Really enjoyed The Evolutionary Path. It wasn't quote what i expected -and that's a good thing because there are so many same-y reads in this genre. The author really pushed my thinking in an area I consider myself to be well-versed - bravo!

Easy to read and quick. Good for those beginning their exploration, nothing new and exciting as far as information given if you've explored empathic abilities previously.

This will be a good book for people who share this author's spiritual beliefs. I thought it would have to do with people who are empaths in the psychological way (see https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/bl... -- "The trademark of an empath is feeling and absorbing other people’s emotions and, or, physical symptoms because of their high sensitivities."). It's actually about people who believe they are empaths in a supernatural way -- reincarnated to bring special awareness to the world, communicating with spirits and rocks and so on. The author describes experiences that many of us would classify as examples of mental illness (as a child she once ran through the house screaming with a knife and harmed herself for no apparent reason, another person struggled because family members didn't believe he had a dark spirit that would sit on his chest, etc.) and argues that empaths are not mentally ill but are in harassed by dark spirits, overwhelmed by things that others can't see, and affected by the emotions of others not just in a psychological way but on a deeper level.

Quite a lot of the book is her own story and short examples of fellow empaths who had a terrible time in life before they realized what they were. She gives tips on how to take care of yourself as an empath by setting boundaries and other good commonsense advice. Much of the advice regarding self care and such is good whether you agree with her beliefs or not, but it is also pretty basic.

People who share the author's beliefs will probably find the book helpful and reassuring. Having been raised by an atheist psychologist, it was hard for me not to imagine my mother's response to it as I read. She would have had a lot to say. :)

Also, I kind of agree with the reviewer who gave the book one star for being written by a very white woman who has taken on a Native American name and calls herself a Peruvian shaman. Her biography makes her sound like a bit of a huckster: "Stephanie is the founder of Blue Star Temple and prolific creator of products and programs designed to provide tools, inspiration and understanding for those on the path of evolving consciousness." I ultimately didn't buy what she was selling, but your mileage may vary.

I read a digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

Oof.  Sometimes I get super excited about books, and different topics that I want to read about. So then I go on a reading binge, I request dozens of books from the library, check out NetGalley, ask friends. Basically do everything I can to get my hands on books. 

And sometimes this leads me to requesting books without really looking at them too hard, or picking up on things that I won't like.  For instance, let's take a look at this book. 

The Evolutionary Empath. Sounds great doesn't it? I've been reading a lot of books on healing emotions, maturing emotional responses and shadow work. So I pretty much just looked at this title and requested the book.


And then I actually read it. Very soon I started to become uncomfortable with some of the wording in the book, from there I realized the name of the author. Elizabeth Red Feather.  Huh. I thought, I wonder if this is a Native American author, if so that will make me completely comfortable with all of this talk about shamanism. And then I looked her up and realized (unless someone has done more research than me!) that she's completely white.  At which point I quit reading the book.

I am all for exploring spirituality. What I am not for is the appropriation of Native American culture. And if you take a look at this woman's website, at her story about how she changed her name... All of it just sounds like appropriation to me. This is not okay! 

Because of this I will not be reading her book, I do not recommend to anyone and I gave this book a one star rating on all websites that I review for.  This is a lesson to me to be more careful about the books I request, and I hope you all can learn from my mistake as well.

Honest and in-depth advice for reaching your full potential. This advice is presented in easy to follow language that can be broken up and applied in pieces at a time.

I picked up this book after wondering whether I myself was an empath and if there was further work I could do to hone these skills.

In picking up this book I liked that it didn't assume you had much existing knowledge about being an empath. I also appreciate that it weaves in both science and personal experiences. I found it very conversational and easy to read.

The only thing that I found a bit overwhelming as a newbie was the focus on the greater role empaths cay play in the world's consciousness. As someone who is still working to accept these qualities in myself and decide what to do with them it felt like more pressure than I am ready for right now.

A great book, if at times wordy, I found it to offer great advice on how to hone your talents as an empath and also how to protect yourself from negativity. It's a book I wish I'd read many years ago and I know that I will keep coming back to it in the future.

I highly recommend this book for empaths. Make it part of your library so you can revisit it. The author provides a great explanation of energy and energetic fields then dives into what that means for empaths. Her list of what empaths feel and experience hit home for me. I liked that she incorporated her own experiences, as well as those of other empaths, because not every empath experiences the same things. I think most empaths will be able to find something valuable in this book.

Are You An Empath?

I am often drawn to books of a more metaphysical nature. While I hadn't entirely framed them with the cloak of “empath,” I have had experiences that I knew were out of the ordinary in terms of what I could sense and feel, so I was curious about what this book held. The book is full of the author's personal experiences as an empath and experiences with her empathic clients. Early in the book, she discusses the five qualities that she has seen most often in empaths. This is quickly followed by a checklist of sorts, where you can see if you have the expressions of these traits. As I was reading along, I found myself quite often nodding, as I sometimes found myself mirrored in the examples but had never really put it all together under the umbrella term of “empath.” Once the author has helped you determine if you are on the spectrum of empathic individuals, she gives you very practical advice, insights, and exercises to help you better understand yourself as well as shield and protect your empathic openness. These exercises are very insightful into the problems, pitfalls, and strengths of someone with an empathic nature. If you feel that you are an empath, or have a curiosity about the concept, this book will give you knowledge and skills to further you on your quest.

The Evolutionary Empath
By Rev. Stephanie Red Feather
4 1/2 Stars

A little backstory on why the Empath subject interests me; I was going to a Natural Food Store to try and get a handle on my depression, anxiety, and constant stomach issues. The wonderful lady who worked there was a Godsend. I could walk in that store, she would look at me for about a minute and go grab a few things off the shelves, without me saying a word, and it was always exactly what I needed. Now, either I have no filter when it comes to facial expressions, or she was on another level than I am. After seeing her for about six months (at that point I was going in every couple of weeks just for maintenance supplements) she said, okay, I need to talk to you, are you ready for this conversation? I was all, ummm sure? She proceeded to tell me I was an Empath and a Healer. Excuse me? So, years later, I have done a lot of reading and research on the subject. However you want to word it or label it, I do believe there are some of us who are more in tune and more sensitive to people, places, and things. When I had to chance to review this eBook for NetGalley, I jumped at the chance.

This book is a great beginner book for anyone who is curious about the subject or has a feeling of “is this me?” or even if you’re more seasoned on the subject and just want another perspective. The book itself is laid out beautifully. It starts off with telling you why you’re not crazy. Thank you! Part One is history, astrology, etc. to give us a good background on Empaths. I found these chapters to be interesting and explained well, and I’m not a Science minded person, at all, so to keep my attention in these chapters was surprising to me.
Part Two gets into the nitty gritty of what it really means to be an Empath. For me personally, I take on other people’s pain, drama, sadness, excitement, etc. Give me an hour, and I’ll start talking like whoever I’m talking too. It’s annoying. These chapters break down why that happens and steps we can take to stop doing it. She talks about getting your shield up, making boundaries for yourself, how we need to get in touch with our Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine selves, becoming fully embodied, and self-care.

As a bonus, this book also comes with eight guided meditations that you can access on her website. She also gives examples and exercises to work through, which I would highly recommend doing. I did not, just because I was in a time crunch while reading this, but I fully intend to buy a hard copy of this book and work through it. She also gives credit to various colleagues and others during her research, which if you’re like me, will pull me down the rabbit hole and I will be looking up their books as well.

This is full of general knowledge and stereotypes and unoriginal thinking. It didn’t feel real or genuine but rather a book written just to put a book out.

The first part of this book was quite interesting, giving the best explanation of New Age spirituality that I've read. The connections between astronomy, physics, and spirituality were particularly interesting. The tools for coping as an empath seemed a bit too general and could probably apply to most people. Some of the second half of the book is a bit hostile to Christianity and assumes that all Christians are authoritarian and fundamentalist.

As a blossoming empath, I found this book to be extremely helpful. It gave me some insights into how to increase my empathic abilities and also how to protect myself from harmful energy. But most of all, it gave me a sense of where I fit, and all empaths fit, in the greater scheme of things. These dark times are especially hard on empaths and it was good to get a broader perspective on why my abilities are important and how to use them for the greater good.

I was immediately drawn to this book because of the title and wanting to get a better understanding of it. For years, I have tried to understand why I feel the way that I do and how I often feel others pain in a literal sense. I had been told time and time again that it was because I was an empath. It never fully made sense to me even though I knew what an empath was. This book helped to change that and offered me a better understanding of not only what it is but also the reasons I am the way that I am.

Some aspects of this were self-explanatory and others really helped me to get a better understanding of how to manage it. This is important as I often get overwhelmed by what I am feeling especially in social situations. I highly recommend this book for anyone that wants to better understand, is open-minded, and or needs to find ways of coping as an empath.

An excellent book that works well as a straight read but will benefit most readers as a manual that you keep coming back to regularly for tune-ups.

In my opinion there are more effective and engaging titles on the same subject. This book isn’t offering anything new on the subject of empaths.

The Evolutionary Empath is a interesting book and easy to read. You must have a open mind to red this.