Top 5 Crystals for Your Toolkit PLUS Behind the Scenes of Nicholas Pearson’s New Book Release!

I'm thrilled to be interviewing Nicholas Pearson. You may know him from previous interviews we’ve done, or maybe you have some of his amazing books that we'll be talking about.  Nicholas Pearson: It's been a while since we've done a podcast together. I was talking earlier today on Instagram about our podcast episode on ethical crystals, which I still refer people to on a weekly basis.  Ashley: Yes, so many people learned a lot from our ethical crystals conversation - it had a lot of good takeaways. Before that, we talked about your Stones of the Goddess book and we've also talked about Crystals for Karmic Healing.  I'm really excited about today’s chat with you because I have an early copy of your latest book! Crystal Basics Pocket Encyclopedia is coming out officially in early-March, but you can get it now from your publisher, Inner Traditions. Plus, there’s signed copies from you available on Etsy.  I got to see this book before it was ever in its paper, physical form. Because you had me write a little blurb for the cover - which I love - thank you for including that. The thing that I loved about this book was that it was so unexpected. It was so different from anything out there. You and I both own a lot of crystal books. I mean, I'm sure we have well over a thousand between the two of us. And there's not really anything quite like this book out there. There are some things that I really love about it that I'd like to share.  I'd love to know: what inspired you to create this book? And what do you find unique about it?  Nicholas: Thank you for all that. I think I'm going to be really transparent. One of the reasons that I wrote this book is because pocket encyclopedias are popular and I have a bunch that don't necessarily meet all of my needs, plus the crystal market changes. So, a sample of a few hundred stones from fifteen years ago is probably far different than the most popular stuff on the market today.  All books are a snapshot in time but I think this book is very much a snapshot of the here and now. It’s something a little fresher, a little more up-to-date.  With the pocket encyclopedia, I wanted it to be easy to navigate and portable. I wanted to create something that really stood on its own and didn’t feel too overwhelming.  Ashley: I think you definitely accomplished all of those goals that you set out for because truly it kind of ticks all those boxes. So for those of you who might have Crystal Basics for reference, the Pocket Encyclopedia is a nice little companion because it does have all those extra stones. You can tell that an avid crystal book reader wrote this, you can tell that a crystal-lover wrote this because it truly does have everything you want. It's organized in a nice way.  The way that the information is laid out is really succinct but also gives you everything you'd want to know at the moment from a pocket guide.    I mean, you have chemical formulas, mineral hardness, crystal system, formation process, chakras, correspondences, and then the physical, psychological, and spiritual healing properties.