Believers in the unconscious mind’s power may appreciate this refresher of familiar concepts.
An easy-to-read manual for turning thoughts and desires into tangible results.
Moog takes readers on a journey through the metaphysical principles of consciousness and how to use consciousness to catalyze change. The work claims that as breath can be trained, so can the mind, which can be harnessed to realize tangible goals. This is done through three basic steps: visualize, believe, and release. Visualizing involves imagining a goal in simple terms, since, as he believes, the more complex your scenarios, the less likely they’ll be realized via these methods. Believing means shedding yourself of any negativity related to your manifestation dreams. Releasing involves letting go of any and all reaction to outside circumstances. Moog walks readers through these processes with kindness and patience while admitting that manifestation does not happen instantaneously (and for good reason): “It is both a curse and a blessing that our thoughts do not manifest instantly. It is a blessing because, let’s face it, your life would be a disaster on top of a train wreck if every thought you ever had was manifested the moment it was expressed. It is also a curse, however, because there is enough of a delay that we become unaware that we are the directors of our life.” While there are some references to God, this is not an overtly religious text. Similar to Rhonda Byrne’s 2006 bestseller, The Secret, this book is geared toward those who already have a propensity to believe in mystical thinking. However, it’s possible that skeptical readers may find some nuggets of value within. Although Moog doesn’t necessarily bring anything new to what is popularly known as the Law of Attraction—admitting outright that the concept is “nothing new or novel”—his straightforward, comforting writing style and short, bite-sized sections certainly make it palatable. A questions-and-answers section at the end of the book also helps clarify some of the more complicated concepts.
Believers in the unconscious mind’s power may appreciate this refresher of familiar concepts.Pub Date: Sept. 29, 2019
ISBN: 979-8218028565
Page Count: 172
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A conversational, pleasurable look into McConaughey’s life and thought.
All right, all right, all right: The affable, laconic actor delivers a combination of memoir and self-help book.
“This is an approach book,” writes McConaughey, adding that it contains “philosophies that can be objectively understood, and if you choose, subjectively adopted, by either changing your reality, or changing how you see it. This is a playbook, based on adventures in my life.” Some of those philosophies come in the form of apothegms: “When you can design your own weather, blow in the breeze”; “Simplify, focus, conserve to liberate.” Others come in the form of sometimes rambling stories that never take the shortest route from point A to point B, as when he recounts a dream-spurred, challenging visit to the Malian musician Ali Farka Touré, who offered a significant lesson in how disagreement can be expressed politely and without rancor. Fans of McConaughey will enjoy his memories—which line up squarely with other accounts in Melissa Maerz’s recent oral history, Alright, Alright, Alright—of his debut in Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, to which he contributed not just that signature phrase, but also a kind of too-cool-for-school hipness that dissolves a bit upon realizing that he’s an older guy on the prowl for teenage girls. McConaughey’s prep to settle into the role of Wooderson involved inhabiting the mind of a dude who digs cars, rock ’n’ roll, and “chicks,” and he ran with it, reminding readers that the film originally had only three scripted scenes for his character. The lesson: “Do one thing well, then another. Once, then once more.” It’s clear that the author is a thoughtful man, even an intellectual of sorts, though without the earnestness of Ethan Hawke or James Franco. Though some of the sentiments are greeting card–ish, this book is entertaining and full of good lessons.
A conversational, pleasurable look into McConaughey’s life and thought.Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-13913-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.
The late actor offers a gentle guide for living with more purpose, love, and joy.
Mixing poetry, prescriptive challenges, and elements of memoir, Heche (1969-2022) delivers a narrative that is more encouraging workbook than life story. The author wants to share what she has discovered over the course of a life filled with abuse, advocacy, and uncanny turning points. Her greatest discovery? Love. “Open yourself up to love and transform kindness from a feeling you extend to those around you to actions that you perform for them,” she writes. “Only by caring can we open ourselves up to the universe, and only by opening up to the universe can we fully experience all the wonders that it holds, the greatest of which is love.” Throughout the occasionally overwrought text, Heche is heavy on the concept of care. She wants us to experience joy as she does, and she provides a road map for how to get there. Instead of slinking away from Hollywood and the ridicule that she endured there, Heche found the good and hung on, with Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford starring as particularly shining knights in her story. Some readers may dismiss this material as vapid Hollywood stuff, but Heche’s perspective is an empathetic blend of Buddhism (minimize suffering), dialectical behavioral therapy (tolerating distress), Christianity (do unto others), and pre-Socratic philosophy (sufficient reason). “You’re not out to change the whole world, but to increase the levels of love and kindness in the world, drop by drop,” she writes. “Over time, these actions wear away the coldness, hate, and indifference around us as surely as water slowly wearing away stone.” Readers grieving her loss will take solace knowing that she lived her love-filled life on her own terms. Heche’s business and podcast partner, Heather Duffy, writes the epilogue, closing the book on a life well lived.
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.Pub Date: Jan. 24, 2023
ISBN: 9781627783316
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Viva Editions
Review Posted Online: Feb. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
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