Sometimes I like being intrigued by a book for a while before I actually dive in and buy it. A book that's been calling to me lately is Devotion by Dani Shapiro.
Shapiro's newest memoir, a mid-life exploration of spirituality begins with her son's difficult questions-about God, mortality and the afterlife-and Shapiro's realization that her answers are lacking, long-avoided in favor of everyday concerns. Determined to find a more satisfying set of answers, the author seeks out the help of a yogi, a Buddhist and a rabbi, and comes away with, if not the answers to life and what comes after, an insightful and penetrating memoir that readers will instantly identify with. Shapiro's ambivalent relationship with her family, her Jewish heritage and her secularity are as universal as they are personal, and she exposes familiar but hard-to-discuss doubts to real effect: she's neither showboating nor seeking pat answers, but using honest self-reflection to provoke herself and her readers into taking stock of their own spiritual inventory. Absorbing, intimate, direct and profound, Shapiro's memoir is a satisfying journey that will touch fans and win her plenty of new ones.
Here's what people are saying about it.
"Courageous, authentic and funny, Devotion is Shapiro’s exploration of her own relationship with faith."
— BookPage
"Courageous, authentic and funny, Devotion is Shapiro’s exploration of her own relationship with faith."
— BookPage
"Shapiro’s journey is a deeply reflective one, and her struggles are as complex as they are insightful, philosophical, and universally human."
— Booklist
— Booklist
What makes Devotion most compelling is its willingness to explore the elusiveness of certainty.
—Time Magazine
—Time Magazine
"I was immensely moved by this elegant book, which reminded me all over again that all of us – at some point or another – must buck up our courage and face down the big spiritual questions of life, death, love, loss and surrender. Dani Shapiro probes all those questions gracefully and honestly, avoiding overly simple conclusions, while steadfastly exploring her own complicated relationship to faith and doubt."
– Elizabeth Gilbert , author of Eat, Pray, Love
– Elizabeth Gilbert , author of Eat, Pray, Love
And here's Dani's very cool question and answer set up.
1 comment:
I think that some kind of spiritual/religious education is imperative for children. It does not have to be based on an organised religion, it could be philosophy based. Children are very interested in the why, and if we don't give them the chance to explore the question and a wide range of answers, we end up with a society which finds it difficult to have clear and thoughtful discussions about moral and ethical issues.
Plus, so much of our imagery is based on the Judeo-Christian ethic in the Western World.
I shall step off my little soap box now and see if my Library has this book!!!!
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