Synopses & Reviews
"This is the essence of good spiritual writing; the hard stuff of the world come together with the deepest desires of the soul."
-- From the Introduction by Kathleen Norris
This bestselling series showcases 1999's most celebrated voices in spiritual writing. Editor Philip Zaleski has selected richly diverse works, drawn from a wide variety of sources, that explore the many dimensions of spiritual life. From authors' original contributions to works previously published, this collection offers a well-rounded, inclusive approach to spirituality and the ways it manifests itself in our world every day.
Designed To Entertain As Well As Inspire, The Collection Contains:
Annie Dillard's "Acts of God," a close look at the divinityof the newborn
Brian Doyle's delightful essay "Eating Dirt"
A poignant story from Andre Dubus III, "Fences and Fields,"on the nature of fatherly love
Pico Iyer's fresh ideas on "Why We Travel"
"Can You Say...'Hero'?", Tom Junod's reflectionon the extraordinary grace of Mister Rogers
Louise Rafkin's "Yen for Cleaning," which offers insightinto the spirituality of housework
The Best Spiritual Writing 1999 is a wonderful array of writing on what we hold sacred, including new perspectives on age-old questions that emerge within our day-to-day lives.
Synopsis
The 1999 edition of the acclaimed anthology which "Publishers Weekly" calls "a significant addition to the spiritual literature of our time" features contributions by such insightful writers as Ursula K. LeGuin, Mary Gordon, Philip Levine, Thomas Moore, and Wendell Berry. NPR sponsorship.
Synopsis
The debut volume of this annual anthology series garnered critical plaudits and an impressive following. Drawing on essays and poems that first appeared in periodicals as well as on previously unpublished matierals, the 1998 edition covered the whole r
About the Author
Philip Zaleski is senior editor of Parabola magazine, coauthor of Gifts of the Spirit, and author of The Recollected Heart. His writing on the subject of religion and culture appears regularly in such national publications as The New York Times Book Review and Reader's Digest. He teaches religion at Smith College.
Table of Contents
Zazen / Virginia Hamilton Adair -- Max and Mottele / Max Apple -- Praying in the world: a case history / Marvin Barrett -- The rejected husband / Wendell Berry -- Sacred threshold / S. Paul Burholt -- Living on the edge of eternity / Douglas Burton-Christie -- Harrowing Hell -- Lâeonie Caldecott -- My true home is Brooklyn / Tracy Cochran -- Sam Cooke: touch the hem of His garment / Robert Cording -- Acts of God / Annie Dillard -- Eating dirt / Brian Doyle -- Fences & fields / Andre Dubus III -- What this old hand knows / Alma Roberts Giordan -- My wife died unexpectedly last march / Bernie Glassman -- Still life / Mary Gordon -- Stigmata / Ron Hansen -- A new work in the English tongue / Seamus Heaney -- Zora Neale Hurston / Edward Hirsch -- Why we travel: a love affair with the world / Pico Iyer -- Can you say ...Hero? / Tom Junod -- After Leviticus / Philip Levine -- The language of animals / Barry Lopez -- The holy ground of Kalighat / Anita Mathias -- The waltz we were born for / Walt McDonald -- On memory and numbers / Thomas Moore -- A yen for cleaning / Louise Rafkin -- Watching the ancestral prayers of venerable others / Pattiann Rogers -- The Talmud and the internet / Jonathan Rosen -- The necessary note / David Rothenberg -- Some mornings she simply cannot / Luci Shaw -- A single glance: a retelling / Eliezer Shore -- A God in darkness: literature and belief / Louis Simpson -- Bible studies / Jack Stewart -- The day we were left behind / Barbara Brown Taylor -- Lao Tzu's water, Chang Tzu's mud / Ptolemy Tompkins -- Seeing into your nature and other pastimes / Janwillem van der Wetering -- Fifty-two / Michael Ventura -- The wardrobe wars / Paul J. Willis -- A Fifty-year walk / Larry Woiwode.