[.ca] The Simple Living Guide (ISBN 0553067966)

From Amazon.com:
Janet Luhrs provides a thoughtful and practical guide to simplifying our busy lives. Luhrs stresses that living simply is not about being frugal, living on a tight budget, or a modest income. Rather, living simply is being fully aware of what you're doing and why you're doing it. Luhrs demonstrates through many real-life examples how you can redesign your life and learn to savor every moment.

Simple ideas lead to simple living:
We dream of a good life, one that is not cluttered by mounting stress, by deadlines, by worries about money. We dream of a more fulfilling way to live. Unfortunately simple living is an art that one probably never truly achieves, but I think journey is far more important than the goal itself. "The Simple Living Guide" is a guide to beginning your own journey to a simpler and more fulfilling life. While the book can be read as a whole, cover to cover, it seems to read best when broken down into its individual chapters. The reader is invited to begin their process of simplification where and when they are ready leaving other area for later. I began my journey three years ago dealing with the clutter that I, and so many other Americans, gather around ourselves for no other reason than it is expected to have more than we need. Cleaning and exorcising my home of useless kitchen appliances, clothes I could no longer wear, and knick knacks pretending to be works of art was a painful process but one made easier by Ms. Luhrs book. Cleaning out my home led me to simplify my budget, and then to simplify my leisure activities, and most recently to simplify my career. Ms. Luhrs presents us with the fact that simplifying is a process. One cannot just simplify one area of life and call it good. Every time you change and improve one area it radiates and effects every other area of your life. For example once you start simplifying your budget to save money it leads you to question how you spend your time, where you live, your quality of life, even the birthday gifts you give. The entire book is written in a warm, personal manner, often if feels as if one is having a conversation with the author rather than reading text. The advice presented is not only practical advice but philosophic or spiritual advice as well. Inner simplicity means thinking some thoughts that are occasionally rather deep. The fact that there is philosophy presented in this book is not a detraction from the book but a distinct positive. There are books about saving money and managing time out there but Ms. Luhrs asks us to pause a moment and ask just what we want from more money or more time. Life changes are always easier when you have an idea of where you are going and why you are making the journey in the first place "The Simple Living Guide" invites you to take your time, to think about your life and to grow while you simplify. What could be more simple?

Truly An Excellent Sourcebook:
This is by far the best and most comprehensive guide I've read on the subject of simple living. If you're looking for something more in a deeply religious, Zen or philosophical vein, you should go elsewhere. But what I appreciated most about Luhrs' approach was her constant reminder that BALANCE is the key for most of us. She avoids the preachy tone many authors fall into on this subject, and tends to stay on the practical plane. The resources listed at the end of each chapter are worth the price of the book alone, where I found many titles I didn't know about. So if you want to go deeper, go lighter, or in another direction, you'll certainly find something in the resource guides. Very nicely written, too.

Simply the best simple living book:
This is really the best book if you are trying to simplify your life. I have read many others, and although they all have good points, this book gets to the heart of the matter. There are also many examples of how to make your life more simple and enjoy it more. If you are looking to join the simple living movement, start with this book first. Then, if you are hooked get some others, they will just help you with what you have already learned. I wish everyone would read this book, we may just have a better world if they did. It is nice to have the focus off of consumer spending and keeping up with the latest trends, and putting the focus back on the simple pleasures in life.

Life altering info contain within these pages:
Simply put, this book, along with The Complete Tightwad Gazette, have changed my life radically. The best part of this book is the constant reassurance that each journey is different from others and that it is up to me to figure out what is best for my life. So many other "simple" books made me feel that if I didn't do it exactly their way, I was a failure at simple living. I especially enjoyed reading about others and their journeys; this made the whole subject more real for me.

Penny pinchers delight:
Yes, you will find lots of money saving ideas here, but this book and the lifestyle it promotes, will appeal mainly to miserly types. You needn't beat yourself up for every penny you spend, nor should you reduce your entire life to a mad hunt for additional money saving ideas. If you spend as much time planning a sensible investment approach, you will enjoy life more and come out ahead in the end. And you just might become rich--and guilt free!