A heartfelt rhapsody to a hyperaware existence, full of beguiling effusions.
In this ardent exploration of being, Yu argues that if you want to reach enlightenment, all you need is love.
The author raises profound questions about “what it means to live and be alive” and locates answers in a deep cosmic principle: “[L]ove is the highest, and the only force, for nothing else is real and exists.” Once this idea is grasped, she contends, we can awaken to ecstatic (though not painless) lives of authenticity and fulfillment in which we “honor and appreciate everyone [we] meet” and attune ourselves to a “divine order” that is “beyond… comprehension.” To achieve this higher consciousness, Yu recommends that readers do “inner work” that increases their vibrational levels by cultivating attitudes of desire and openness to new things. She also champions accepting oneself and what is, living in the moment, relying on the “pendulum effect” that will swing our emotions back to equilibrium after outside influences rattle us, practicing meditation and prayer, and getting in some walking. Yu’s text blends Christian, Buddhist, and New Age motifs, often conveyed in a lofty, incantatory register—much of the book feels like an abstract but sonorous prose poem. (“And all that’s left is what simply is. / And that is, forever, the light. / You are of the light, my sweet. / You are of the brave, my love. / You are a symbol of peace. / You are the one. / You are love.”) Yu’s writing is at its most powerful when grounded in her lived experience, as when she describes a childhood allergy to sunlight that caused her skin to scale: “[A]ll the kids were getting on the bus…watching me laying back in the seat in pain, all whispering what was wrong with her, what’s up with her face, she looks like Godzilla.” Passages like this make the author’s invocations of mystical healing after trauma feel well-earned and convincing.
A heartfelt rhapsody to a hyperaware existence, full of beguiling effusions.Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2023
ISBN: 9781649539298
Page Count: 235
Publisher: Absolute Author Publishing House
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A conversational, pleasurable look into McConaughey’s life and thought.
All right, all right, all right: The affable, laconic actor delivers a combination of memoir and self-help book.
“This is an approach book,” writes McConaughey, adding that it contains “philosophies that can be objectively understood, and if you choose, subjectively adopted, by either changing your reality, or changing how you see it. This is a playbook, based on adventures in my life.” Some of those philosophies come in the form of apothegms: “When you can design your own weather, blow in the breeze”; “Simplify, focus, conserve to liberate.” Others come in the form of sometimes rambling stories that never take the shortest route from point A to point B, as when he recounts a dream-spurred, challenging visit to the Malian musician Ali Farka Touré, who offered a significant lesson in how disagreement can be expressed politely and without rancor. Fans of McConaughey will enjoy his memories—which line up squarely with other accounts in Melissa Maerz’s recent oral history, Alright, Alright, Alright—of his debut in Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, to which he contributed not just that signature phrase, but also a kind of too-cool-for-school hipness that dissolves a bit upon realizing that he’s an older guy on the prowl for teenage girls. McConaughey’s prep to settle into the role of Wooderson involved inhabiting the mind of a dude who digs cars, rock ’n’ roll, and “chicks,” and he ran with it, reminding readers that the film originally had only three scripted scenes for his character. The lesson: “Do one thing well, then another. Once, then once more.” It’s clear that the author is a thoughtful man, even an intellectual of sorts, though without the earnestness of Ethan Hawke or James Franco. Though some of the sentiments are greeting card–ish, this book is entertaining and full of good lessons.
A conversational, pleasurable look into McConaughey’s life and thought.Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-13913-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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