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Isabel Losada

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Isabel Losada
Isabel Losada, British writer
Isabel Losada, British writer
BornUnited States
OccupationAuthor
NationalityAmerican and British (dual nationality)
Period1999 –
GenreNarrative non-fiction
Notable worksThe Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment;
For Tibet With Love
Website
www.isabellosada.com

Isabel Losada is a British author of narrative non-fiction. Her most recent full-length books (The Battersea Park Road to Paradise, Sensation and The Joyful Environmentalist) combine humour with a serious look at their subject matters and are true-life accounts of her own experiences.[1][2] She has one daughter and lives in Battersea, London.[3]

Books

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New Habits

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New Habits (Hodder) examines happiness among Church of England nuns. When a friend announced that she was going to become a nun (or more correctly a 'religious'), the author decided to interview ten more young women who were making the same choice to join a range of different Christian communities ranging from enclosed contemplative communities to Franciscan communities. The interviews cover the women's feelings about the vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience as well as describing other details of the daily life of a religious sister.

The book is included in the Diocesan Directors of Ordinands recommended reading list for those exploring vocation.[4]

The Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment

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The Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment (Bloomsbury) is an exploration of the subject of happiness. In it she tries out many of the 'New Age' courses available in the UK that claim to offer routes to inner peace and personal fulfilment. The book explores Insight Seminars, tai chi, a retreat in an Anglican convent, astrology, Tantric sexuality,[5] Co-Dependent's Anonymous, colonic irrigation, rebirthing-breathwork, past life regression with Roger Woolger various forms of massage including stone massage and Kahuna Hawaiian massage, neuro-linguistic programming, an anger management workshop, and a workshop on angels with William Bloom. The book was chosen as Radio 4's Book of the Week and Isabel performed it herself for the series. The book went on to become a bestseller in the UK and has been translated into 15 languages including Japanese and Russian. Oprah Radio host Mehmet Oz called the book "a fantastically cool endeavour".[6]

For Tibet, with Love. A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World

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For Tibet, with Love. A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World (Bloomsbury) explores what one person can do to make a difference, in this case to the sinicization of Tibet. The book was republished in 2005 reversing the title and subtitle so became 'A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World' (which was also the title of the US edition).[7] This second UK edition also had a different ISBN. In 2010 Bloomsbury brought out a new third edition, with a new preface under the original title.[8] In this book Isabel travels to Lhasa explores how individuals and groups can use the media to raise awareness and influence public opinion and finally travels to Dharamsala to interview the 14th Dalai Lama.

Men

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Men (Virgin / Random House)[9] is a humorous examination of the widely experienced sociological phenomenon of there being many more single and available women over the age of 40 in our cities than men and answers the question "Where are all the interesting and available men?" The book considers the many factors that have produced this discrepancy including an interview with Simon Baron-Cohen, which details the differences between the male and the female brain.

The Battersea Park Road to Paradise

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The Battersea Park Road to Paradise, (Five Adventures in Being and Doing) (Watkins) explores Feng Shui, Anthony Robbins, Vipassana, Advaita and Shamanism was published in 2011. This book begins by exploring the impact of our environment and ends with an exploration of the nature of consciousness itself through the teacher Mooji and ends with an experience of taking Ayawaska with the Ashaninka in the Amazonian Rainforest.[10]

Sensation

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Sensation (Watkins) is Losada's account of a year spent exploring the subject of sex between heterosexual couples, and in particular what makes sex into good sex in long term and loving relationships.[11] The research for the book involved participation in various courses, couple workshops, women-only weekends and attending the first international conference on Orgasmic Meditation. The book, part memoir and part manifesto in the cause for better relationships between men and women, has been praised for its honesty about a subject often shrouded in fear and shame despite the so-called sexual revolution.[12] Sensation was also chosen as the 'Non-Fiction Book of the Month' by The Bookseller magazine.

The Joyful Environmentalist

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The Joyful Environmentalist. How to Practice Without Preaching (Watkins) is Losada's collection of stories, reflections and ideas about the steps that an individual can take to help save the environment and the planet. As well as tips to reduce the use of plastic, switching to renewable energy, ethical banking, sustainable clothing choices, and gardening for biodiversity, Losada recounts her personal experiences of planting native trees in the Highlands of Scotland, playing Samba drums with Extinction Rebellion and visiting Knepp Wildland (a pioneering rewilding project). The environmental and political activist George Monbiot is quoted as saying about the book, "this is the joy we need in our lives".

A short extract from the book, which lists ten recommended trees and shrubs for the garden to attract birds, was reproduced in the Gardens Illustrated magazine.[13]

The book was awarded "Best overall sustainability book for 2022". According to the reviewers, it takes the reader on Losada's "own inspiring, and often hilarious, eco journey ... it's a genuinely enjoyable read for anyone who is feeling eco anxious".[14]

In advance of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), Losada draws on her ideas in the book to offer some "specific actions" that "fellow environmentalists" can take.[15]

Awards and nominations

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In 2019 Isabel was awarded 'Author of the Year' by Kindred Spirit magazine.[16] The magazine selected Isabel for the body of her work in the Mind Body Spirit sector and the award was secured by her popularity in a reader vote.

In 2024, she was nominated as a "climate hero" by Down to Earth readers of The Guardian newspaper.[17]

Talks and journalism

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Isabel gives comedy talks and presentations about her work, particularly at literary and arts festivals such as, for example, the Brighton Festival, The Edinburgh International Book Festival, Ways With Words (Dartington)[18] and the South Asian Literature Festival.[19] As part of the 2011 SW11 Literary Festival she was "Author in Residence", which also involved spending nine days sat in the window of a Waterstone's bookshop![3][20] She has been interviewed about her work on BBC Radio 4's Midweek, Start the Week, Woman's Hour (several times) and Excess Baggage[21] as well as for Jeremy Vine and Steve Wright on BBC Radio 2.

She writes regularly for newspapers and journals,[2][5][22] and the occasional blog.[23] A short article on the "importance of knowing nothing" was published by the prestigious Royal Society of Arts in 2011.[24]

In May 2022 she gave a talk at the Hay Festival on The Joyful Environmentalist: How to Practise Without Preaching.[25]

Tibet

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She has been a supporter of and active campaigner for the Tibetan cause for many years, and a founding member of Act for Tibet. In 2003, during the writing of the book For Tibet, with Love , she organised a stunt in Trafalgar square — a banner depicting the Dalai Lama was unfurled from the top of Nelson's Column and a pro-Tibet campaigner made a parachute jump.[26] Her list of 'top 10' books about the Dalai Lama and Tibet appeared in the Guardian.[22]

The Battersea Literature Festival

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In 2014 Isabel was invited to become the artistic director of The Battersea Literature Festival. A Festival that takes place in the first two weeks of September in various locations in Battersea which include The Battersea Arts Centre, The Battersea Power Station and local bookshops. Isabel described being given this opportunity as 'The dream job for an author between books.'

Patronage

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Isabel is the Patron of the Charity 'Centrepieces'.[27]

Bibliography

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  • New Habits: Today's Women Who Choose to Become Nuns (1999) ISBN 0-340-72238-X
  • Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment (2001) ISBN 0-7475-5318-1
  • For Tibet, with Love. A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World (2004) ISBN 0-7475-7285-2
  • A Beginner's Guide to Changing the World: For Tibet, with Love (2005) ISBN 0-7475-8118-5
  • 100 Reasons to Be Glad (2006) ISBN 1-84024-548-4
  • Men! Where the **** Are They? (2007) ISBN 978-0-7535-1276-0
  • The Battersea Park Road to Paradise (April 2011) ISBN 978-1-907486-39-5
  • Sensation (2017) ISBN 978-1786780935
  • The Joyful Environmentalist: How to Practise without Preaching (2020) ISBN 978-1786784704

References

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  1. ^ The Book Swap Interview – Isabel Losada Archived 23 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine Beat Magazine, September 2011.
  2. ^ a b Isabel Losada. From NLP to Enlightenment Archived 4 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine Rapport magazine, Issue 15, Spring 2009.
  3. ^ a b Writer goes to work in bookshop window Archived 26 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine London Evening Standard, 21 September 2011
  4. ^ A reading list for those exploring vocation Archived 16 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine Church of England, Directors of Ordinands.
  5. ^ a b Truly, slowly, deeply Guardian, 24 March 2001.
  6. ^ A Quest for Enlightenment Oprah Radio, 4 December 2008.
  7. ^ Making a Difference, Joyfully Archived 7 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine AlterNet, 6 July 2005.
  8. ^ Isabel Losada For Tibet, With Love. Archived 22 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine Bloomsbury Reading Guide.
  9. ^ Isabel Losada Men! (Where the **** are They?). Waterstones Preview.
  10. ^ Isabel Losada tells us about her new book theindiaphile, 17 November 2010.
  11. ^ Isabel Losada Who said sex has to be red hot? Guardian, 23 September 2017.
  12. ^ Costello, I. Guest Author – Isabel Losada: Sex – Let's be honest The Literary Sofa, 6 December 2017.
  13. ^ Plants for birds: Top plants to feed the birds Gardens Illustrated.
  14. ^ Denham, Jess (21 April 2022). "10 best books to help you live more sustainably". Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  15. ^ Losada, Isabel (4 November 2022). "Cop27 is here and the climate crisis is daunting but here's the key to tackling it – cheer up". Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  16. ^ "Kindred Spirit Awards". kindredspirit.co.uk. 30 August 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  17. ^ Morton, Andrew (15 February 2024). "Who's winning the renewable energy race?". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  18. ^ Way With Words Dartington
  19. ^ "DSC South Asian Literature Festival". Archived from the original on 14 April 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
  20. ^ Author in Residence Archived 28 July 2012 at archive.today Clapham-Junction.com
  21. ^ Excess Baggage BBC Radio 4
  22. ^ a b Isabel Losada's top 10 books about the Dalai Lama and Tibet Guardian, Tuesday 1 June 2004
  23. ^ Author for Sale – in Waterstone's Window Archived 30 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine Posterous Spaces.
  24. ^ Last word: The importance of knowing nothing Archived 5 December 2011 at the Wayback Machine Royal Society of Arts
  25. ^ Hay Festival (2022) Isabel Losada.
  26. ^ Protester parachutes off Nelson's Column BBC News, Friday, 9 May 2003.
  27. ^ "Isabel Losada". Centrepieces: Mental Health Arts Project. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
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Further reading

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