A book's magic may reside in its physical form

"Let's reverse the trend against books: Build a home library, however small. Buy books. Support real libraries, not information centers." 
— Thomas Moore @thomasmooreSoul tweet 16 October 2012

The blog Defying Obsolete quotes Thomas Moore in its post "Digital Apparitions" and then shows why e-books are dissatisfying. It shares Moore's description:

 "There are several books on my shelves that I love to see there for their sheer company, although I have no intention of ever reading them. In some cases, I have several editions of a book, not because of variations in translation but because of different bindings and typographies. A book is a book, and in these times in particular, when information is available in many different formats, especially on computers, it may be important to remember that a book is more than its text. It has a presence, and in that presence lies it's magic."
— Thomas Moore, The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life 

The blogger avers, "Technology is fine, but I can't help but notice that the digital age threatens everything I enjoy. Books and the things related to them (e.g., libraries) are at the top of this list, but it's other stuff too. Objects like typewriters and letters teeter on the verge of extinction, as do more intangible, quality of life kind of things, such as
community, solitude, and so on."

Learning may lead to a more vibrant and active life

Writer Diana Raab blogs "The Spiritual Practice of Learning" that mentions Thomas Moore's recent column in Spirituality and Health, "The Spiritual Practice of Study". Raab recounts that when she is asked about why she is pursuing a doctorate in psychology given that she is almost 60 years old: "My answer is simple. I love learning. I don’t attend temple. I don’t attend church, but I do meditate frequently and my meditations always remind me about my joy for learning and books. I have always been that way and actually most of us do not change that much as we age, but our strengths and weaknesses might just become more apparent."

Raab describes ways to achieve focus and to identify emotional styles and strengths that may contribute to learning. She includes, "Moore admits, and I certainly agree that he would love to see more people relish in the joy of study and learning. The mere act of learning not only makes us more interesting people, but it might expose us to new opportunities that lead a more active and vibrant life."

Honour your personal skills, strengths, talents

Jan Adrian, creator of Healing Journeys and the Cancer as a Turning Point: From Surviving to Thriving conference, blogs about three books that help people to take care of themselves. She writes:

"I’ve been reading Jonathan Ellerby’s book, Inspiration Deficit Disorder, and am aware of the similarity between his message and that of Larry LeShan in Cancer as a Turning Point. They are also similar to Thomas Moore’s message in Care of the Soul. Jonathan talks about the Essential Self or Essence the same way Thomas Moore talks about the Soul.

Jonathan says our tendencies and passions come from this Essence. Once any aspect of your life has been cut off from your essence, then you have also lost your natural connection to energy and vitality in that part of your life. Your greatest joy and vitality lie in honoring what makes you unique. A life disconnected from the Essential Self is one doomed to stress, unhappiness, and poor health.

Larry LeShan, in his research with 'terminal' cancer patients, found that when they rediscovered what made them excited to get up in the morning and lived from their passion, half of them went into long-term remission. In Jonathan’s words, they were honoring what made them unique and expressing what came from their Essence. In Thomas Moore’s words, they were nurturing their souls."