A cleareyed look at how the faithful may transform their lives.
A guide to spiritual development and personal change in the modern era.
Trammell (Outrageous Loving!, 2015, etc.) maintains that every human being on Earth “has the divine potential to consciously experience a life of fulfillment and completeness,” and she likens every life to a transformation. This idea is the keystone of this slim debut: “We are each and every one on a journey,” she writes, “or in process.” In the course of 12 short chapters ranging over many discipline, including history to philosophy and quantum science, Trammell inquires into the ongoing process of personal change. “If we don’t evolve we stagnate and eventually die,” she claims, citing the human ego as the main stumbling block to progress. She references the “New Thought” philosophy and its stance toward organized religion, which views Jesus as foremost a moral teacher, “the great example, rather than the great exception.” However, the beliefs here align quite well with standard post–Vatican II Christianity, in which, as she puts it, “God has given us the ultimate gift of free will. God doesn't judge; God accepts what I believe without prejudice.” She also notes that “we are all made in the image and likeness of God.” For fellow Christians, her energetic and accessible prose will be very inviting, as will her refreshing call to broaden faith into a lifestyle: “A TRUE prayer is how we live our lives,” she insists. “So ask yourself HOW, and then look at the results: what is your life experience? THAT is your prayer!” Her ruminations on the connection of personal self to a greater spiritual oneness become, in the end, a short but tremendously engaging spiritual autobiography. Overall, Trammell convincingly presents herself as a seeker trying to help other seekers, and her theme of ongoing, personal alchemy will appeal to a broad range of modern-day believers.
A cleareyed look at how the faithful may transform their lives.Pub Date: April 25, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4960-3375-8
Page Count: 104
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
These platitudes need perspective; better to buy the books they came from.
A lightweight collection of self-help snippets from the bestselling author.
What makes a quote a quote? Does it have to be quoted by someone other than the original author? Apparently not, if we take Strayed’s collection of truisms as an example. The well-known memoirist (Wild), novelist (Torch), and radio-show host (“Dear Sugar”) pulls lines from her previous pages and delivers them one at a time in this small, gift-sized book. No excerpt exceeds one page in length, and some are only one line long. Strayed doesn’t reference the books she’s drawing from, so the quotes stand without context and are strung together without apparent attention to structure or narrative flow. Thus, we move back and forth from first-person tales from the Pacific Crest Trail to conversational tidbits to meditations on grief. Some are astoundingly simple, such as Strayed’s declaration that “Love is the feeling we have for those we care deeply about and hold in high regard.” Others call on the author’s unique observations—people who regret what they haven’t done, she writes, end up “mingy, addled, shrink-wrapped versions” of themselves—and offer a reward for wading through obvious advice like “Trust your gut.” Other quotes sound familiar—not necessarily because you’ve read Strayed’s other work, but likely due to the influence of other authors on her writing. When she writes about blooming into your own authenticity, for instance, one is immediately reminded of Anaïs Nin: "And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” Strayed’s true blossoming happens in her longer works; while this collection might brighten someone’s day—and is sure to sell plenty of copies during the holidays—it’s no substitute for the real thing.
These platitudes need perspective; better to buy the books they came from.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-101-946909
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2015
Rhimes said “yes” to sharing her insights. Following her may not land you on the cover of a magazine, but you’ll be glad you...
The queen of Thursday night TV delivers a sincere and inspiring account of saying yes to life.
Rhimes, the brain behind hits like Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal, is an introvert. She describes herself as a young girl, playing alone in the pantry, making up soap-opera script stories to act out with the canned goods. Speaking in public terrified her; going to events exhausted her. She was always busy, and she didn’t have enough time for her daughters. One Thanksgiving changed it all: when her sister observed that she never said “yes” to anything, Rhimes took it as a challenge. She started, among other things, accepting invitations, facing unpleasant conversations, and playing with her children whenever they asked. The result was a year of challenges and self-discovery that led to a fundamental shift in how she lives her life. Rhimes tells us all about it in the speedy, smart style of her much-loved TV shows. She’s warm, eminently relatable, and funny. We get an idea of what it’s like to be a successful TV writer and producer, to be the ruler of Shondaland, but the focus is squarely on the lessons one can learn from saying yes rather than shying away. Saying no was easy, Rhimes writes. It was comfortable, “a way to disappear.” But after her year, no matter how tempting it is, “I can no longer allow myself to say no. No is no longer in my vocabulary.” The book is a fast read—readers could finish it in the time it takes to watch a full lineup of her Thursday night programing—but it’s not insubstantial. Like a cashmere shawl you pack just in case, Year of Yes is well worth the purse space, and it would make an equally great gift.
Rhimes said “yes” to sharing her insights. Following her may not land you on the cover of a magazine, but you’ll be glad you did.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4767-7709-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 31, 2015
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