A thoughtful introduction to reiki that provides practical suggestions for curious beginners.
Torok presents a beginner’s guide to an alternative energy-healing therapy and its potential health benefits.
The author, an integrative healthcare practitioner, takes readers on a journey through the ins and outs of reiki, framing it as a method of healing and rejuvenation—and not, she clarifies, as a kind of religious belief. Reiki, a Japanese term meaning “universal life energy,” is a “non-invasive relaxation technique,” the author says, intended to help the body, mind, and spirit align in a state of peak health. Although users of reiki often do so on a regular basis, there’s no limit to how frequently it can be practiced, the author says. Much of what Torok discusses are the practicalities of the reiki experience, such as the various options available during a session—during which the subject may either be lying down or seated, for example—and the physical sensations that one may expect, such as temperature changes, tingling, and so on. She also delves into how to find a legitimate practitioner, as reiki is not federally licensed in the United States, and she suggests questions to ask before booking a session. The author’s information comes from various sources, including cited scientific studies, books, anecdotes about clients, and Torok’s personal experiences. Readers who are already familiar with reiki are not likely to find anything new or particularly helpful in this guide, but for beginners, it offers a trove of information. Starting with thorough explanations of what reiki is, it logically segues into the hows and whys of an often misunderstood practice. Its subject matter covers the basics in largely straightforward terms, although some passages feel less well defined, as when the author notes that reiki practitioners work with the “metaphysical experience of vibrational frequency and the healing potential of unconditional love.” Still, Torok’s warm tone and straightforward delivery ultimately make for an engaging read for anyone who’s considered reiki therapy.
A thoughtful introduction to reiki that provides practical suggestions for curious beginners.Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9798988105763
Page Count: 142
Publisher: Eighth Ray
Review Posted Online: May 6, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
The lessons to draw are obvious: Smoke more dope, eat less meat. Like-minded readers will dig it.
The chef, rapper, and TV host serves up a blustery memoir with lashings of self-help.
“I’ve always had a sick confidence,” writes Bronson, ne Ariyan Arslani. The confidence, he adds, comes from numerous sources: being a New Yorker, and more specifically a New Yorker from Queens; being “short and fucking husky” and still game for a standoff on the basketball court; having strength, stamina, and seemingly no fear. All these things serve him well in the rough-and-tumble youth he describes, all stickball and steroids. Yet another confidence-builder: In the big city, you’ve got to sink or swim. “No one is just accepted—you have to fucking show that you’re able to roll,” he writes. In a narrative steeped in language that would make Lenny Bruce blush, Bronson recounts his sentimental education, schooled by immigrant Italian and Albanian family members and the mean streets, building habits good and bad. The virtue of those habits will depend on your take on modern mores. Bronson writes, for example, of “getting my dick pierced” down in the West Village, then grabbing a pizza and smoking weed. “I always smoke weed freely, always have and always will,” he writes. “I’ll just light a blunt anywhere.” Though he’s gone through the classic experiences of the latter-day stoner, flunking out and getting arrested numerous times, Bronson is a hard charger who’s not afraid to face nearly any challenge—especially, given his physique and genes, the necessity of losing weight: “If you’re husky, you’re always dieting in your mind,” he writes. Though vulgar and boastful, Bronson serves up a model that has plenty of good points, including his growing interest in nature, creativity, and the desire to “leave a legacy for everybody.”
The lessons to draw are obvious: Smoke more dope, eat less meat. Like-minded readers will dig it.Pub Date: April 20, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4197-4478-5
Page Count: 184
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: May 5, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2021
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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