Review: Tea Bliss

I read this book for my 999 Challenge, as I have a tea category. Tea isn't just my favorite beverage, it's become a passion. I love trying new blends and harvests, expanding my tea palette. Thus, I'm excited to read more about tea. I began my tea reading with Theresa Cheung's Tea Bliss: Infuse Your Life with Health, Wisdom and Contentment. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. Possibly the most important thing to state for potential readers of this book is that this is not a book about tea. Rather, it's a self-help book that's masquerading as a tea book. There's precious little information about tea in here, but more on that later. The basic premise of the book is that ideas and principles of tea can be used to affect positive change in your life. Each of these principles comprises a chapter (or "nourishing blend" to use the author's lexicon) and is linked with a similar principle that one can apply to one's life. Some of them sort of work, for example, not all tea should be brewed with boiling water is paired with the idea that living in a constant state of stress is toxic. Other of the principles, however, seem to bear little resemblance to the tea principle in question. Make sure each cup you serve has the same taste and temperature doesn't seem to bear a strong resemblance to seeking balance in life. And that particular point leads to one of the larger issues in the book. There are a wealth of inaccuracies and misinformation concerning tea in these pages. In a number of cases the author states things that are wrong or unresearched. Making sure each cup of tea has the same flavor every time? Most frequent drinkers of green and white teas are well aware that these teas stand up to, and indeed are expected, to go through multiple steepings (particularly if brewing with a gaiwan), and the entire point of the multiple steepings is that the flavors change slightly with each. A number of other examples are found in the health benefits of tea chapter. The author refers to rooibos as "the only naturally caffeine-free black tea." Sorry, but no. Rooibos is an entirely different plant. It does not come from the Camiellia Sinesis plant; it is not black tea. Or what about "lemon tea," which the author describes as "mainly sugar with tea solids." Ummmmm, does she mean Nestea? Seriously? In a book about making and enjoying tea? She refers to it as energizing, in a chapter on tea and health no less. At this point I've started to wonder how much of the issue is bad writing, and how much is lack of knowledge. I suspect there's some of both. The author's bio indicates that she has written other self-help books, but there's not much I can praise on the self-help side either. Most of the suggestions are basic, standard, self-help filler (the challenges and disappointments give life texture, seek balance, etc. etc. etc.) In sum, the tea theme is never well-wedded to the self-help content of this book, making it seem contrived at best. The research, factual, and writing problems only add to the more fundamental problems. The one positive thing I can say about this book is that the pictures are beautiful, but beyond that, there is little to recommend here.

Theresa Cheung, Tea Bliss: Infuse Your Life with Health, Wisdom, and Contentment (Corgi, 2007) ISBN: 157324211X

Cross-posted to the 999 Challenge Blog

Review: The Insomniac's Best Friend

Being an insomnia sufferer, I've been intrigued by this book ever since I saw it in the UK. It was the cover, and its clever drawing, that first attracted me. Having now acquired and read a copy of the book (mostly in the wee hours of the morning when I can't sleep) I have to say I've been disappointed. Brown has set out to write a book that tries to be many things: a memoir, a catalog of remedies, a discussion of theories of sleeplessness. As so often happens in these cases, the book doesn't really manage to do any of the above tremendously well. It provides a little of all of the above, but most remain unsatisfying. Brown herself is an insomnia sufferer, and thus, she speaks from experience. She is not afraid to give her personal evaluation of products and methods, noting what worked for her and what did not, but she is also always careful to note that what worked for her is not necessarily going to be the best for others. That said, it is important to recognize that Brown's approach is decidedly pro-complementary therapies, and she has little use for sleeping pills. Introducing the reader to new complementary therapies that he or she might not have yet considered is likely the book's most significant contribution, and Brown has taken great care to provide a comprehensive appendix of remedies, specialists, and resources for insomniacs. What I found most difficult to accept about this book, however, is that one of Brown's main contentions is that one of the best things an insomniac can do is to release their anxiety about not sleeping. To a point, that is certainly correct. It's hard to sleep when one is anxious about not sleeping. But Brown seems to take this notion a step further, suggesting that if people give themselves permission to not try to live up to an 8 hours/night standard, this will help alleviate much of their mental anguish. But insomniacs aren't upset or anxious about not sleeping because they're not living up to a stated ideal. Rather, people know just how miserable they'll be the next day if they don't get a certain amount of sleep, and giving oneself permission to not sleep is not going to help that. In sum, people who are looking for new alternative and non-Western approaches to dealing with insomnia will find a good catalogue of remedies here. Those who want to consider drug therapies along with complementary treatments may be better served elsewhere.

Lynda Brown, The Insomniac's Best Friend (Thorsons, 2004) ISBN: 0007163851