Nif's List of Five Six Books That Changed Her Life Over the Last Four Years

Real Food: What to Eat and Why by Nina Planck (Bloomsbury, $15.99)
Led me to eliminate processed food from my diet, which in turn rid me of my migraines.

The Anatomy of Peace: Resolving the Heart of Conflict by the Arbinger Institute (Berrett-Koehler Publications, $16.95)
Taught me to recognize whether my heart is at war or at peace. When my heart is at peace, I see others as people and not obstacles, and I am better able to resolve conflict.

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan (Penguin, $16.00)
Led me to find ethically raised sources for milk, meat, eggs and cheese.

The Queen of Fats: Why Omega-3s Were Removed from the Western Diet and What We Can Do to Replace Them by Susan Allport (University of California Press, $19.95)
Taught me WHY pastured and grass-fed animal products are more healthful. Lots of fun science-techy-geeky stuff!

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, by Barbara Kingsolver (HarperCollins, $15.99)
Led me to believe that I too could make deliciously seasonal local food the majority of my diet. I soon learned that eating locally and seasonally is awfully easy around here!

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen, by Christopher McDougall, (Random House, $24.95; due out in paperback August 2010)
Reintroduced me to the forgotten joys of being barefoot. After years of injuring myself, I threw away my overly-supportive shoes, and I learned to trust my feet again.

April 2010, Jennifer Woodfin