, Anastasia Watley: Face It (AudiobookFormat, 2022, Tantor Audio)

In college, Elizabeth Smile shared a magical tryst with her roommate, Michelle Harlow. She had …

Too much happening at once

3½⭐️/5

tl;dr: I think the core relationships are interesting, but there’s just a lot going on in this story, and not all of it moves the relationships forward. It’s not awful, just a little scattershot.

Tags: #Awakening #BestFriendsSibling #CommitmentIssues #FakeRelationship #LoveTriangle #SinglePOV #ThirdPersonPOV