29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life

This is the kind of book I'll keep close by for those days I need a lift to my spirit and a reminder to approach life with more gratitude. I found myself pinching the corners of certain pages so I can easily return to those words that helped me discover something about myself. Cami's courage to share the intimate details of her journey with MS is powerful, eye opening and a generous gift. But, you don't need to be struggling with a chronic disease to appreciate her words. The concept of giving to find out what we have to offer in this world is good medicine for anyone.

I read Cami Walker's 29 Gifts in two sittings because it was hard to put down. Cami writes with stark and compelling honesty that grabbed me from the very first page. Her story is real and grounded yet deeply inspirational. While in the depths of despair as her life is crumbling from the effects of MS, a very wise woman, Mbali, gives Cami a simple but profound prescription to give away 29 gifts in 29 days. This is the story of how that prescription changed her life and inspired her to share it with others, growing into a world wide giving movement. Cami is a gifted writer with a beautiful message. I have already passed my copy of her book on to a friend.

29 gifts is an amazing book. Writer Cami Walker writes with raw vulnerability, power, inspiration, humor and integrity. This book is about how giving changed Cami's life as well as influencing thousands of people. I cannot recommend this book enough to anyone. If you want to be reminded of the good the world, read this book. If you want to be reminded of miracles in the world, read this book. If you want to know that abundance is in this world, read this book. If you are in a tough place and need inspiration, read this book. If you want to learn how to create new perspective in your life, read this book. And if you just want to feel the humanity in the world, read this book. Thank you Cami for writing this book.

I just received this book yesterday, and while I didn't read it all in one sitting, I thought about it for the whole day until I could come home and pick it up again. In a way, reading this book is like having a best friend trusting you with her deepest, darkest secrets, and you feel honored to be there for her. Cami Walker writes with poignant honesty about her diagnosis with MS, her recurring addictions and depression, and the stress that chronic illness places on marriage. And yet, most amazingly, this book is uplifting! While each chapter title focuses on the gift given that day, the writing style is more memoir and flows seamlessly between "past" (before diagnosis) and present day. There are references to spiritual leaders and healing messages, but they are subtle and "real", not over the top as too often found in books of similiar genres. The title ("29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life") gives insight into only a small portion of what this book is about -the reminder that gratitude can start in the smallest of places. It is the act of giving, not the gift received, that makes the world a better place. This is not a how to book, it is not a book about unrealistic expectations or what you will get in return, except that I already feel like i have been given a gift, and look forward to passing this book on to others.

This is an amazing first book / memior, inviting you in to share Cami Walker's ride back to recovery after receiving a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and subsequent tailspin into anxiety, depression and addiction. Cami teaches us, through the help of her teachers, and searingly honest prose, to give consciously, without resentment, from our abundant selves: to be bigger that we think we are. Her book takes us through each day of her 29 day giving journey and the wonderful change in her mind set, as she stops focusing all her mental energy on her diagnosis, and starts to open up to others through simple, mindful activities. As she does so, the world starts to unfold and give back, buoying her back to better health, restored relationship, and a new path. I didn't put this book down until I reached the 29th day of Cami Walker's journey of giving: a great effort! Thank you for sharing, Cami.