2 comments about El pais bajo mi piel.

1. Gioconda is another magnificent representative of the Latin American generation of authors that emerged in the seventies and eighties amidst social turmoils. Gioconda's artistry of words and poetry are evident throughout this book. Also the book arrangement, i.e. two threads set at two different time periods of her life, if not innovative fits nicely to convey her passionate, powerfully feminine message. This is perhaps the strongest point in this autobiography: the utmost defense of "las compañeras" in her struggle for equality and respect.
   
   Other little jewels are Gioconda's experience with iconic men like Torrijos and Fidel. These two anecdotes deserve to be in a study of the human condition: even in an egalitarian or progressive mind, machismo can be present.
   
   My 4 out of 5 star rate for this book is related to the author's ambiguous political position after the collapse of Sandinismo. In the last part of the book her message comes forth blurred by Gioconda's comfortable upper middle-class life in a serene Californian homestead. Suddenly, all that life-commitment with the revolution becomes a Sunday afternoon TV movie on "Oxygen" or "We". Then several pages, filled with apparently extensively meditated explanations, try to justify why she chose comfort to revolution. Personally, I think she closed the circle (as she likes to repeat through her book): she came back to her cradle in a solacing environment. Eventually, she goes back to Nicaragua to plunge back into "people's struggle" while being aware that she can always return to his Californian refuge. Not exactly a revolutionary life.



2. I've read the book (in its extremely sensitive and emphatic German translation immediately after my wife finished reading it and told me that it was a must for me to read!)

   The "must" was worthwhile because of the incredible breadth of Belli's writing expressiveness and intensity of the emotions expressed. In this respect I felt with her and for her in all her moods, life situations, her frustrations and her moments of joy.

   Reading it in that way, it is truthful, self-critical, just fascinating.

   But....and the BUT is my critical BUT.....where Belli, whose dairy-like autobiography this is (because otherwise whe would never have been able to reconstract the three decades of her life she talks about in "The Country Under My Skin" where she recalls all those names an situations with the accuracy as she does), the political aspect being portrayed in the book is strikingly unfair
   and is in severe contradiction to what is known to have actually happened between the terribel '72 earthquake and the end of the millenium as regards the Sandinistas and their revolution and the latter-day developments.
   The political stance Ms. Belli takes throughout her narrative is heavily lop-sided, if not naïve. Ms. Belli, who has in many ways "run into her hated enemy's arms" by living in the US, and does not really appear to have had any qualms about it, nor about passing on pure hear-say about political intrigues and movemements, acribically puts down dates and names and improper behaviour of the so-called enemies of the revolution, but she does not find any need to set right the warped political picture her Sandinista ideologists have slyly - and successfully - embedded in her mind.

   Ms. Belli should stick to writing her very beautiful prose - and stop loving her country by lashing out at phantoms, and painting a halo of "libertador" on irrespressive revolutionaries like Castro at al.....Nicaragua has not stopped suffering from the aftereffects of power-obsessed personalities, much as as it had been suffering from the Somoza nightmare.
   To be sure that I am not just blowing off steam for the sake of criticism, I have once again taken time and consulted credible sources on the actual facts of Nicaraguas transition from Somozism to Sandinism-Tercereistas and the years that followed....and have tried to do this without being blind on one eye...

   What I have finally found to be a representative truth does certainly not identify with many aspects Ms. Belli sets forth in her autobiography.
   Personally, I love South America. My mother tongues were English and Spanish, having spent my childhood in Venezuela, Argentina, Perú and Colombia.

5 comments about Through the Narrow Gate, Revised: A Memoir of Spiritual Discovery.

1. Older book with new foreword. Personal discription of life in convent by well-known religious author.



2. I thought that this book was very honest, while at the same time providing a captivating and enticing read. I have read many of Karen Armstrong's later books on religion; however, I read this wanting to know more about her past life as a nun. The book details her seven years in a religious order in which she endures the pains of pre-Vatican Council II styled religious life. On the outside world, to which she was oblivious, things such as the sexual revolution and the Vietnam war were occurring. I could identify with some of her stumbling blocks to cultivating a spiritual life, including emotional and intellectual barriers. I now have the deepest respect for such a profound woman, not only in her writing ability but also in her courage and willingness to be so transparent in telling her story. This is a wonderful autobiography.



3. Karen Armstrong has written a most marvelous account of her life within a very strict order of English Catholic nuns of the 1960's. Her description of the torments she endured has caused me to regard with renewed respect and affection the nuns who taught me in the 1950's. How odd that we boys who were in class with the nuns for hours each day really had no idea of what kind of lives some of them led in the hours before and after school. The moral, spiritual, and intellectual gifts they bestowed on us daily are inestimable, even though at the time we were probably more interested in whether or not they actually had hair under their wimples!
   
   I've noticed some confusion in these reviews about several aspects of Catholic religious orders of those days. First, despite having no contact for long periods of time with "seculars" - i.e., civilians - Karen was not in a order of "cloistered" nuns. Cloistered sisters do truly cut themselves off completely from the world and, if I can be so bold as to describe them, they live a life governed by "ora et labora" - work and prayer. In fact, though, as strict as they were, Karen's order was primarily an order of teaching sisters.
   
   But there is a much more important concept that many people seem not quite to grasp, and that is that all Catholic youth of those days - at least in my experience - were taught that the most perfect way to be a true follower of Christ was to share in his suffering. That is why those nuns were treated - and treated themselves - as harshly as any Marine Corps recruits would ever be treated - only the nun's harsh treatment was to continue all her life. Certainly, most youth who took Catholicism very seriously must have given thought at one time or another to entering the religious life. We were always told to examine ourselves to determine if we had a religious vocation, but we were also warned that it was not a calling for everyone. In any event, to decide at a young age to become a nun, brother, or priest - to dedicate one's life to doing good - was not understood by many of us to be the same as dedicating one's whole existence to God. When young people make the decision to enter the religious life they often do not know what that really entails. Some religious communities are extraordinarily strict, others less so. The particularly strict order to which Karen belonged was obviously intent on making sure those young girls found out immediately that the religious life was not a game, that sharing in Christ's suffering was not to be an abstract concept but a concrete reality. Those young nuns were to put up with the sadism of some of their superiors in the same way as Christ had to endure the sadism of his tormenters. They were not only to tolerate it but to welcome it and even seek out even more spiritual pain and physical hardship. (As the British often jokingly say about the paddlings they endured in school, "Please sir may I have another?") This concept of self-denial is probably not well understood in our modern climate of "personal fulfillment."
   
   The total abnegation of self, of one's personal desires, of pride, of the hope for friendship and love, was the goal of the harshness they inflicted upon themselves. Their goal was to die to themselves in order to reach God. If you do not grasp this concept I think you'll miss the heroism inherent in the story of Karen and her fellow nuns. Naturally, that kind of life is not for very many of us, as Karen eventually found out for herself. It may be totally misguided or, by modern standards, even pathological, but it's the way some people have reached true holiness.
   
   I'm very happy for myself and for all her readers that Karen Armstrong eventually chose to leave the convent and to follow another path in life. This book is not only a gift from her but, through her, a gift to us from all those other nuns who took - and take - the road less traveled. A truly wonderful and enlightening gift.



4. As this is a book relating to Catholicism, it is fitting for me to start the review with a confession. I bought this book not because I was interested in it, but because I wanted to read its sequel - The Spiral Staircase - and felt I should read this book first. I was not interested all that much in the story of becoming a nun and my only curiosity was how Miss Armstrong would find anything interesting to say about it.
   
   Well, I was off the mark. Karen Armstrong's recounting of her 2 years in the convent (and subsequent disenchantment with the process) are fascinating. Most of the action in this story takes place inside the subject's head as she tries to wrestle with being human in a place where humanness is to be shed (as one must renounce worldy desires, thoughts, and feelings to be close to God).
   
   Karen Armstrong does a magnificent job of depicting what this conflict is like. The process of becoming a nun, as Armstrong describes it, is a rigorous program of self-denial. One is not to complain, be tired, be mournful, be happy, be questioning, or let onesself feel any of the things that come with the territory of being human. Rather, it was taught that the pinnacle of the spiritual life was the abillty to shed one's humanness, to think and feel only about one thing - God.
   
   Armstrong also tells of a very hierarchal system where to question one's superiors is to question God (as one's superiors are closer to God than onesself; that is why they are superiors). With accuity of word, Karen Armstrong recounts how she was constantly made to feel insignificant and imbecilic by her superiors. At the same time, feeling bad about this was attributed to her weak spirit and - so it was called - her selfishness.
   
   Armstrong's story ends when she voluntarily leaves the convent after experiencing much too much. Here she tells of the schock of living in a 'regular' world after years of physical and emotional seclusion.
   
   This is much more interesting a book than i had originally thought it would be. Owing to Armstrong's ability to describe the internal struggle between her desire to be human and her desire to devote herself to God, Through the Narrow Gate has an incredible forward motion. As The Spiral Staircase picks up where this book leaves off, I cannot wait to read the latter half of Karen Armstrong's remarkable journey.



5. In this, [Book One of Two], written twelve years after Karen Armstrong left her life as a nun, she describes the genesis of her vocation or "calling" and reveals how reluctant her parents were about letting her embrace a life of ascetism. She was a mere seventeen years old at the time.
   What follows is a chronicle of what it was like to go through the rigors of becoming a nun. The nine months as a postulant, the two years noviceship, the two years of the scholasticate.... the mind-numbing discipline of achieving full-fledged nunnery-ness (my word).
   She was one of the last people to go through the old system before it was reformed by the Second Vatican Council and Pope John XXIII. In what I consider extreme generosity, she admits that her own immaturity was the cause of many of her difficulties, but ultimately what happens is that Karen finds out that she is simply not suited for the life of a nun.
   In the convent, God was conspicuous only by His perceived absence, and confessing this to her superiors was not helpful. It only sent her back into herself and confirmed her theory that God's silence was her own fault. In all of the seven years on the inside, never once did she "hear from God" nor realize the pre-convent aspirations of her heart. It is a powerful story of religious devotion gone awry.
   I could talk forever about how IMPORTANT I think this book is.
   An excellent read!

5 comments about Cave in the Snow: Tenzin Palmo's Quest for Enlightenment.

1. In 1961, a 21 year-old English girl named Diane Perry embarked on an extraordinary journey towards becoming only the second Western woman ever ordained as a Buddhist nun. Adopting the Tibetan name Tenzin Palmo, this young Cockney girl, daughter of a poor single mother working as a cleaning woman in south London, went on to transform herself into a cross-cultural spiritual pioneer, devoting her next 20 years to steeping herself in the rarefied higher teachings of Tibetan Buddhism, and bridging enormous barriers of culture and gender to pursue a deeply felt spiritual calling.
   
   For most of the next two decades, Palmo lived among the exiled Tibetan monastic communities in India, at one point spending twelve years - yes, that's twelve years - in solitary retreat in a Himalayan cave. Since then, she has become a leading advocate for women in Buddhism, and a widely respected teacher leading Buddhist meditation retreats worldwide and working towards completing her convent for Tibetan nuns.
   
   In the years since her long Himalayan solitude, Palmo has also taken a solemn vow - one that non-Buddhists may find outlandish, but that Palmo herself undoubtedly takes quite seriously - to dedicate her current and future lifetimes (as Tibetan Buddhists believe) towards attaining enlightenment in the female form, transforming herself into a full-fledged female bodhisattva.
   
   Mackenzie, a former Times of London journalist, has written a captivating account of this remarkable womanýs life, including fascinating vignettes about her early encounters with Tibetan luminaries such as the great meditation master Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a young Dalai Lama, and her lifelong teacher and guru Kamtrul Rinpoche, who recognized her immediately upon their first meeting as a reincarnated Tibetan lama in the Kargyu tradition.
   
   A reluctant biography subject (agreeing to the project only after much heartfelt persuading by Mackenzie, an unabashed admirer), Palmo comes across as a deeply humble, holy figure, possessed of a profound inner wisdom and much practical sense.
   
   This book is that rare find of a biography, in which we meet a remarkable but hitherto uncelebrated figure, whose life story provides an object lesson in moral virtue and grace.
   
   I would recommend this book to men, women, Buddhists, non-Buddhists, and others.



2. This is the story of an extraordinary woman who strives for enlightenment, and in her quest she trundles off to live in a cave for years. Quite amazing.
   Unfortunately, despite the fact that the story is fascinating, this book is so staggeringly badly written that every page made me wince and in the end I gave up and haven't finished it. Despite the authors fairly prolific output in matters of buddhism/spirituality I found the content bland, trite, rambling and uninspiring.
   I am not normally so critical of a book, and this is my first review, but this book incensed me because it completely mangled a fantastic story.
   It's only worth reading if you are particularly interested in Tenzin Palmo, I would never bother reading it for anything other than gleaning the facts.



3. Cave in the Snow is an Intelligent and Insightful book. Tenzin Palmo helps us to Realize that we as Humans are open to unimaginable Possibilities. Her Journey is one of Integrity and Truthfulness. She battles the Elements , a male dominated Faith and her own upbringing in an attempt to find True Enlightenment. Her Cultivation of Higher Values and Moral Essence are a Testament to the Strength and Courage of not only herself but of all Women. I was Deeply moved by the Wisdom and Accomplishment of Tenzin Palmo.
   
   Vicki Mackenzie - the author of this incredible book - should be applauded for presenting such a Fascinating and Balanced book. Tenzin Palmo takes us along a Path of Spiritual Transformation. She is truly in Union with the True Self. I am a Better person for having read this book.
   
   Cave in the snow is a Faciltator of Awareness. We as readers are are Inspred by Tenzin Palmos Knowledge and Confidence. She proves that Divinity is your Birthright. Enhance your Experience of today by reading the Tapestry of the Soul which is Cave in the Snow.



4. This book exceeded my high expectations.
   
   First off it is a well told life story of a western woman drawn to Buddhism. That spiritual attraction is not so unusual, but her subseqent move to India, and the related discomforts she overcame long before starting her years of seclusion were truly inspiring.
   
   Then came the chapters on her actual life in her cave. Since "the cave" is in the title of the book one reads with great anticipation until that part of her life begins. And the author does not shortchange you. You get detail and wholeness. Your curiosities are satisfied and you get a feeling for the spiritual evolution she was achieving herself.
   
   The latter chapters of the book were an added bonus. You gain a rich feeling for Tenzin Palmo's inner peace and stand in awe as she travels the globe fulfilling her goal of starting a Buddhist monastery for women.
   
   Let me leave you with a quote of Palmo's that I found very satisfying: '...taking time to be still and think is often a better investment for future productivity than cramming every waking moment with feverish activity."
   
   All in all a book of growth, wisdom, adventure and a bonus of personal reflection.



5. Am I the only person who found this book to be shallow? I actually couldn't finish it! I got about halfway through and got tremendously irritated with two things: the first one is the author's focus on apparently gossipy details - like Tenzin Palmo's early love conquests. It seemed an awful lot like the undertone was "Look at this woman! She became a nun, and it's not because she was socially shunned by men!" This introduced a note of melodrama that really doesn't suit the subject matter.
   
   Now, the second part that really bothered me: The title of the book is "Cave in the Snow" not "Small cottage in the mountains". I had to put the book down when I read the sentence about the DOUBLE GLAZED WINDOWS that were installed in her "cave" COME ON! It is amazing what she did, living in the himilayas on her own (except for those annual shipments of goods to last her the year). I would have been interested to read about that. But the author had to create melodrama and insinuate that Tenzin Palmo lived in a cave - the cave was bricked in, repaved, installed with a window with DOUBLE GLAZING, there was a patio out front, and a terraced garden.
   I'm not saying that Tenzin Palmo doesn't deserve all the credit that she has received - she has truly blazed a trail for all women in buddhism, however the author's attempts to create interest border on melodrama and significant inaccuracy.

5 comments about Playground: A Childhood Lost Inside the Playboy Mansion.

1. I feel sorry for this poor girl having to grow up in that environment. I can really tell that it has had a very big impact on her outlook she has on relationships in her life. I was lucky to have the chance to go to playboy mansion back in July, 1983 and went into the grotto and there were a couple of people in the grotto with us and after reading this book and now know that her father was one of the people in attendance that Friday evening. My experience at the mansion was one that I will never forget.



2. Hmm.. .For a book whose title speaks of the Playboy mansion, you'd think it'd play a bigger role but it really doesn't.. Its mostly about her choosing her dad's carefree and drug induced lifestyle rather than having to abide by her mothers rules.. I think this book could have easily been written in 3 or 4 chapters.. In every chapter theres endless counts of what music was playing and what it changed to and what designer every piece of her wardrobe was made by and all her friends.. It was pretty irritating though i'm into that stuff myself.. Its a book not a fashion magazine.. So it was pretty poorly written and is basically about her making a million bad decisions but never making right with anything, just grinning and baring it so she can keep her little Mercedes and black card and not have to go to mom's "poverty stricken" lifestyle of still few boundaries...



3. Interesting premise, but this book is written so poorly. Repetitious events, streams of unimportant characters, unlikable and underdeveloped characterizations. Who cares what song was playing at any given moment? Bits like that remind me of what would be written in a junior high schoolers private diary.
   
   I think Jennifer wants you to feel sorry for her, but as she spends thousands of daddy's dollars on clothes, steals boatloads of drugs from him & crashes her car while drunk, I can hardly feel anything but contempt for her. The book is fairly predictable. On one page she is spewing "Ew" about Hugh Hefner's bi-sexual girlfriend and then next she is aching to be with her because she is one of the few people that pays any attention to her.
   
   As her father continues to mentally deteriorate from drug addiction, the quality of writing slightly improves but the book soon comes to an end. I grew tired of Jennifer's ceaseless name-dropping and couldn't wait for this book to end. Two stars awarded for effort only.



4. While this was one of the most poorly written books I have read in a while (typos, spelling errors, grammatical issues, diction choices that made my jaw drop, they were so wrong!), I enjoyed this glimpse into a world I know little about. The story's setting promises interesting and frequent glimpses into a world filled with sex, fashion, and drugs -- and it definitely delivers! If you are looking for a light read that is sinfully pleasurable but nothing to write home about, enjoy.
   
   Finally, you can tell that while Saginor is not an excellent writer (and her editor -- was there even an editor?!? -- was not an excellent one) this book must have been extremely cathartic for her. Kudos to her for being able to put to paper the stories of a childhood that obviously had (and seem to still have) such a harsh effect on her. I do hope that writing this memoir served as an emotional release for her.



5. This is a very disturbing story. It could have dug in deeper into the story line. But, It did give you a idea of what she was dealing with. It really sad that she got into drugs and having sex at such a young age. It is sad & disturbing that she didn't really have parental support. That she was able to do the things that she did. When I got done, I didn't really learn anything new. Just that this little girl was able to have this terrible life.

4 comments about A Backward Glance: An Autobiography.

1. This autobiography which really gives a feel for the times in, which Wharton lived as well as for her own life experiences, contains some the most stunningly succinct annecdotes I've ever read. Wharton is truly brilliant at conveying the importance of literature in her life and sharing the possibilities of the literary life with her reader. She reaches through time to inform us of universals and redefine our value systems without being the least bit pedantic. She is a genius. And her autobiography is as entertaining and resonant as a great novel.



2. Such a lovely child, so patient and well behaved. New York and its society are made magic by her eyes. The opening sections of this memoir are a delight as Mrs. Wharton recounts the sights and feel of New York City in the 1870's. I liked it that she gave us a knee-high view of taking a walk with her beloved father and meeting his friends along the way. (She could never tell what the people's faces looked like, as her view only extended to their knees). Her total recall of her very best bonnet is amazing, and a very pretty bonnet it must have been.

   If there is such a person as a "born writer," Edith Wharton is that person. Before she could write, she made stories, and situations "flew around her head like mosquitoes." The world she lived in had no place or interest in a writing lady, so she made her own world, and it was a life-long undertaking.

   When Mrs. Wharton received her first acceptance of publication, she was so excited she "ran up and down the staircase in glee." I couldn't have been more surprised if I had read that George Washington played kickball in the back yard. Mrs. Wharton rarely lets you see anything but a very reserved and proper Victorian lady. Yet she did get a divorce (though it is never mentioned.), she lived almost her entire adult life abroad; she compartmentalized her friends like a butterfly collector, and had no interest in being part of the New York society she describes so well. When she was well into her writing career on a family visit to New York, she was invited to a dinner party where she was told a "Bohemian" would be one of the guests. When she got there, she discovered that she herself was the "Bohemian" in question.

   The book has a wonderful introduction by that fine author of New York manners, Louis Auchincloss, who is obviously fond of Mrs. Wharton, but not intimidated. Mrs. Wharton has a couple of insightful (and often hilarious) chapters on Henry James that are alone worth the price of the book. But then there are the "friends." I felt I was being buried in endless pages of formal introductions to people I had never heard of, who wrote books that were never read, who gave parties which are long forgotten, and men who were great conversationalists according to Mrs. Wharton, though the witticisms she quoted were so arch and refined, I felt they belonged in bad drawing room comedy.

   The book reads well, except for the stretches of introductions. Mrs. Wharton firmly believes that if you can't speak well of someone, you shouldn't speak of him or her at all. Not a bad idea at that




3. In this orderly collection of autobiographical sketches Edith Wharton - generously and with nearly photographic recall - begins by inviting readers into her early life in nineteenth-century New York. We are treated to its cast of characters, old New York, country life up the Hudson River, the clothes, the houses, and the remarkable (and unremarkable) personalities - Washington Irving was a friend of the family - as well as the sensibilities of a sociable, bright, and wonderfully observant little girl.

   Edith began to read so early that it surprised her upper-class (but unintellectual) family. Before long she became an "omnivorous reader," happiest plowing through the volumes of the classics in her father's library. She soon found that she required time alone - to invent characters, to make up stories. She knew that she had to write fiction - from childhood on, despite realizing by young adulthood that "in the eyes of our provincial society authorship was still regarded as something between a black art and a form of manual labor." Of the social imperative to closet one's writing urges she elaborates: "My father and mother were only one generation away from Sir Walter Scott, who thought it necessary to drape his literary identity in countless clumsy subterfuges, and almost contemporary with the Brontes, who shrank in agony from being suspected of successful novel-writing." The idle rich, Wharton makes clear, were intended to stay idle - and not busy themselves with writing, especially for (horrors!) pay. Her descriptions of her early popular successes are memorable.

   In subsequent chapters Wharton lays out her well-thought-out opinions regarding childhood, self-discovery, the formation of the writer's imagination and intellect, and the importance of finding one's own way - as an intellectual and as a social being. There is dry humor, too. She treasured good literature and good conversation - and pursued (and found) them throughout her life. She loved beautiful things and places, too. Finally, she describes her sojourns abroad (mainly England, France, and Italy) and the relationships and places that sustained her and nurtured her creativity, her productivity - and her soul.

   Lifelong friends play a central role in much of this memoir. She describes people well, without breaches of privacy or confidences. This is not at all limiting. She writes tenderly of the blossoming of her friendship with "American gentleman" Egerton Winthrop, a man of "cultivated intelligence," a shy, physically awkward man whom Wharton considered "the most perfect of friends." Others were George Cabot Lee, Vernon Lee, Howard Sturgis, Geoffrey Scott, Percy Lubbock, and most of all, Henry James, who is drawn wonderfully (and not uncritically) in this book. Of her friendship with James she remarks "The real marriage of two minds is for any two people to possess a sense of humor or irony pitched in exactly the same key, so that their joint glances at any subject cross like interarching search-lights."

   I loved this memoir, and greatly admired Wharton's ability to reveal herself and her world so fully and well.




4. Edith Wharton wrote "The Age of Innocence" (I believe it won the Pulitzer), the only fiction she wrote that I have truly liked--and an excellent book. She also wrote much nonfiction, and I have enjoyed her travel writing very much.

   In this book, Ms. Wharton reflects on her childhood and adulthood to middle age. (A short biography of her life is included in the introduction by Louis Auchincloss.) She speaks of her parents and growing up in 'Old New York' and living on the Gold Coast of New England with her husband.

   Ms. Wharton was a great friend of several men of letters who were prominent during her era, including Henry James. Her writing describes these relationships in part. She may have had an affair with one of them (not James), but unlike writers of today, more is not said than said. Mrs. Wharton divorced her husband in an era when it was not the best thing to do if one wished to remain a member of high society. She seems to have cast off New York society and moved to France to live permantly after her divorce. If you're interested in the story behind the story in "The Age of Innocence" this book is a good resource.

   In addition to her early years in America and later years in France, this book covers some of Ms. Wharton's travels in France and the Mediterranean. The most evocative sections cover her experiences in a trip to the French front in WWI. During WWI, she became a reporter and sent information to a New York newspaper on a regular basis.

5 comments about Virginia Woolf.

1. this is the best biography of Virginia Woolf to date. The book is broken into four parts based on four broad periods in VW's life: 1882 - 1904; 1904 -1919; 1919 - 1929; and 1929 - 1941. The chapters, however, are theme-based; for example, Chapter 15 is "Bloomsbury"; Chapter 19 is "War"; Chapter 24 is "Monk's House"; and Chapter 37 is "Fascism". This then serves as a wonderful reference book to go back to read about specific events (war) or themes ("Bloomsbury") without having to search through an index for disjointed entries. Of the four biographies I have read of VW (Quentin Bell's, Hermione Lee's, Julia Brigg's, and James King) I recommend this biography as the one to start. King, 1994, was willing to write more about her personal relationships (read, "sexual") and is a good follow-on.



2. Of the many literary biographies I've read, only Peter Ackroyd's "Dickens" seems to me as "definitive" as Ms. Lee's terrifically compelling book. One finishes it with the sense, however illusory (see Janet Malcolm's extraordinary "The Silent Woman" for a convincing argument that it must be), that the Virginia Woolf found in its pages is essentially identical to the actual woman who lived and wrote and died. Anyone with even a slight interest in her must consider this book essential reading. I found it a real page-turner throughout its considerable length despite being unconvinced of Woolf's literary eminence (except for her sparkling correspondence) and finding her character unattractive (i.e. snobbish, frigid, a false friend, etc.) even by the usual standard for writers.



3. Probably the best bio of Woolf we are likely to see for some time. Lee has succeeded brilliantly and gracefully in that most elusive and troublesome task of capturing the "spirit" of another human being and then conveying that without simplification or reduction. What is most moving is that Lee allows Woolf her complexity and contradictions, her courage and cowardice, her generosity and meaness, without indulging in a sort of inconoclastic glee in smashing received images of Woolf as victim or feminist icon (or any other of the several and various "Woolfs" to be found these days.) Lee's bio is a stunning feat of sympathetic imagination and rational scholarship which ranks with the other "best" bio of the last 20 years or so, Deirdre Bair's marvelous and beautiful "Simone de Beauvoir." I am grateful to both of these writers.



4. I am taking this book slowly and am nearing the end. It is terrific and I find, on the days I take off from reading it, that I miss Virginia Woolf and want to go back to the "place" that is her life. I thank Ms. Lee for giving me a closer intimacy with Virginia Woolf.



5. I enjoyed the book, but have a fairly detailed knowledge of Woolf & her contemporaries. I think a new reader of Woolf & her work might get lost in the maze of essentially unexplained personalties & their relationship to Woolf & her circle.

5 comments about Diary of a Psychic.

1. wonderful read was given to me with the calling of your true self,both these books have helped me understand, how the spirit world works, the words wrote in these books are psychic mediums who know there stuff and are true,both have give me hope that we dont die we go to another level,
   cant stop reading these over so it sinks in.



2. I hoped this would be a great book that I could share with nonbelievers and have them learn about this phnenomenen. Sadly this book probably ranks as the poorest non-fiction I have ever tried to read. The authoress talks so much about herself that the book became unendurable. It is poorly written and boring. I could not even finish it and that is rare for me! My thought would be to save your money, as I wish I had done with mine!Diary of a Psychic



3. wonderful story told with style. Couldn't put it down. I want to read everything written by this charming woman.



4. I just finished reading this book while on a very relaxing vacation in the mountains, and so I think my view is quite clear of negative associations. First, I think that many of Ms. Choquette's memories of her readings and experiences from 30+ years ago are quite "colorful." We'd all like to remember our lives as being so, however, I think that her writing style is quite contrived. And, when she said she had been a student of Jesus Christ himself, I became extremely turned off. Wow, what a totem. . . Her description of herself at her maturity (when she felt she had become a "woman" in the sense of being comfortable with herself) is that she physically resembled Audrey Hepburn. Hmmm. I think we do boast too much. I am happy that she is so successful in her chosen field, but a true psychic would never be so haughty about her abilities. It's just an observation. This is the second of her books I have purchased. I am not sure if I will do so in the future.



5. In this book, in print, Sonia Choquette claims that in a past life it was Jesus Christ himself that taught her to psychic. WOW ... that is quite the claim. In a more recent book (Ask Your Guides) Sonia claims to have also been an Essene (an ancient Jewish order during the time of Christ) ... so I wonder if she left the Essenes to be a early Christian or if she was an Essence shortly after Moses had died after wondering 40 years in the desert in search of the promised land of milk and honey. This made sense to me until she said on a [...] conference call and I believe on Hay House radio "Trust Your Vibes" that another psychic told her she was a rock star on Saturn in another life or in a co-existing parallel universe reality. This was when I got a tad confused. By the way, the broadcast of this claim was recorded and is available for those who need physical evidence.
   
   This diary provides a portal into a life of a one who was nurtured in their gift. The spiritual gift of prophecy and healing are real and according to the Holy Bible are granted by the Holy Spirit and meant to raise the Church. Such references from Scripture are in the New Testament. Sonia is sharing a way of life that can help people be in the flow of spirit. She is also doing a service in being a guide to those who are unable to fully trust their inner wisdom. In this respect, Diary of a Psychic is a very helpful and assuring book for those who do see and must learn to trust.
   
   However, Choquette makes more than one reference to her being Catholic. Given that she studied religion at the University of Denver (she dropped out to become a flight attendant) and Metaphysics at the unaccredited American Institute of Holistic Theology in Alabama, it is with a certain discernment that I do have to mention with respect to her spiritual ideology. The Catholic Church, at least the Roman side of the hierarchy, discourages consultation with seers and instead tells us to seek true ministers of God. My argument is ... Choquette's spiritual worldview is unclear to me but I do know that divination systems such as decks, clairvoyance, and other means of precognition are clearly and nearly forbidden by the Catholic church (not that they are always right) but you can't claim Catholic and Christian then worship idols at the same time. Black and white thinking I may be guilty of but my intention is to simply suggest to readers to practice discernment with Sonia's words. She is world-renowwend and famous ... but so too is fellow Hay House authors Sylvia Browne and Doreen Virtue.
   
   One more point: In all things ... seek your own wise counsel. Read Diary of a Psychic if you need to know that you are not alone because you see. But remember, the spirit world is real, and one must always take care to consider the counsellor you listen you. Whether it is Sonia, your Parish priest, or a famous doctor. Never just blindly believe anything without discernment.
   
   Final Thoughts on Sonia as a spiritual teacher which applies to all spirit-based teachers, and since Sonia seems to protray herself as a Christian/Catholic-Orthodox I'll use from her religious tradition:
   
   (Sirach 37:7-9 on caution in taking advice)
   
   All counselors praise the counsel they give
   But some give counsel in their own interest
   Be wary of a counselor
   and learn first what is his interest
   for he will take thought for himself
   
   So ..... Sirach 37:12-15 offers this additional guidance
   
   Instead, associate with a religious man, who you are sure keeps the commandments; Who is like-minded with yourself and will feel for you if you fall.
   Then, too, heed your own heart's counsel; for what have you that you can depend on more?
   A man's conscience can tell him his situation better than seven watchmen in a lofty tower.
   Most important of all, pray to God to set your feet in the path of truth.

5 comments about The Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman.

1. Fascinating!!
   
   I only wish more photos, diagrams and website links and/or information (on those specific archeological discoveries and digs) would have been provided, so that we could have researched it a bit more, and tracked any furhter progress.
   
   The listings of the incredible array of artifacts found in these archeoligical digs would have also benefited by some drawings and photos.
   
   That being said, this is a wonderful book that brings the action to life -- I can almost see the ship rise and fall with the waves. The natives (skraalings) and the landscape of the new world is rendered in vivid word pictures. The descriptions of the Viking farms in Greenland and the hazardous trips sometimes needed to be made to reach those farms, gives me a sense of the tremendous resiliency and resourcefulness of those heroic people way back then.
   
   Exceptional -- but would definitely benefit from photos, diagrams, links, -- even a rendering of what Gudrid may have looked like.



2. This is an extraordinary acheivement. The author follows the character of Gudrid throughout her journeys through in Viking world of the late 900s and early 1000s and, along the way, paints a vivid picture of life at that time. The writing is engaging and apparently effortless, but the research that supports it is massive, as described in 35 pages of footnotes and references at the end of the book. The author's passion is clear throughout, and further evidenced by her having worked as a volunteer archaeologist one summer in Iceland to excavate Gudrid's home. This is essential reading for anyone interested in the Vikings.



3. This book enlightens a period of history not well known to date. It is very interesting reading, especially for anyone with Scandinavian roots. The research the lies behing this work is remarkable. I highly recommend this book.



4. Brown gives us a lot of interesting information about Gudrun's life and times in "The Far Traveller." But what is even more interesting is her description of being on archaeological digs in Iceland, describing what archaeologists have to do to torture more information out of the physical remains of the past. Brown's focus on what archaeology has contributed to our knowledge of the Vikings, as well as archaeology's limitations, make this a more fascinating read than the account of what we think we know about Gudrun could have done.



5. I am just a general reader who happens to enjoy well-written history. I've never read much at all about the Vikings but the NY Times review of THE FAR TRAVELER was enticing and I was not let down by its promise. Nancy Marie Brown has reached back to a place and people obscured by time, doing a decent job of erasing some of the fog and cold desolation that obscure the Dark Ages and Medieval Epoch in Iceland and Greenland. She also succeeds in revealing a lot about contemporary archaeological practice and thought.
   
   Brown turns first to the Sagas, the 10th and 11th century tales of Vikings, for inspiration. Though embroidered, the Sagas, written down some generations later, are regarded as holding historical memories. Brown focuses on one woman who appears in both the Eirik the Red and Greenland Sagas as her guide, Gudrid, who traveled from Iceland to Greenland to Vinland, back to Iceland and remarkably, in later age, on a pilgrimage to Rome. Her son Snorri was very likely the first European child born on North American soil, circa 1005. Her personal story reveals much about religion, economics, gender relations, values, world view and other aspects of her culture. Born late in the 10th century AD, she witnessed the spread of Christianity and the fading of the violent marauding male economy as the domestic textile industry spun by women on the farm began to reposition Iceland in the world trade scene. Brown travels to all of the places Gudrid did, reads scholarship on her topic and participates in archaeological digs and recreation of weaving studios.
   
   The digs at L'Anse Aux Meadows, Newfoundland, have been reported on before, but Brown brings a fresh fascination to them in the context of Gudrid's life. She provides strong descriptive passages of the places she visits and there is one map in the front of the book. It would have been nice, however, to have had some illustrations. I would also like to have known a little more about Brown's own context and interest in this subject.

1 comments about The Pillow Book (Penguin Classics).

1. Relatively little is known about Sei Shonagon's life. We know she was a court lady in tenth-century Japan, at the pinnacle of the Heian period.
   
   And she left behind a glimpse into her culture's period in "The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon." It's a sort of mishmash memoir -- gossip, reflections, lists, and personal recollections are all mingled together, with a light, poetic delicacy that still is striking today.
   
   The story behind the Pillow Book is that when Shonagon (possible real name: Kiyohara Nagiko) was serving the Imperial Family, the Empress Teishi received a bunch of notebooks that she couldn't use. As they were too valuable to discard, she gave them to Shonagon to use as she chose.
   
   And so Shonagon basically poured her thoughts into her "Pillow Book" -- she offers brief reflections on the world around her, diary-like recollections of things that happen among the ladies in waiting, essays on court life, lists, poetry, and pretty much anything else she dreamed up.
   
   One of the most intriguing things about the Pillow Book is the glimpse into tenth-century Japan that it gives. Shonagon's stories are about little things like flutes, disobedient dogs, clothes, and the Empress's ladies betting on how long it would take a giant mound of snow to melt (no, I'm not kidding). Somehow, it leaves the past seeming a little less distant.
   
   Normally these stories would be curiosities only. But Shonagon -- despite her tendency towards snobbery -- had a special knack with prose, and and a bright, shimmering wit. Her charming love of beauty is often enchanting; she often lists things that she finds pleasing, such as moons, summer nights, flowers and willow trees. Her words were almost as pleasant, since she littered her writing with jokes, metaphor and wordplay.
   
   Not that her recollections are without negatives -- she listed her pet peeves (such as parents worshiping a very unappealing child -- something we've all been annoyed with), and things she found depressing or annoying. A stickler for form and ettiquette, she had very precise ideas about how things should be done... right down to how love affairs should be conducted.
   
   If there's a problem with this, it's that Shonagon -- in the manner of her time -- tends to gloss over the more important, unpleasant details of life. And her own anecdotes show that she could be very cruel, as when she gave a mocking poem to a newly-homeless peasant, instead of a promissory note. It may have been typical of her class and culture, but come on.
   
   "The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon" opens a little window into the scented world of Heian-era Japan, and leaves behind the impression of a spunky, sharp-witted lady who would have stood out anywhere.

5 comments about Princess Masako: Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne.

1. Neither my wife nor I could put this book down with its fascinating description of the challenges of the royal Japanese household, also known as the "Chrysanthemum Throne".
   
   It reads almost like another Princess Diana story, but hopefully with a far better ending. At any rate, the potential is there for Princess Masako to make more of her life and position- it is now down to the royal court to allow this.



2. Think of the word princess, and more often than not there's the image of a lovely young woman, dressed in a long flowing gown, usually with a pretty little crown or tiara on her head, and a smitten prince at her side. Rarely this romantic view ever goes on to reveal what happens when the celebrations are over and the reality of life settles in.
   
   While the monarchies of the western world have managed somewhat to balance the public's curiosity about royal life and the royal's own need for privacy, there is one monarchy that has remained firmly shuttered to prying eyes. This is the last Imperial house in the world, that of the Japanese. Australian journalist Ben Hills takes a look at one of the more tragic stories of royalty gone awry, and tells it with equal measures of compassion and anger.
   
   Princess Masako: Prisoner of the Chrysanthemum Throne tells the unusual story of a young woman, Masako Owada, the daughter of a diplomat who grew up in various cities around the world, and seemed to be heading for an outstanding career of her own. She had been educated at Harvard, spoke more than six languages and was a pretty, rather popular girl who was intent to be the very best. While she was certainly very different than the typical Japanese woman, no one suspected that her life would take a very dramatic turn.
   
   That would occur in 1993, when after a rather stilted courtship following a chance meeting, Crown Prince Naruhito was finally accepted by Masako and she married him in a tradition laiden ceremony in Tokyo. And suddenly, Masako found her life surrounded by protocol, religious duties and the overwhelming pressure to have a child -- specifically, a male child, something that hadn't happened in the Japanese Imperial family for more than forty years.
   
   Ben Hills delves rather far into the mystery surrounding this family, at least as far as a Western journalist can dig, given the interference that the Kunaicho, the Imperial Household Agency, a bureaucracy that controls every aspect of daily life for the Japanese royal family. Hills refers to these shadowy bureaucrats as The Men in Black, a rather sinister connotation. And as we see in the story, the pressure to conform, and not to sully the image that the Kunaicho want to project, is pretty potent.
   
   The ultimate tragedy of the story is Masako herself. It's sad to watch this vital young woman being crushed by a system that simply does not care about her, except as her role as royal broodmare and a pretty picture to wave in front of the masses. We watch her struggle to concieve a child -- and after nearly nine years of disappointment, and possibly through the use of In-Vitro Fertilization, finally gives birth to a daughter, Aiko. There is the pressure to remain silent and self-effacing, and the toll that takes on Masako's health. While rumours persist that she may be in the grip of major depression, and Hills presents convincing evidence that she is, nothing can be really certain if she is or not.
   
   Which gets right down to the criticism of this book. The Japanese publishers suddenly pulled out of various publication deals for a translation once it was announced that the Kunaicho did not approve of it, and censorship reared it's ugly little head. Hills has received death threats, and the response to the publication is detailed in the epilogue that is in the trade paperback edition. Indeed, anything that can be deemed detrimental to the Japanese government, morals, or the Imperial family is regularly censored, rewritten or whitewashed by those in power -- a situation that most Westerners won't, and don't, tolerate.
   
   And regularly Hills makes backhanded swipes at his subject. His description of the Japanese ceremonial and dress verges on the Oh, isn't that cute!, and at times his narrative goes as far as mockery. That's something that I tend to deplore in writing of any kind, showing a snobbish attitude that is downright rude. Too, he litters the story with Australian slang, which is unfamiliar to most American readers, and while there is some sympathy for Masako, there isn't much left over for anyone else caught up in the drama.
   
   Besides the story itself, there are two inserts of photos, one in black and white, the other in colour; as well as a genealogy chart, a map, a list of resources, a glossary of Japanese terms, and an index.
   
   While I was certainly very interested in this story, it comes across more as a gossipy expose rather than a serious study of Japanese court life. So much is left out that all that remains is a damning screed against a culture that seems to be firmly fixed in medieval traditions, liberally laced with restrictions and corruption. It's interesting, but surely, there must be something better than this out there on this topic.
   
   Three and a half stars, rounded up to four. Somewhat recommended, but only to those interested in modern Japanese life and celebrity.



3. It is quite obvious that this author has little knowledge of Japanese culture and he makes many snide comments belittling the sacredness of some traditional Japanese customs. This arrogant style is used throughout the book and is highly disrespectful of Japanese traditions.
   He scoffs at the ancient Japanese religion of Shinto of which the Imperial family follows aspects of, and undermines the Shinto symbolic rites that accompany marriage. For Japanese people, Shinto represents the religious part of Japan's unique history, and many still observe Shinto practices such as visting Shinto shrines to pray etc. The author dismisses all this as archaic and antiquated and presumes it will be laughed at by "modern people such as Masako". I think only the author himself laughs as most people are able to respect the religious traditions of others.
   The author further shows his ignorance through mistaking the Japanese symbol of the crane with the Western Stork. He ignorantly translates the very traditional Japanese wedding symbol of the crane, which symbolises "celebration" to be the stork which only in the West means "Birth" and therefore as pressure on Masako to concieve.
   He also extensively quotes Yukie Kudo, who is of rather dubious repute, and the author has obviously has not conducted a background check on this source.
   I think this is worth two stars, because at least the author has collected a lot of information into one source. But it is only worth two because of the condescending tone he uses throughout the book.
   This book was translated into Japanese, but 60% of the information was deemed unsuitable for publishing and edited out of the Japanese version therefore this book is only available in English. I think part of the reason for this book not making it into Japanese print is not only because of the Japanese wanting to protect the reputation of the Royal Family, but also because this book comes off as ignorant and therefore not completely truthful.



4. the very real story of a princess who is not living happily ever after, why do all royal families seem to attempt to strip princesses-in-training, expecting them to relinquish their creative minds, goals and imagination, all attributes that would enable them to serve a royal family, as well as a country to their highest potential...did they not learn anything from the tragedy of the loss of Princess Diana, who was finally beginning to breathe again...



5. First of all,as a Japanese,I will not sit here and watch as an affair of my country is terribly distorted and misunderstood.Let me start by pointing out the most important fact unbeknownst to Western people:The majority of the Japanese people DO NOT sympathize with Princess Masako any more,because we already know the truth all too well.
   
   Although we used to regard her in the early days as an efficient but "unfortunate" princess just as this book claims to be,now almost every Japanese inwardly thinks that she is just a loathesome,power-hungry upstart with gilded academic backgrounds and a seemingly remarkable diplomat's career who married into a highest and noblest family she never really belonged to.We also think that she should be deprived of her title and dismissed from the Imperial Family as soon as possible--not because she is a "modernized" woman who is alien to our society,but simply because she is not doing her duty at all.In fact,also unbeknownst to overseas media,she keeps on betraying the people's expectation for her to live up to her title by refusing to attend almost all the public functions out of faked sickness,seeking only fun,squandering the taxpayers'money without a reflection.
   
   In other words,all she ever does is to pretend that she's so "mentally ill" that she needs "a long rest" and to "shop till she drops" on the people's back as she goes on needless vacations.(For example,she immensely enjoyed her visit to Tokyo Disneyland with her husband and daughter by riding various attractions this March,and shortly after it was reported in the media,there appeared many weblog entries denouncing her act.)
   As you know,a real patient of depression or of any other mental illness is never able to go out not only to work,but also to play however hard he or she wants to.Even though there is yet no clear evidence that her illness is false,there is a revealing fact that the Princess has never undergone a thorough mental health check by a third-party doctor,nor has her doctor in charge officially held a press conference to announce the proper diagnosis to this day.With all the inappropriate behaviour of the Princess above in mind,we have come to a conclusion that she is an utterly ineligible Crown Princess,a Marie Antoinette-like tax-spender,a sheer disgrace to our nation and to "the Chrysanthemum Throne" in the true sense of the term.
   
   So the point here is as follows:She is no "prisoner" to be "liberated" at all;all we have here is one delinquent who would universally be dismissed should she be a princess of some Western country,and that Japanese traditions or "the way of the Kunaicho(the Imperial Household Agency)" has nothing to do with the so-called "unfairness" of the way she has been treated.We only think of her as we naturally do,and the Imperial Household Agency has been only doing its job.
   Suppose an agency of Royal or Imperial affairs did not try to admonish a troublemaker in the Family,or it did not try to defend their lord in the face of a malicious slander,then of what use would it be?Naturally,if it takes the above actions when needed, that would be NO "violation of human rights" or "violation of freedom of speech" as the author Ben Hills alleged regarding the treatment of Princess Masako and the Kunaicho's protest against his book.
   Therefore,all the author's accusations against the Kunaicho and the other members of the Imperial Family are groundless,because those accusations are made on an unsound premise that they should be blamed for their own unique "inhumanity" and "feudalism" that never really exist in this particular case.Needless to say,a tradition should never be judged from an insufficient research or a subjective,narrow-minded viewpoint like the author's,especially when the allegations are untrue.
   
   
   Finally,please DO NOT ever be deceived by this bogus story of some Imperial oppression of a well-intended,"liberated" individual which never took place,not only for our sake,but also for your own sake,because this is apparently a book of propaganda full of intentional errors designed to undermine Japan's and the Imperial Family's reputation.With Japan being a former Axis and a defeated nation of WWII,it is not uncommon for the rest of the world to demonize the Emperor or the Imperial system of Japan by deliberately depicting it as a thoroughly inhumane existence despite its now-pacifistic nature.So,all wise and conscientious readers out there, stay open-minded,for an ignorant,unsuspecting "good intention" misled by malice could lead to true unfairness such as racism and destruction of a culture that is different from your own.