more magnolias and more books, please

what more is there to say about magnolias? when they are in bloom, they simply steal the show.  it’s almost as if everything else halts to take in the spectacle.

since i have nothing more to say about magnolias, i will recommend two books i am reading right now: rick rubin’s the creative act: a way of being. if you like reading books bout the creative process, this one is a must read. it’s an instant classic. it may actually pop right to the top of this list of all time great books on creativity, sitting shoulder to shoulder with julia cameron’s the artist way. the two books are too different to say one is better than the other. but, i am confident, they will henceforth come to be known as the best of the best.

the other book i am reading is called your brain on art: how the arts transform us by magsamen and ross. it’s a thorough look at what we are just now learning, through breakthroughs in neuroscience, about how the arts affect us physically and mentally. it sites a lot of research and scientific literature, so if that is not your thing, then you can skip this one. the overall gist is that hard science can now demonstrate that the arts have a measurable effect on our well being, our cognitive health into old age, healing, and more.

pink magnolia blossoms