Reading to Heal: A Guide to the Best Alternative and Complementary Nutritional Health Books for Individuals and Reading Groups

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian Studies at
Concordia University and an avid outdoor recreationist. She is also the
author of The Mountain Is Moving: Japanese Women’s Lives, Kurlek, and
Margaret Laurence: The Long Journey Hom

Passive obedience is out. Active participation is in. These are the
watchwords of Reading to Heal. This slim handbook is largely a
compendium of short book reviews (typically one-and-one-half pages long)
of some 40 books that deal with nutritional healing strategies. A small
photo of each book’s cover is set into the text as an aid to its quick
location in bookstores.

The book has three sections: “The Need to Read”; “Healthy Book
Choices”; and “Running a Reading to Heal Group.” Author Diane
Dawber suffered from ill health until she took a hand in her own
healthcare. She now organizes reading groups for people who share her
convictions. Reading to Heal is a guide to specific books on diet,
supplements, hormones, allergies, and detoxification. Illness caused by
environmental pollution is increasingly common.

The last chapter is a step-by-step guide to organizing and conducting a
reading-to-heal group. From personal experience, Dawber offers helpful
suggestions on places and times, on those most likely to profit from
such a group, and on why two heads are better than one. The available
literature on alternative and complementary healthcare is vast.
Dawber’s guide should save time and error.