Manifest Your Destiny

March 31, 1997
Dyer is a well-known speaker and author of many self-help books, including Your Sacred Self. Here, he departs from the traditional format of the genre by deliberately omitting the affirmations, quotes and personal stories readers have come to expect. Instead, he provides a refreshingly simple, straightforward how-to manual. Beginning with the basic self-identification of the reader as a spiritual being, an "infinite, limitless, immortal, universal and eternal energy temporarily residing in a body," Dyer moves through nine principles for attracting anything the reader desires. The first five principles deal with changing attitudes and beliefs about what is possible and impossible, trusting the divine energy that flows through everything and everyone in the world and seeing oneself as an inseparable part of that energy. The remaining principles teach specific techniques for meditating, detaching from expected outcomes and responding with gratitude and generosity to successful manifestations. Cautioning that people don't always know what will truly bring them the most happiness, Dyer advises concentration on manifesting "the inner feelings" desired rather than on whatever readers think will provide those feelings. When people learn to open themselves up to receiving, Dyer teaches, everything good will come to them, because they are already one with their wish and with the divine energy of the universe. The proof is in the pudding, of course, and learning from a professional chef always helps, but spiritual cooks who insist on doing it themselves should benefit from Dyer's thoughtful, well-articulated directions.

December 1, 1996
The author of the phenomenal Your Erroneous Zones explains how you can use meditation to get what you want. Zen Buddhists, take note.

May 1, 1997
Self-actualization guru Dyer has a talent for appropriating age-old spiritual concepts and marketing them with buzzwords like "spiritual manifestation." Here he outlines nine principles for manifesting spiritual destiny, which appears to be synonymous with getting everything we want. According to Dyer, if we can just get out of our ego's reach, the power of the universe would act in us to bring us everything we truly desire. By putting worthy spiritual ideals to the service of personal power, Dyer subverts the meaning of unconditional love, seeing it as the means to an end rather than a worthy end in itself. Buy only where Dyer's books are in demand. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 12/96.]--Bernadette McGrath, Vancouver P.L., B.C.

March 1, 1997
Best-selling author Dyer says this title is different from any other he's written, but his 1992 book, "Real Magic," was also about "using your invisible self to influence physical reality." Here, the message is muddled. On one hand, he tells readers that inner peace should be their greatest goal, but, on the other hand, he offers techniques designed to attain more worldly objectives, like a new job. There's lots about meditating and chanting, and he supplies distillations from "A Course in Miracles," but ultimately, the volume veers close to the low end of New Age gobbledygook. Still, Dyer's name and a marketing push are likely to generate requests. Order this book as demand dictates, but for a better, more down-to-earth approach to the subject of attaining one's goals through creative manifestation, tell readers to check out Sonia Choquette's" Your Heart's Desire," reviewed on p.1071. ((Reviewed March 1, 1997))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1997, American Library Association.)