You know I love getting lost in a great book and sharing my favorites with you!

Here’s a list of my top seven books from 2021, including business, personal development, a juicy novel, nutrition and even a fun business journal. An eclectic mix that I hope you enjoy!

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Check out my other book lists:

• The Comprehensive List of Acupuncture Marketing Books
• 8 Non-Acupuncture Marketing Books Every Acupuncturist Should Read
• 5 Books to Help You Move Past Your Money Blocks

Number 1: We Should All Be Millionaires by Rachel Rodgers

Get your copy here → amzn.to/3oT7NCx

My favorite book of the year! Rachel Rodgers is a wife, mother of four, attorney, and self-made millionaire. She’s a business mentor, the host of the Hello 7 podcast and helps women break through to 6- and 7-figures.

If the idea of wanting to become a millionaire makes you uncomfortable, you’re in the right place! Rodgers dives deep into how your financial stability and being a resourced human allows you to literally change the world – for example, by being able to write big fat checks to support the causes that are important to you. And this is just scratching the surface.

Create a better world for everyone by stepping into financial freedom and leave guilt behind. Rodgers’ sharp wit makes this is a great read – a very far cry from your average, dry finance book.

Number 2: Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor

Get Your Copy Here → amzn.to/3oRd3GL

Honestly, I didn’t think I’d like this book! 😬 I joined a book club late this year and this was our first read. I was prepared to be bored, but I was way off base. This turned out to be an interesting deep-dive on the importance of proper breathing technique in our lives – as individuals and to the evolutionary legacy we leave behind.

A few things stood out to me, including the idea that breathing through our mouths can actually change the shape of our faces. Nestor discusses how the shape of the jaw/mouth has changed rather abruptly in humans since the industrial revolution, contributing to sinus infections and many other conditions.

Nestor also covers the history of proper breathing technique, including how most indigenous cultures have a specific way of teaching their infants/children to breathe, and how current day research backs up what they knew to be true.

Filled with history and fascinating accounts of breathing experiments, if you enjoy personal development and wellness topics, I think you’ll like this one.

Number 3: I am These Truths: A Memoir of Identity, Justice, and Living Between Worlds by Sunny Hostin

Get Your Copy Here → amzn.to/31X7oWC

If I had to summarize this book in a single word: Inspiring. Sunny Hostin is a 3-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, attorney, New York Times bestselling author, and co-host of The View. She shares her experience as a half-Latina, half-Black woman, from growing up in poverty in the South Bronx to becoming a federal prosecutor and an award-winning journalist and daytime television star.

I don’t watch The View and so I wasn’t super familiar with Hostin before reading her first novel (number 4, below!), Summer on the Bluffs. I enjoyed that book so much that I went searching for literally anything else she’d written. I came across her memoir and it turned out I enjoyed the story of her real life, and the way she tells it, even more than her novel.

Hostin’s memoir is a reminder to show up as your best self, take a stand for what you believe in, and to challenge people’s preconceptions of who you are and what you’re capable of. It also reminded me of the beauty and power of having very high standards, both for ourselves and those we work with. Challenge moves us all towards excellence and a better world.

After reading this memoir, if you told me I could have lunch with any person alive, I would chose Sunny Hostin!!

Number 4: Summer on the Bluffs by Sunny Hostin

Get Your Copy Here → amzn.to/3yxZBec

As mentioned above, this was the first of Sunny Hostin’s books that I read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. After reading it, I knew I had to get my hands on everything she’s written. I put a hold on the book at my local library and had to wait 9 weeks! Worth it. I’ve never been to Martha’s Vineyard and this made me feel like I was there, on sandy beaches and living in elegant houses 😂

Really the best part of this book for me was the characters. They felt so real that I often found myself wondering if the book was based on a true story of one or several of the characters’ lives. The end was a surprise (always great!) and everything wrapped up in a way I’d call satisfying. Yet I actually felt disappointed that it was the end and I wouldn’t be able to travel further along the characters’ journeys with them. I hadn’t felt that way about a book in a long time. And I recently learned Hostin is writing a sequel – cannot wait!

Number 5: Eat Better by Shawn Stevenson

Get Your Copy Here → amzn.to/3IRbhgQ

Shawn Stevenson is a podcast host, author and nutritionist. What I loved most about this book is that he talks in-depth about the science behind why all calories are not created equal. He also discusses why processed food is killing us – it is simply processed differently in the body.

Many, many times while reading this book, I was reminded of TCM dietary therapy. I think Stevenson is aligned with the principles of TCM diet in many ways, whether he realizes it or not – particularly his focus on whole foods for healing, and optimal diet being an individual affair. That not every dietary recommendation is correct for every person.

This book reunited me with my love of food, nutrition, cooking, and gently experimenting with my diet to find out what makes me feel great! It’s also a good book for patients if they show an interest in the nitty-gritty details of nutrition, explaining metabolic processes with fun stories and mnemonics.

Number 6: A Beautiful Work in Progress by Mirna Valerio

Get Your Copy Here → amzn.to/3DUdaFM

Valerio’s wonderful book really did inspire me to start running again after taking nearly a year off! I stopped running during COVID due to A) snow, at first, and then B) total lack of motivation once the weather got warm again. I felt emotionally and mentally overwhelmed for the first half of this year, I have to admit. Running felt like a burden I couldn’t add to my schedule, which was unusual for me, a committed runner for about a decade.

I read this book in June and was floored by Valerio’s passion and grit. I think grit is an over-used word these days, but Valerio regularly runs ultramarathons 50-60 miles long and she once ran 8 miles on what turned out to be a broken ankle (!).

She helped me realize that the 2.5 mile run I had abandoned was totally doable AND reminded me through her stories of the joys of running – including the feeling of freedom and the strength that comes from knowing you can do hard things.

Valerio also opened my eyes to the prejudice in the running world: the expectation that runners (especially distance runners) are thin and white. As a running coach, Valerio seeks to inspire anyone to run who feels called to, regardless or color, body shape or size. 🙌

Number 7: The Solopreneur Success Journal by Sarah Morgan

Get Your Copy Here → amzn.to/3dPXitd

This journal is filled with 100 writing prompts to help you build your confidence and grow a business that’s aligned with your values for your life. Written and illustrated by Sarah Morgan (my buisness coach!) I turn to this journal whenever I’m having a doubts or difficulty showing up for my audience. Uplifting, funny, and sincerely helpful for anyone who processes their thoughts best through writing!

I recommend going through this journal for 100 days in a row (one prompt per day) to help shift your mindset about money, work, growing a business, and releasing ideas that don’t serve you (like limiting ideas about what a business “should” like like).

If you attended the Acu Biz Planathon with me last weekend (Dec. 5th) and you enjoyed the 90-Day Planner and types of questions we walked through, then this book is going to be right up your alley! Bust out your colored pens and enjoy!