THE CURE AT WALDEN POND

Henry David Thoreau and the modern art of soul-making.

Moore, the author of the bestselling Care of the Soul (1992), considers the life and work of Henry David Thoreau, the 19th-century essayist who favored simple living in natural surroundings. In 50 short meditations on passages from Thoreau’s essays, letters, and journals, Moore blends his subject’s insights with his own experiences as a psychotherapist, monk, writer, and reader. Thoreau famously retreated to Walden Pond to live deliberately and to confront “only the essential facts of life.” Moore claims that his subject’s “vernacular lifestyle” holds many lessons for us today. He writes, “A slight move from your standard life, especially into the primeval wild of nature, can reset your life and give it the elusive purpose you may have been looking for.” Like Thoreau, he believes that encounters with nature can heal, civilize, enchant, and elevate. He suggests that everyday activities—walking, reading, and keeping a journal—can become sacraments. He also praises the virtues of listening to music—unlike Thoreau, who, as Moore writes, “picked on classical music performed in polite society, saying he would rather hear the music of crickets than attend an opera in the city.” Along the way, the author commends Thoreau’s spirit of disobedience, especially his rejection of materialism and spiritual emptiness. By abandoning greed and narrowness, we can rediscover “a refuge of myth and profound meaning.” Finally, Moore emphasizes authenticity and the importance of speaking in one’s own voice. Although he quotes a wide range of prominent writers and thinkers, his style is clear and accessible, and his short chapters can be read and savored in almost any order.

An eloquent call for deliberate living.