Two years ago I was drawn to the lovely artwork and sincere sentiment of Patti Digh’s Life Is a Verb:  37 Days to Wake Up, Be Mindful, and Live Intentionally.  I don’t think I made it more than four days, though, and put the book down.  Maybe I just wasn’t ready.  Inspired by the coming New Year, I decided to revisit Life Is a Verb, and am excited about the possible changes in store for me.

The “37 Days” mentioned in Life Is a Verb‘s subtitle is inspired by a real-life crisis in Digh’s own life.  In 2003, her step-father was diagnosed with lung cancer, and died just 37 short days later.  It prompted Digh to wonder:  what if we all had only 37 more days to live?  She began her quest to live intentionally and encourage others to do so, too.  From these endeavors came her popular blog 37 Days, and this and other books.

Life Is a Verb is not just a pithy declaration to “Carpe diem”; alongside moving stories, Digh includes exercises, writing prompts, and suggested actions.  She asks questions and provokes thought and outlines six core practices to living life to the fullest, including Say Yes, Trust Yourself, Be Generous, and more.  This book is less book and more workbook, complete with wide margins for taking notes.

If you are looking for a fresh start to the New Year and want funny, insightful, inspiring material to help you get there, Life Is a Verb should be on your list of books to read.

In addition to interacting with readers on her blog, 37 Days, Digh is also very active on Twitter; you can follower her at @pattidigh.