SUNDAY BOOKS & CULTURE
Laurie Jacobson shares the personal journey with the Buddha from shattered life to wholeness, and a look at what's popular at the independent bookshops in town.
Unexpected Awakening: 22 Days at a Buddhist Monastery Freed Me from Abuse
By Laurie Jacobson
Reviewed By Martin Davis
Change is unsettling and disruptive.
At times, that disruption can instill fear and lead to distrust. We are seeing a great deal of that as the nation demonizes immigrants, suppresses the stories of those people who aren’t of European descent, and brands those who push back against the dehumanization of U.S. policies as not simply the loyal opposition but anti-American.
Change, however, can have the opposite effect. Rather than driving us to fear and hatred, it can bring us into wholeness.
Unexpected Awakening is the story of how change made Laurie Jacobson whole.
A Jewish woman married to an openly anti-Semitic man, Jacobson tells through her book how she emerged from her personal hell into a life of enlightenment that began with a one-week stay at a Buddhist monastery in West Virginia.
The visit turned into a 3-week stay when a snowstorm forced Jacobson to extend her stay. And over those 22 days, she would again find meaning and purpose in her life.
Written in the first person with a flair for making the reader feel not just that they’re walking in Jacobson’s shoes but also caring about the journey, Unexpected Awakening is a refreshing take on what it means to wrestle with pain and come through the journey whole.
Jacobson will be at Barnes & Noble bookstore in Fredericksburg this coming Saturday, July 25, from 1 to 5 pm signing copies of her book.
At the Independents
Looking for a new read? Fredericksburg’s independent bookstores can fill the bill. This month, Tales & Tails features a piece of historical fiction that traces the role of women in the Vietnam War, and the troubles they faced afterwards.
If you remember the TV series “China Beach,” or simply have an interest in the war that continues to sharply divide Americans, check out Kirstin Hannah’s The Women.
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