Amina Thajudeen Book Review, non-fiction, Self-Help

Aging: The Process of Aging Well and Secrets of Longevity by Alessia Cucca | Book review

Learn how to age well mentally and physically
Find out the secrets of longevity and why in the isle of Sardinia, one of the Blue Zones, there are a high numbers of centenarians.
Aging is inevitable, but how you approach life, and your potential longevity will matter. You can become a centenarian if you wish, by following the behaviours of those who have made it to one hundred or even beyond. Of course, your genetics do play a role too, about twenty percent according to the scientists. You can work with your genes and attempt to learn from
the Blue Zones to combat what may happen or give in to the inevitable.
Plenty of people have come back from cancer. Others have staved off dementia and Alzheimer’s progression, not the disease, but the quickness of the decline the disorder provides.
Follow the nine common denominators to a healthier life:
1. Move Naturally
2. Purpose
3. 80% Rule
4. Down-shift
5. Wine at 5
6. Eating More Plants
7. Loved Ones Come First
8. Belong
9. The Right Tribe
to live a longer and happier life.
This book will help you to do so.

Title: Aging: The Process of Aging Well and Secrets of Longevity

Author: Alessia Cucca

Pages: 26

My review

Aging is inevitable. Only a few people are blessed with longevity. That’s why centenarians are celebrated. Everyone is curious to know their “secrets”. The truth is there is no so-called “secrets”. There is no sure-shot way to achieve longevity. But globally, five places were identified as The Blue Zone which met National Geographic’s demographic study regarding the longest living people. We can find some common traits in their lives. The author is trying to uncover these potential reasons for their longevity, through this book.

This short book is strongly backed by the scientific research in this field. The author draws every conclusion, based on evidence-based results only. Because of this unique feature, I find this book trustworthy.

Aging is not a surface concept. But it is our skin which proves our aging process. Aging affects not only our body but also our mental health. We can slow down our physical aging to a certain extent by adopting a better lifestyle. But deterioration of mental health over time, demands our special attention. I think taking care of mental health should be a priority over others. Because it affects everything. This book was an eye-opener for me in this subject.

The best way to avoid fear is to face it courageously. All of us will face aging someday. What matters at the end is, did we age with grace or simply let it happen in its way.

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, Fantacy, Fiction, Science Fiction, supernatural, Thriller

The Barkuu: Dawn of a species by Lauren Wright | Book review

A mysterious cloud appears in space and then envelopes the planet for a day; to avoid cataclysm, humanity digs in. When they emerge, they find the air scrubbed clean, and massive metallic objects strategically placed throughout the world.

A new society forms from the ashes, will humankind survive?

Title: The Barkuu: Dawn of a species

Author: Lauren Wright

Pages: 377

My review

What makes the sci-fi thrillers exceptional in the world of literature is its height of creativity. It is an expression of ones own imagination through words. When we are reading them, we are floating inside their creativity. The Barkuu: Dawn of a species is one of its kind story, that not only keeps you at the edge of the seat all the time but also keeps you thinking about the story over and over.

Many sci-fi thrillers are written on the concept of human invasion on other planets. They are very interesting to read because we love the feeling of exploration and expanding to unknown planets. But what if the roles are reversed. What if a superior species came to Earth and started to wipe out our population in billions? This is a horrific thought even to imagine. Through this story, we can experience this fear, competition for survival, and gradual vanishing of humanity. The aliens are so powerful and advanced which leaves you only one choice-RUN. Is this the apocalypse? Will humanity can survive this unforeseen catastrophe?

Overall, the plot is an excellent creation. There are too many characters in the story. Each of them is created to play a specific part. Initially, it was too difficult for me to connect the characters with the storyline. But this will ease when the story progresses. Throughout the story, the author reminds us of the destruction we have done to this planet, our very own home. There will be a payback time. This story is a reminder for it.

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, non-fiction, Self-Help

Raising Independent Kiddos by Michele Bayer | Book review

Parenting is hard. It’s a never-ending series of particular problems that require ambiguous solutions. And the frustrating truth is that the specifics of your child’s situation aren’t in the literature. Believe me. I’ve been looking for it for two decades.

I’m a mother to four beautiful kids. When my second child was born with a disability, it took a lot of trial and error (and time hiding in the closet) before I realized the importance of holding myself back, almost sitting on my hands, so my kids could learn to think about where they had made mistakes, reflect on what they needed to change. “Let them do it themselves,” became our family mantra.

This book isn’t about the importance of one parenting style over another. It doesn’t tell you how important it is to hug your child, and it won’t help you minimize tantrums at any age. It’s about microparenting, which is when a parent tries to control every detail, no matter how small, of their child’s life. The point of this book is to help you stop microparenting and start doing something that works faster and better.

Title: Raising Independent Kiddos

Author: Michele Bayer

Pages: 139

My review

We never receive any training to become a parent. Yet most of the population will go through this challenging phase in their adult years. The best thing we can do to counteract ignorance is to learn. Knowledge can undo everything. But this is not a traditional parenting advice book. This book concentrates on one thing- microparenting.

Microparenting is same as the micromanaging. Most of the parents control every small task, every small detail in their child’s day-to-day life. This affects a child’s behavior as well as emotional development in unspeakable volumes. The author draws our attention to this most common practice of parenting through this. Most of today’s generation is affected by microparenting. The long-lasting effects of microparenting causes the development of domineering and unsatisfactory adult relationships in their later lives. We all exhibit the bits of this nature in our everyday life. Undoing this from our life, for the betterment of our children is not an easy task. However, we have to put conscious efforts for this.

The book has an elaborate introduction of microparenting and its effects, in the beginning. Later on, the author introduces a worksheet to test ourselves on the range of microparenting we already have. To minimize and gradually eliminate microparenting, first, we have to understand our child’s needs. They are empty shells. Their overall personality depends on what we try to fill them with, in their early years. Cultivating self-reliance and a sense of responsibility is not a simple task. But it is what they need to excel in their adult life.

The author supplements every step in this process with her life experiences. Her experiments and responses to the unfavorable and favorable results, teach us very practical solutions for every step. This alone makes the book a realistic guide.

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, non-fiction, Self-Help

Affirmations For Money Blueprint: How To Earn $10k Per Month With Proven Affirmations by Ian Seamus Finn| Review

Imagine WRITING FOR 10 MINUTES A DAY… and waking up with a $100, $250, $500 in your bank account just a few days later.
What if there was a way to change your life, without spending 5 years getting really good at your chosen profession…
If there was a shortcut that created a new life and new streams of income for you, would you take it… And REALIZE YOUR DREAMS now?
The shortcut I am referring to is the magic of Affirmations.
To get really good at any one thing takes approximately 10,000 hours or 5 YEARS of full time work 40 hours per week.
Affirmations allow anyone to get really good and make really big changes, and the changes start in weeks, not years.
The absolute simplest way to Create Your Dream Life.

Title: Affirmations For Money Blueprint: How To Earn $10k Per Month With Proven Affirmations

Author: Ian Seamus Finn

Pages: 99

My review

Affirmations For Money Blueprint is a perfect guide for reaching our financial goals. Money solves many problems in life and it is essential for survival. Through this guide, the author mentors us to earn $10k per month. This not an exaggeration. It is very doable. But we can only achieve this target by chiseling one most important skill in our life – sales. We all are selling something in our whole life, our skills, services, or any other products. Learning the art of sales in the right way is the secret formula for high income. This code is cracked through this book.

Communication is the key to excel in sales. For improving this skill, first, we have to set the right affirmations. But affirmations don’t work if we don’t apply the right technique. After explaining this, the author moves on to the core of this skill. One of the best chapters in this book is about the art of persuasion. The author explains the types of people and how to approach them and influence them gradually. This section includes the right arguments and tactics to use and how to confront them successfully in every situation.

Before delving into the art of money-making, the author has also dedicated a section for setting the right mindset. This part is an essential read, not only for making money, but also for our general well being. What makes this book special in the sea of self-help books is it’s easy to read content. All the techniques uncovered in the book are very pragmatic and easy to implement in our day-to-day life.

Overall, this is an all-in-one guide for self-improvement.

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, Fiction, non-fiction

Esoteric Christianity Made Simple by Con Trong Bui | Book review

For many centuries, millions of people who read the Bible consider it to be the word of God. Many readers of the Old Testament and the New Testament believe that God lives in heaven and human beings live on the planet Earth. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” Should we ask “where God had lived before he created heaven”? Had he been homeless, and that was why he had to create heaven?

In the Old Testament, we see humans were required some burnt offerings “of a sweet savor, a sacrifice made by fire,” and drink offerings. Should we ask, “was God homeless, hungry, and thirsty, and that was why he created heaven, humans, and animals, and required humans to offer burnt animals and drinks”?

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 3:13-14, “And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.”? What is that “vail” in the reading of the Old Testament? Did Paul also tell us about the New Testament when he wrote in 2 Corinthians 3:6, “Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life”? Is there any difference between “the letter” and “the spirit”? Through these verses, should we read the Old Testament and the New Testament as we read a historical book?

Title: Esoteric Christianity Made Simple

Author: Con Trong Bui

Pages: 354

My review

To reach the deepest understanding of faith not only gives a sense of salvation but also takes us to the height of faith. Esoteric Christianity Made Simple by Con Trong Bui is written in a way to create a greater understanding of the Holy Bible by eliminating literal doubts. Human beings are one of the greatest species ever walked on the earth. Only exceptional beings can dominate a planet. Although we are gifted with a creative and highly intelligent brain, when comes to the matter of the faith, we usually follow blindly. Often we neglect the logical questions raised in this subject. The answers always lie within but we never try to understand them. This book tries to bridge that gap.

I think theism and atheism are divided by a narrow gap of logical reasoning. Both ideologies have been fighting for their victory over others for ages. But what I learned by reading this book is everything can be explained logically. We have been reading the Holy Bible in a literal sense in all these years. The author has made clear in this book that the Old and New Testament are not simple historical books. We cannot read them just like other works of human beings. The scriptures were written to mean literally and symbolically at times. But they are not meant to be interpreted and understood literally. If we do, this arise questions. Jesus’s life and works are not symbols, but words about his life and works are. If we read between the lines and interpreted them correctly, everything will become simple.

The author has gone a great extend to eliminate many confusions. One such is the beliefs around “One God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”. This is the spine of Christianity. Yet many believers perceived this wrong. But if we study deeply this concept is very clearly explained in the Holy Bible beyond the scope of any doubt.

The author has done a commendable job by penning down this book. This will help a believer to gain wisdom and for a non-believer, to eliminate wide-spread doubts regarding the concepts of Christianity.

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, non-fiction

How To Improve Your Finances: In Under 1 Hour by Jarvis Brown | Book review

Do you want to thrive financially and not only survive week to week? This short and easy to digest book will cover the most important financial lessons you can implement today!. Reading ‘How To Improve Your Finances In Under 1 Hour’ will give you the knowledge and actionable behaviors to:

★Get rich and more importantly, wealthy

★Save what’s needed and choose the right investments

★Choose assets and minimize liabilities

★Produce positive cash flow to have unlimited wealth

★Start and own businesses

★Build and lead a financial team

★Build a financial empire

★Desire continued learning

★Give back, and so much more!

For those of you who are already doing well with your finances, this book is also for you. Read Chapters 1-8 to check your financial savviness. Then dive into the meat of the book, Chapters 9-15, for a mind-blowing journey to improving your finances. Also, included is a link that you can email to receive free financial tools! Explore the benefits of spending 1 hour today to change the rest of your financial future.

Title: How To Improve Your Finances: In Under 1 Hour

Author: Jarvis Brown

Pages: 46

My review

Perfect guide for financial management!

Financial freedom is one of the most sought-after dreams for many. Yet many of them couldn’t reach their targets ever in life. You may have a good income, but you may fail to build wealth. Getting rich is easy but building wealth is hard. Because rich can be poor in a day, but wealth is longlasting. What is the key to creating wealth? It is the right financial education.

Everyone should learn about their financial condition and its management regardless of your age. The early you learn this, the better your finances are. This is a systematic structured guide for this. The first half of the book is dedicated to analyze and manage our current financial situation. Creating a good financial plan is the first step towards the right management. This establishes our goal. Then the author explains how you can create a financial report card. Analyzing our income and expenditure every month is vital to reach a better understanding of our current situation.

The second half of this book talks about building your wealth by managing credits, dealing with paper assets, creating a positive cashflow and investment options. One of the best features of this book, it has an elaborate manual on building various investments. The author dedicated four chapters to explain them with accuracy. This is my best takeaway.

This is not a simple financial guide. This is a practical guide. I liked the way the author has explained all the difficult concepts using simple language which made them easy to comprehend. Overall, this was a good learning experience.

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, non-fiction, Self-Help

Embrace The Void Bravely: & Other Secular Sermons by Race Hochdorf | Book review

“While covering many of the age old existential problems faced by the non-religious, Hochdorf avoids retreading the steps of the New Atheists and presents us with a fresh, thoughtful, charming little book.” —Helen Pluckrose, editor-in-chief of Areo Magazine

“This book is teeming with beauty and hope. An inspirational message for those of us who prefer to be amazed by the limitless awe-inspiring reality around us, as opposed to the limited imaginations of ancient men.” —Yasmine Mohammed, Unveiled: How Western Liberals Empower Radical Islam

“Race’s provocative, open-hearted essays tackle the central, existential angst of our modern era: how can godless secularism give humans the meaning and morality that religion falsely provides? His answers are astonishing, challenging, revolutionary.” —Hank Pellissier, founder of Humanist Global Charity

Title: Embrace The Void Bravely: & Other Secular Sermons

Author: Race Hochdorf

Pages: 108

My review

“Embrace The Void Bravely” is a fire in the darkness. The darkness which limits our thoughts by forcing down rules and regulations. This is a tool to question religious superiority which has been the root of existential problems over the centuries. The conflicting nature of human beings is forcefully tamed by the religion. The author addresses how this system has been made us mere slaves without raising any questions.

I was so curious about the meaning of the title. The author explains this in the first chapter itself. “What is the meaning of life?” This is a popular question that often shuts our thoughts down. Over time this question become the root of spirituality and religion. There is a void which exists in our mind. The void cannot be filled or erased. Knowing that you will cease one day and everything about you will be erased over time. We are living for accomplishments, personal and professional. But nothing is everlasting, not even wealth. We are building a sandcastle on the shore side for the praise of a few passersby. It will be erased when a tide which is strong enough comes. But we do it nevertheless. We embrace this void bravely, rather than filling it. We can be infinite the moment we embrace this truth.

One of the best ideas I gained from this book is about inequality. We often discuss economic and gender inequality. But what we don’t know is, inequality exists in every social order. It exists in our house, friend circle, office, and in our society. Oppression and supremacy are the fundamental character of the human race. No matter how much we protest, this disparity will exist.

In other chapters, the author addresses issues related to romantic and other relationships. No religion addresses romantic love in their holy books. Rather they all promote celibacy. Why they all deny this fundamental human emotion? The same goes for friendships. The social and religious order has created barriers for every human emotion over time.

A very insightful read. Highly recommended.

Rating:5/5

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, Fiction, Science Fiction, Thriller

The Trial of Summary James (Longman Jones, #1) by C.E. White| Book review

Longman Jones has seen several visions of murders. The problem is that those convicted of the murders are never the killers Longman sees. When Summary James is tried and convicted for a murder he didn’t commit, Longman is determined to rescue him from the nation’s only prison.

The Trial of Summary James is a novella set within an alternative history involving a North America where the United States was never born, because the colonists lost the Revolutionary War, the British freed the slaves, and a massive migration from Africa and the Caribbean empowered Black and Native Americans to help build a nation called the Carolina Union in their image.

Title: The Trial of Summary James (Longman Jones, #1)

Author: C.E. White

Pages:

My review

The Trial of Summary James is a story set in the alternative history of the present-day United States of America. The Britishers won the American Revolutionary war partly with the help of slaves. The slaved are freed in the aftermath and they founded a state in the Carolina coast along with other migrated African and Carribeans. This black state in North America is known as Carolina Union.

Longman Jones is a former journalist who is now working as a freelancer. He has a rare gift of having visions about murders. But in all the cases, someone is wrongly accused and sentenced. He takes this upon himself and rescues the convicts. In one of such trials revolving around Summary James, he met Sonata Holmes, a barrister. She is an empath and senses Longman’s secret talent. He is quickly drawn into her and shares most of his secrets in the very first meeting. But things are getting out of control and this time it will be not easy for Longman to rescue Summary as he did before. As both of them dig deeper in this case, they encounter many dark secrets that is slowly engulfing the society.

Honestly, I had high hopes about this novella, particularly because of its setting. You can easily tell a story without crafting a unique American history. But why the author has gone this far? The answer lies within the story itself. The present-day Carolina Union is not much different from any other developed country in this world. But humanity is essentially flawed. The race for power, money, and authority has been blinded people and they are consumed by greed. It is just like a rabbit-hole. The more you get, the greedier you become.

The author has portrayed every raw emotion of people without losing its intensity. Usually, for a novella, the character development might be not up to the point. But the author has done a good job with this story. It is a gripping thriller with good characterization. He is managed to keep the suspense from beginning to the end. Even the protagonist too, falls in the web of suspicion from time to time.

Altogether, this novella certainly exceeded my hopes.

Rating:5/5

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, Comics, Fantacy, Fiction, Thriller

Clan-X : Purple Slurp (Vol. Book 11) by Raphael Jones | Book review

Clan-X is a comic line that showcases the future in an advanced utopian-style society millions of years into it. In this particular issue, Xen and Julie Coolmaster travel to planet Galaxia only to run into Sherla Maximus, who is getting ready to begin her mission of traveling to a tribal planet for a shot at diplomacy with them.

Title: Clan-X : Purple Slurp (Vol. Book 11)

Author: Raphael Jones

Pages: 15

My review

Clan-X: Purple Slurp introduces us to a utopian style, ultra-modern, technologically advanced civilization. Xen and Julie Coolmaster are in Galaxia, a free state with plenty of options for entertainment. They are trying to get into the live performance of Sole Sonic, the extraordinary singer. But this is an impossible feat for them. In an attempt to get into the show and explore other fun options, they ran into Sherla Maximus, the warrior princess. She is enjoying her time in Galaxia before going to another mission as a world messenger.-

Just like all the other books in the Clan-X series, this one also features a fun story accompanied by good illustrations. A world were aliens, humans and all other living beings co-exist in peace. This world is filled with fun. You can enjoy and explore as much as you like!

This story brings us a hint of hope. An undivided world which is thriving through technological advancement. The illustrations are so colorful and add a vibrant effect to the story.

A must-read for every comic fan!

Amina Thajudeen Book Review, Fiction, Poems, poetry, Quotes, Self-Help

One Sacred Moment (The Mystical Traveler #5) by Fawn Moran| Book review

One Sacred Moment is the fifth volume of inspirational poetry in The Mystical Traveler Series. If you’re looking for insights that deepen over time or kernels of truth you won’t forget, this is the book for you. Like the book says, “Come to the table, The one set for two. Open to the moment. You needn’t prepare. Your special guest is the Presence we share.”

“Fawn Moran has managed to distill so much wisdom into phrases that open doors that we thought were closed. Reading her words, or better still, reading them out loud, brings a resonance in the heart that remains. The distillation has clearly come from many hours of plumbing her own depths. This is not a collection of ideas—it’s a collection of Truth revealed. Try it. You might end up becoming what you were seeking.“
Mary-Margaret Moore,Spiritual teacher, workshop leader, counselor and author of the Bartholomew books

Title: One Sacred Moment (The Mystical Traveler #5)

Author: Fawn Moran

Pages: 72

My review

Poetry is the expression of deep-rooted creativity. It is the projection of one’s own heart and mind. It is the uncovered truth of our inhibitions. One Sacred Moment is a spiritual journey. The beauty of poems lies not in the words but the underlying meaning. In a sense, it expresses the raw unadulterated version of ourselves.

These inspirational poems hold pristine energy, waiting to be unleashed to our flesh and wounds. It is hard to rebuild a broken heart. But every wound will heal if the right treatment is provided. The scars will fade one day. But it is the scars that signify our existence.

Dedicating whole life to selfless service is one of the greatest sacrifice we can ever perform. By doing this we can immerse our soul to divinity and unburden ourselves from everything. It is the path to salvation. We achieve it at our own pace and through our journey. These poems are the expression of that spiritual journey. They are unique because they are not crafted but emerged from a deeper state of mind. The truth is very difficult to express, as always. It needs time and patience to put together words around the emotions encountered during ones own spiritual endeavor. They are difficult to decipher. But they will make you think. They will push you to go farther. No two experience is same.

Meaningful read. Highly recommended.

Rating: 5/5