Best Spiritual Books of 1998
The Spirituality & Health Awards
Selected by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Our selections for the best spiritual books of 1998 offer ample testimony to the diversity of practices and depth of ideas in today's spiritual renaissance.
BUDDHISM
Inner Revolution: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Real Happiness by Robert Thurman (Riverhead, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 1-57322-090-6)
CHILDREN
To Every Thing There Is a Season by Leo and Diane Dillon (Blue Sky Press, hardcover, $15.95, ISBN 0-590-47887-7)
CHRISTIANITY
Things Seen and Unseen: A Year Lived in Faith by Nora Gallagher (Alfred A. Knopf, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-679-45132-3)
COMMUNITY
The Healing Wisdom of Africa: Finding Life Purpose Through Nature, Ritual, and Community by Malidoma Patrice Some (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 0-87477-939-1)
COMPASSION
A Call for Connection: Solutions for Creating a Whole New Culture by Gail Bernice Holland (New World Library, paperback, $14.95, ISBN 1-57731-039-X)
COMPUTERS
Cybergrace: The Search for God in the Digital World by Jennifer J. Cobb (Crown, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-517-70679-2)
CREATIVITY
Trust the Process: An Artist's Guide to Letting Go by Shaun McNiff (Shambhala, paperback, $14.00, ISBN 1-57062-357-0)
CULTURAL CRITICISM
The Argument Culture: Moving from Debate to Dialogue by Deborah Tannen (Random House, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-679-45602-3)
DANCE
Sweat Your Prayers: Movement as Spiritual Practice by Gabrielle Roth (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $22.95, ISBN 0-87477-878-6)
DEVOTION
Psalms for Zero Gravity: Prayers for Life's Emigrants by Edward Hays (Forest of Peace Publishing, paperback, $14.95, ISBN 0-939516-42-X)
EDUCATION
The Courage To Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life by Parker Palmer (Jossey-Bass, hardcover, $22.00, ISBN 0-7879-1058-9)
ESOTERIC
Making the Gods Work for You: The Astrological Language of the Psyche by Caroline W. Casey (Harmony Books, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-609-60058-3)
ESSAYS
Small Graces: The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life by Kent Nerburn (New World Library, hardcover, $15.00, ISBN 1-57731-072-1)
EVIL
The Powers That Be: Theology for a New Millennium by Walter Wink (Doubleday, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 0-385-48740-1)
FREEDOM
Love, Soul and Freedom: Dancing with Rumi on the Mystic Path by Denise Breton and Christopher Largent (Hazelden, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 1-56838-207-3)
FOOD
The Kabbalah of Food: Conscious Eating for Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Health by Nilton Bonder (Shambhala, hardcover, $18.00, ISBN 1-57-62-347-3)
HEALTH AND HEALING
The Five Elements of Self-Healing: Using Chinese Medicine for Maximum Immunity, Wellness, and Health by Jason Elias and Katherine Ketcham (Harmony Books, hardcover, $27.50, ISBN 0-517-70487-0)
HINDUISM
Darsan: Seeing the Divine Image in India by Diana L. Eck (Columbia University Press, paperback, $13.50, ISBN 0-231-11265-3)
HOPE
Hunting for Hope: A Father's Journeys by Scott Russell Sanders (Beacon Press, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-8070-6324-X)
IMAGINATION
Meetings with the Archangel: A Comedy of the Spirit by Stephen Mitchell (HarperCollins, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-06-018245-8)
JOURNALS
The Other Side of the Mountain: The End of the Journey, The Journals of Thomas Merton, Volume Seven, 1967-68 edited by Patrick Hart (HarperSanFrancisco, hardcover, $30.00, ISBN 0-06-065486-4)
JUDAISM
The Shambhala Guide to Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism by Perle Besserman (Shambhala, paperback, $12.00, ISBN 1-57062-215-9)
LIVES
Balancing Heaven and Earth: A Memoir of Visions, Dreams, and Realizations by Robert A. Johnson with Jerry M. Ruhl (HarperSanFrancisco, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-06-251506-3)
MEANING
Reclaiming Spirituality by Diarmuid O Murchu (Crossroad, paperback, ISBN 0-8245-1723-7)
MYSTICISM
Son of Man: The Mystical Path to Christ by Andrew Harvey (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $23.95, ISBN 0-87477-912-X)
NATIVE AMERICAN SPIRITUALITY
Power by Linda Hogan (W. W. Norton, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-393-04636-2)
NATURE
Heartwood: Meditations on Southern Oaks with photography by William Guion and poetry by Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks in collaboration with John Moyne (Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown, hardcover, $22.50, ISBN 0-8212-2531-6)
PEACE
Bearing Witness: A Zen Master's Lessons in Making Peace by Bernie Glassman (Bell Tower, hardcover, $22.00, ISBN 0-609-60061-3)
PILGRIMAGE
The Art of Pilgrimage: The Seeker's Guide to Making Travel Sacred by Phil Cousineau (Cona ri Press, hardcover, $20.00, ISBN 1-57324-080-X)
PLACE
The Solace of Fierce Landscapes: Exploring Desert and Mountain Spirituality by Belden C. Lane (Oxford University Press, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-19-511682-8)
PLAY
Why the Chicken Crossed the Road and Other Hidden Enlightenment Teachings from Buddha to Bebop to Mother Goose by Dean Sluyter (Tarcher/Putnam, paperback, $12.95, ISBN 0-87477-905-7)
PRACTICE
Thoughts Matter: The Practice of the Spiritual Life by Mary Margaret Funk (Continuum, hardcover, $15.95, ISBN 0-8264-1063-4)
PRAYER
Living Prayer by Robert Benson (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 0-87477-920-0)
PSYCHOLOGY
Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart: A Buddhist Perspective on Wholeness by Mark Epstein (Broadway Books, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-7670-0234-3)
RELATIONSHIPS
Thank You for Being Such a Pain: Spiritual Guidance for Dealing with Difficult People by Mark I. Rosen (Harmony Books, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-609-60099-0)
RELIGION
Shopping for Faith: American Religion in the New Millennium by Richard Cimino and Don Lattin (Jossey-Bass, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-7879-4170-0)
REVERENCE
About This Life: Journeys on the Threshold of Memory by Barry Lopez (Alfred A. Knopf, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-679-43454-2)
SAINTS
Bodhisattva Archetypes: Classic Buddhist Guides to Awakening and Their Modern Expression by Taigen Daniel Leighton (Penguin/Arkana, paperback, $14.95, ISBN 0-14-019556-4)
SERVICE
A Quaker Book of Wisdom: Life Lessons in Simplicity, Service, and Common Sense by Robert Lawrence Smith (Eagle Brook/William Morrow, hardcover, $19.95, ISBN 0-688-15653-3)
SEX
The Soul of Sex: Cultivating Life as an Act of Love by Thomas Moore (HarperCollins, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-06-018697-6)
SHADOW
The Dark Side of the Light Chasers: Reclaiming Your Power, Creativity, Brilliance, and Dreams by Debbie Ford (Riverhead, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 1-57322-096-5)
SHAMANISM
Secrets of the Talking Jaguar: A Mayan Shaman's Journey to the Heart of the Indigenous Soul by Martin Prechtel (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $25.95, ISBN 0-87477-900-6)
SPIRITUALITY
After Heaven: Spirituality in America Since the 1950s by Robert Wuthnow (University of California Press, hardcover, $29.95, ISBN 0-520-21396-3)
SUFFERING AND LOSS
The Heart of Buddha's Teaching: Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation by Thich Nhat Hanh (Parallax Press, hardcover, $22.50, ISBN 0-9380777-813)
TEACHERS
Daybreak Within: Living in a Sacred World by Rich Heffern (Forest of Peace, paperback, $11.95, ISBN 0-939516-41-1)
TIME
Time and the Soul: Where Has All the Meaningful Time Gone? . . . and How to Get It Back by Jacob Needleman (Currency/Doubleday, hardcover, $16.00, ISBN 0-385-48177-2)
URBAN LIVING
A Home in the Heart of a City: A Woman's Search for Community by Kathleen Hirsch (North Point Press/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-374-28079-7)
WOMEN'S SPIRITUALITY
The Woman Awake: Feminine Wisdom for Spiritual Life by Regina Sara Ryan (Hohm Press, paperback, $19.95, ISBN 0-934252-79-3)
WORLD RELIGIONS
Spiritual Advice for Buddhists and Christians by His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Donald W. Mitchell, editor (Continuum, paperback, $10.95, ISBN 0-8264-1076-6)
ZEN
The Light Inside the Dark: Zen, Soul, and the Spiritual Life by John Tarrant (HarperCollins, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-06-017219-3)
Selected by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Our selections for the best spiritual books of 1998 offer ample testimony to the diversity of practices and depth of ideas in today's spiritual renaissance.
BUDDHISM
Inner Revolution: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Real Happiness by Robert Thurman (Riverhead, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 1-57322-090-6)
CHILDREN
To Every Thing There Is a Season by Leo and Diane Dillon (Blue Sky Press, hardcover, $15.95, ISBN 0-590-47887-7)
CHRISTIANITY
Things Seen and Unseen: A Year Lived in Faith by Nora Gallagher (Alfred A. Knopf, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-679-45132-3)
COMMUNITY
The Healing Wisdom of Africa: Finding Life Purpose Through Nature, Ritual, and Community by Malidoma Patrice Some (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 0-87477-939-1)
COMPASSION
A Call for Connection: Solutions for Creating a Whole New Culture by Gail Bernice Holland (New World Library, paperback, $14.95, ISBN 1-57731-039-X)
COMPUTERS
Cybergrace: The Search for God in the Digital World by Jennifer J. Cobb (Crown, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-517-70679-2)
CREATIVITY
Trust the Process: An Artist's Guide to Letting Go by Shaun McNiff (Shambhala, paperback, $14.00, ISBN 1-57062-357-0)
CULTURAL CRITICISM
The Argument Culture: Moving from Debate to Dialogue by Deborah Tannen (Random House, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-679-45602-3)
DANCE
Sweat Your Prayers: Movement as Spiritual Practice by Gabrielle Roth (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $22.95, ISBN 0-87477-878-6)
DEVOTION
Psalms for Zero Gravity: Prayers for Life's Emigrants by Edward Hays (Forest of Peace Publishing, paperback, $14.95, ISBN 0-939516-42-X)
EDUCATION
The Courage To Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life by Parker Palmer (Jossey-Bass, hardcover, $22.00, ISBN 0-7879-1058-9)
ESOTERIC
Making the Gods Work for You: The Astrological Language of the Psyche by Caroline W. Casey (Harmony Books, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-609-60058-3)
ESSAYS
Small Graces: The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life by Kent Nerburn (New World Library, hardcover, $15.00, ISBN 1-57731-072-1)
EVIL
The Powers That Be: Theology for a New Millennium by Walter Wink (Doubleday, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 0-385-48740-1)
FREEDOM
Love, Soul and Freedom: Dancing with Rumi on the Mystic Path by Denise Breton and Christopher Largent (Hazelden, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 1-56838-207-3)
FOOD
The Kabbalah of Food: Conscious Eating for Physical, Emotional, and Spiritual Health by Nilton Bonder (Shambhala, hardcover, $18.00, ISBN 1-57-62-347-3)
HEALTH AND HEALING
The Five Elements of Self-Healing: Using Chinese Medicine for Maximum Immunity, Wellness, and Health by Jason Elias and Katherine Ketcham (Harmony Books, hardcover, $27.50, ISBN 0-517-70487-0)
HINDUISM
Darsan: Seeing the Divine Image in India by Diana L. Eck (Columbia University Press, paperback, $13.50, ISBN 0-231-11265-3)
HOPE
Hunting for Hope: A Father's Journeys by Scott Russell Sanders (Beacon Press, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-8070-6324-X)
IMAGINATION
Meetings with the Archangel: A Comedy of the Spirit by Stephen Mitchell (HarperCollins, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-06-018245-8)
JOURNALS
The Other Side of the Mountain: The End of the Journey, The Journals of Thomas Merton, Volume Seven, 1967-68 edited by Patrick Hart (HarperSanFrancisco, hardcover, $30.00, ISBN 0-06-065486-4)
JUDAISM
The Shambhala Guide to Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism by Perle Besserman (Shambhala, paperback, $12.00, ISBN 1-57062-215-9)
LIVES
Balancing Heaven and Earth: A Memoir of Visions, Dreams, and Realizations by Robert A. Johnson with Jerry M. Ruhl (HarperSanFrancisco, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-06-251506-3)
MEANING
Reclaiming Spirituality by Diarmuid O Murchu (Crossroad, paperback, ISBN 0-8245-1723-7)
MYSTICISM
Son of Man: The Mystical Path to Christ by Andrew Harvey (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $23.95, ISBN 0-87477-912-X)
NATIVE AMERICAN SPIRITUALITY
Power by Linda Hogan (W. W. Norton, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-393-04636-2)
NATURE
Heartwood: Meditations on Southern Oaks with photography by William Guion and poetry by Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks in collaboration with John Moyne (Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown, hardcover, $22.50, ISBN 0-8212-2531-6)
PEACE
Bearing Witness: A Zen Master's Lessons in Making Peace by Bernie Glassman (Bell Tower, hardcover, $22.00, ISBN 0-609-60061-3)
PILGRIMAGE
The Art of Pilgrimage: The Seeker's Guide to Making Travel Sacred by Phil Cousineau (Cona ri Press, hardcover, $20.00, ISBN 1-57324-080-X)
PLACE
The Solace of Fierce Landscapes: Exploring Desert and Mountain Spirituality by Belden C. Lane (Oxford University Press, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-19-511682-8)
PLAY
Why the Chicken Crossed the Road and Other Hidden Enlightenment Teachings from Buddha to Bebop to Mother Goose by Dean Sluyter (Tarcher/Putnam, paperback, $12.95, ISBN 0-87477-905-7)
PRACTICE
Thoughts Matter: The Practice of the Spiritual Life by Mary Margaret Funk (Continuum, hardcover, $15.95, ISBN 0-8264-1063-4)
PRAYER
Living Prayer by Robert Benson (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 0-87477-920-0)
PSYCHOLOGY
Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart: A Buddhist Perspective on Wholeness by Mark Epstein (Broadway Books, hardcover, $23.00, ISBN 0-7670-0234-3)
RELATIONSHIPS
Thank You for Being Such a Pain: Spiritual Guidance for Dealing with Difficult People by Mark I. Rosen (Harmony Books, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-609-60099-0)
RELIGION
Shopping for Faith: American Religion in the New Millennium by Richard Cimino and Don Lattin (Jossey-Bass, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-7879-4170-0)
REVERENCE
About This Life: Journeys on the Threshold of Memory by Barry Lopez (Alfred A. Knopf, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-679-43454-2)
SAINTS
Bodhisattva Archetypes: Classic Buddhist Guides to Awakening and Their Modern Expression by Taigen Daniel Leighton (Penguin/Arkana, paperback, $14.95, ISBN 0-14-019556-4)
SERVICE
A Quaker Book of Wisdom: Life Lessons in Simplicity, Service, and Common Sense by Robert Lawrence Smith (Eagle Brook/William Morrow, hardcover, $19.95, ISBN 0-688-15653-3)
SEX
The Soul of Sex: Cultivating Life as an Act of Love by Thomas Moore (HarperCollins, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-06-018697-6)
SHADOW
The Dark Side of the Light Chasers: Reclaiming Your Power, Creativity, Brilliance, and Dreams by Debbie Ford (Riverhead, hardcover, $21.95, ISBN 1-57322-096-5)
SHAMANISM
Secrets of the Talking Jaguar: A Mayan Shaman's Journey to the Heart of the Indigenous Soul by Martin Prechtel (Tarcher/Putnam, hardcover, $25.95, ISBN 0-87477-900-6)
SPIRITUALITY
After Heaven: Spirituality in America Since the 1950s by Robert Wuthnow (University of California Press, hardcover, $29.95, ISBN 0-520-21396-3)
SUFFERING AND LOSS
The Heart of Buddha's Teaching: Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation by Thich Nhat Hanh (Parallax Press, hardcover, $22.50, ISBN 0-9380777-813)
TEACHERS
Daybreak Within: Living in a Sacred World by Rich Heffern (Forest of Peace, paperback, $11.95, ISBN 0-939516-41-1)
TIME
Time and the Soul: Where Has All the Meaningful Time Gone? . . . and How to Get It Back by Jacob Needleman (Currency/Doubleday, hardcover, $16.00, ISBN 0-385-48177-2)
URBAN LIVING
A Home in the Heart of a City: A Woman's Search for Community by Kathleen Hirsch (North Point Press/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, hardcover, $24.00, ISBN 0-374-28079-7)
WOMEN'S SPIRITUALITY
The Woman Awake: Feminine Wisdom for Spiritual Life by Regina Sara Ryan (Hohm Press, paperback, $19.95, ISBN 0-934252-79-3)
WORLD RELIGIONS
Spiritual Advice for Buddhists and Christians by His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Donald W. Mitchell, editor (Continuum, paperback, $10.95, ISBN 0-8264-1076-6)
ZEN
The Light Inside the Dark: Zen, Soul, and the Spiritual Life by John Tarrant (HarperCollins, hardcover, $25.00, ISBN 0-06-017219-3)
Reviews copyright 1998 - 2007 by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, SpiritualityandPractice.com.
