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SOUL SINS AND REGRETTABLE LIES

Name: SOUL SINS AND REGRETTABLE LIES
Author: Bud Megargee
ISBN: 978-1-5403-2389-7

by Bud Megargee ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 18, 2017

A series of often entertaining spirit-conversations that yields an attractive personal philosophy of mindfulness and...

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A memoir of spiritual exploration in the form of dialogues.

“If I could architecturally design my life with an absolute end,” asks Megargee (Dirt, Truth, Music, and Bungee Cords, 2015) in this punchy, fast-paced work of nonfiction, “what should my objective be?” It’s these kinds of deep questions—who am I, where did I come from?—that drive this self-described “unconventional memoir.” The author’s six-year journey to deeper self-awareness takes him from Buddhist monks in Virginia to “an ageless oracle in Pennsylvania” to extended conversations with an otherworldly, disembodied “soul guide” whom he calls “Laz.” In a series of dialogues, Megargee quizzes Laz on all kinds of subjects. Throughout the book, the author depicts Laz as offering animated answers to his questions. Asked about the drastic effects of climate change, for instance, Laz says that the air is upset at being polluted and that “fire gets angry because it is not treated properly.” Most of these responses seem grounded in a crude kind of animism, in which the world is composed of the traditional “four elements,” which are sentient and entirely human in their emotional responses. As a result, massive storms are explained by the elements being angry or stressed, and a burst water main is said to occur because water is upset by the negative energies of nearby humans. Megargee somewhat counteracts these decidedly unscientific sections, though, with stronger, deeper discourses about forgiveness and “soul sins” that arise “when you taint something that is pure, good, and positive and place it in the dark.” In this respect, the book effectively dovetails with its predecessor, stressing an extremely personal element of self-help.

A series of often entertaining spirit-conversations that yields an attractive personal philosophy of mindfulness and compassion.

Pub Date: Feb. 18, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-5403-2389-7

Page Count: 200

Publisher: CreateSpace

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2017

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
SOUL AFTERLIFE
by Bud Megargee

- BOOK REVIEW
Dirt, TRUTH, Music and Bungee Cords
by Bud Megargee

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.