JOYBeing
Ann Van Eron, PhD & Gila Ancel Seritcioglu, MA
Open View Press (2025)
ISBN: 978-0997513615
Reviewed by Lindsay DeRollo for Reader Views (11/2025)
JOYBeing: Connecting With Your Essence and the Rhythm of Life to Thrive and Inspire by Ann Van Eron and Gila Ancel Seritcioglu is an inspiring and insightful guide for readers to learn what joy truly means and how to find it. Ann and Gila define joy (or “JOYBeing”) as a conscious connection to the inner vitality within us, which is the energy that is present throughout the flow of everyday life, not just in the milestone moments. They offer readers four steps to cultivate joy: awareness, intention, choice, and practice. Each chapter concludes with simple but powerful tools that help the reader notice their thought patterns and shift them gently toward a more present and positive place.
The authors explain how joy is a real, accessible resource inside all of us. In a world filled with constant distraction, stress, and division, the authors remind us that joy is a subtle but powerful, renewable experience that is always available if we know how to connect with it.
Through a creative garden metaphor (a refreshing visual!), they show us how joy grows when we intentionally nourish it, leading to new experiences and connections. We’re weeding out our old, negative beliefs and self-doubt. In addition to this, the authors’ own cross-continental friendship is a healthy example of learning how to cultivate and nurture joy in real life, including during difficult seasons or trying times.
The authors also explain how emotions themselves don’t typically last very long, yet the negative words and importance we attach to them can make negativity linger. I can relate to this part a lot! It can be easy to get caught up in our emotions and put a lot of our energy into our worries and frustrations, leading to negative thought patterns that repeat themselves. By becoming aware of this and treating your inner critic (and inner child, which is a heartwarming concept!) with gentleness and compassion, joy becomes easier to obtain automatically. It becomes a habit that will stick with you for life.
Visually stunning, full of wisdom, and grounded in lived experience, this book is not merely inspirational — it is a usable tool. JOYBeing is a surprisingly simple, accessible, and heartfelt companion. It shows us how joy can be found in “the little things” in life and how it can help us live with more vitality, connection, awareness, and hope.
I highly recommend JOYBeing to all those seeking true happiness, meaning, purpose, vitality, and fulfillment in life. You won’t be disappointed!