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RANTINGS OF A SCREAMING SOUL

Name: RANTINGS OF A SCREAMING SOUL
Author: Janet Rucker-Smith
ISBN: 978-1-62901-597-2

HEALING THROUGH PURPOSEFULLY RANDOM SELF-CONFRONTATION

by Janet Rucker-Smith ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 2018

A candid but not always compelling memoir of spiritual growth.

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Rucker-Smith recounts the ups and downs of her own journey of the spirit in this debut memoir.

The author, a high school English teacher and a single mother of three, felt intense grief after the death of her father in 2001. But after a chance viewing of the author Gary Zukav, discussing his 1989 book The Seat of the Soul on The Oprah Winfrey Show, she began a pilgrimage to find her own spiritual fulfillment. This quest ended up lasting 10 years, and it was filled with numerous turnarounds and “dead ends,” each of which, she says, was necessary for her to finally arrive at her destination. In this book, she records her journey of self-discovery in the form of self-described “rantings”: “the literary banging of my head against many dead ends.” In these, she discusses her decisions to leave teaching, which she felt was slowly killing her, and to stop running 10 miles every Sunday and instead go on a 30-day cleanse to remove toxins and addictions from her body. She records the indignities and dark moments that she faced along the way, from crying (“inside”) during meditation to wondering whether she could “divorce [her] children.” Ultimately, though, she shows how she was able to get to a place where her mind, body, and spirit were finally in sync. Rucker-Smith’s prose is frank and playful throughout, expressing her emotional states with colorful metaphors and allusions. For example, here’s how she describes one of her pop-culture role models: “As long as I didn’t cause any problems, I was left alone. In fact, [Star Trek’s Mr.] Spock was my Vulcan homeboy because he was the coolest cat around. He was brilliant, logical, and unemotional.” Much of the author’s evolution takes place internally, without a tremendous amount of external travel or upheaval, and this makes some parts of the book seem monotonous, particularly during later sections. However, the author does an excellent job of illustrating her early concerns: “Was I becoming enlightened, or was I going insane?”

A candid but not always compelling memoir of spiritual growth.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-62901-597-2

Page Count: 154

Publisher: Inkwater Press

Review Posted Online: Jan. 24, 2019

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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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.