Cover Image: A Guide to Shadow Work

A Guide to Shadow Work

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Member Reviews

There are questions are open to let you explore and really answer them (if you want). A workbook to add if doing shadow work and looking into it. Each section does have an introduction to it.

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Ha delle immagini bellissime, ma purtroppo non posso dire che il contenuto sia all'altezza. L'autore affronta l'argomento della trasformazione personale attraverso l'esplorazione dell'ombra, ma manca di approfondimento, soprattutto quando si parla di traumi e si dovrebbe affrontare tutto con una figura professionale e non con un libro di shadow-work. Le immagini sono sicuramente suggestive, ma non riescono a coprire le lacune nella sostanza del libro.

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The introduction to this volume had me questioning whether this was a good choice for me. It seemed to cast negative connotations on the concept of the shadow, although it did explain Jung's ideas about it before going back into talking about the author's traumas. While I understand that shadow work can be useful for confronting trauma, I don't feel it should be reduced to that. We all have our shadow side and what I was looking for is a book on working with it from an emotionally healthy point of view.

There were some good quotes from Jung, but overall it seemed to address working through trauma rather than embracing the hidden self, so isn't what I was looking for. There were also a lot of pages for writing your own notes, which could easily be done in a separate notebook.

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This isn't your typical book in this genre, with lots of explanatory text but no real useful stuff - this one is incredibly insightful and useful, with lots of thought-provoking questions and journaling prompts to help you truly examine those parts of yourself that seem hidden.

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A Guide to Shadow Work by Stephanie Kirby is a a visually stunning beginners guide to doing the hard work of self reflection and emotional healing.
What I loved
1. All visual elements of this book from lay out to graphics and font choice are absolutely gorgeous and perfect..
2. Prompts and questions are actually fairly interesting
What could have been improved
1. I would have liked to see more examples and discussion around the way we skirt around or shallowly answer the questions presented in daily life.
2. I would have liked to see more references to and recommendations for other works especially non witch ones for improving self reflection.
Who I would recommend this book for
This Workbook will be a useful tool for those taking their first steps into the deeper world of self reflection who desire to use the lens of occultism and Jungian psychology to begin the journey.

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First, the positive comments. The design of the book is beautiful and attention-grabbing. Props to whoever was in charge of the visual aspects of this book.

As for the content, that's a different story. The author's knowledge of shadow work seems to be limited, or generic at best. If you've watched videos on the subject on TikTok or YouTube or have read a couple of articles on it, then you already know the information presented in this book. As for the prompts, they are very superficial, which contradicts the notion that you'll be using this book to dive deep into your soul/psyche/subconscious. You could Google a list of prompts and receive the same quality of questions for free.

If you want a pretty book to add to your collection or have around for friends to use, then by all means, it might be the book for you. But for meaningful shadow work? I would not recommend.

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I waa disappointed in this title overall. I was hoping for something more in-depth, but instead found it to be very elementary. Very good for those starting out on their shadow work journey, but not helpful for those who already dabble in it.

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A Guide to Shadow Work by Stephanie Kirby encourages the reader to look deep into their psyche at the parts they may not otherwise choose to acknowledge. Through a series of guided and pointed questions and exercises, the reader confront their "shadow," and works to understand how these elements can hold one back from achieving their full potential.

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I really enjoyed this book/journal. I think it’s a great introduction to shadow work and understanding your inner world. I haven’t gotten to do all of the writing prompts yet, but I’ve found them really helpful so far. I also loved that the author included some somatic exercises. I’d recommend this to anyone who is interested in learning more about the human psyche as it relates to trauma and the shadow self.

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*I received this e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Unfortunately, I found this e-book the day before it was set to be archived from NetGalley so I did not get a chance to finish it. However, the parts I were able to skim were great! Most self-help books only skim the surface but this book seem to truly provide the deep dive into oneself. With chapters dedicated to Generational Trauma, Ancestry and healing the Inner Child. The Workbook prompts allows you to keep track and journal your thoughts. This book does not look like it is meant to replace consulting with a professional psychiatrist but it is meant to allow you to start the conversation with yourself about what you went through and how it impacts your life now. Often, these conversations are the hardest to have even with years of seeing a professional.

This self-guided workbook on shadow work will allow you to touch on self-love, self-acceptance, and speak to both the dark and light forces that coexist in you. I just wish I had found it sooner so I could give a more detailed review!

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I really liked the sound of this book because id never read anything about shadow work before so I was looking forward to learning something new. I wasn't disappointed, I've learnt a great deal and it's laid out in a really accessible way. I look forward to using this workbook a lot in the future!

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I've read a few books about meditation and healing energies, but this is the first one I've found specifically on the topic of Shadow Work and I am so happy I stumbled upon it.

The book is written as a Workbook with sections to fill out, a lot of reflection and searching inward to find your answers to the prompts and questions. I can see readers going through this book again and again as they uncover their shadow and balance their consciouses.

I really liked the section about Generational Trauma, Ancestry and healing the Inner Child.

The book itself is lovely to look at, the purple is soothing and the sections for reflection have plenty of space to write or draw. There are resources included at the end of the book for further guidance which is really nice.

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This book has a lot of great ideas. The prompts are helpful as a way to focus and meditate on your shadow self. I found the trauma section helpful in unlocking my shadow self. Thank you for the ARC.
*This is a voluntary review

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A Guide to Shadow Work is not only an absolutely stunningly designed book, but also a well laid out journey into your shadow side. The workbook focuses on answering questions and past decisions and finding solutions to reoccurring issues. Again the design work and layout of this book is amazing. Kudos to the design team! It really makes this volume stand out from all the others.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Great introductory work on the practice of shadow work! Great for the metaphysical section, will definitely be getting a copy for our growing collection.

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This is exactly what it says it is: a workbook. It may not go into a lot of detail of shadow work, because it expects you to with all the questions it asks. It has different themes and has some awesome questions. I found it intriguing, calming, and I enjoyed the layout. This is a great tool for getting to the root of your authenticity, your shadows, and uncovering some of what holds you back. I appreciate Netgalley, the author, and the publisher to allow me to read and review. It's a tool I recommend you add to your personal development arsenal.

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A really interesting book with some really useful tips. It was great to read through but will also be very useful to refer back to when putting the theories into place.

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I think this book really missed the mark, unfortunately. There were some good prompts throughout but without the material to go with the prompts I feel it’s not really “shadow work”.

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The premise of this book is very interesting and what caught my attention. I think "shadow work" is a strong buzzword that will lure the reader in and make them want to pick up this self-help book.

However, the spell was broken from the very first page. This book contains a lot of different prompts and questions to dive deeper into that "unknown" or "unacknowledged" part of your self and that is a very good idea. However, the author only uses buzzwords without any background in psychology, if not for a brief mention of Carl Jung in her introduction. The questions could lead the reader to give shallow answers that satisfy their ego and what they know, which completely defeats the purpose of the so-called "shadow work". But because this book does not explain why you need to ask yourself these questions and especially HOW TO INTERPRET THEM, it falls flat and will push the reader to gaslight themselves into believing they did some tremendous work on themselves without actually digging deep into their psyche.

I think this book comes from a good-hearted intention but the author turns her own practice and her own experience into a life lesson "fit for all" without even being vulnerable enough to share the struggles that can happen with shadow work. Her good intentions cannot replace the help of a MEDICAL and/or HOLISTIC professional when diving deeper into questions of the "Soul", that big word thrown around in this book like it is an easy concept to grasp.

Overall, a lot of buzzwords are used, coming from both spiritual and yoga practice, mixed with astrology, a tiny bit of very shallow psychology over it to compensate for the fact that this workbook lacks true depth. I also would like to note that as a yoga teacher, I was particularly thrown off by the use of sentences like "yogic traditions say", or yoga poses added to a section on this book, which completely misrepresents what yoga which is not esoteric (and shadow work is), but science-based.

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This is a really engaging and helpful book to read, especially if you’re new to shadow work or feel you need ‘something’ to help you work through things you struggle with or to help figure out how your mind deals with things.

I am a big journal writer and I loved that this book actively encourages writing things down and working through feelings surrounding certain triggers.

Thank you NetGalley & the publishers for the chance to read and review this book.

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