Amazon.com
Mary Taylor Simeti arrived in Sicily in 1962 to do volunteer work. Freshly graduated from Radcliffe College after growing up in a distinguished and privileged New York City family, the last thing she expected was to fall in love and marry a Sicilian. On Persephone's Island: A Sicilian Journal is the ambivalent love story of an intelligent, complex, and self-reflective woman. The book recounts the events of 1983, the year Simeti turned 42. Her narrative alternates between Palermo, where her children attend school and her husband Toninno is a professor of agricultural economy, and Bosco, in eastern Sicily, where she shoulders demanding responsibilities on the working farm that has belonged to her husband's family for three generations.
Simeti feels the isolation of being an expatriate and outsider, although she claims to welcome this perspective when faced with frustration and disgust at the pervading political corruption and corrosive effects of the Mafia on everyday life. Despite her natural diffidence, she shares personal insights that makeOn Persephone's Island as compelling as her prose. Simeti intersperses rich helpings of Sicilian history and culture with mundane events and insight into what motivates the peasants essential to the survival of the family farm. And she makes pessimistic observations about the complexity of changing times in a society where the persistent reliance on feudal relationships and agriculture is finally crumbling.
An academic manqué, Simeti researches and ruminates on the mythological underpinnings of the many holidays and festivals that punctuate the rhythm of Sicilian life. She focuses particularly on the Greek goddesses Persephone and Demeter, who held Sicily under their protection. She eventually discovers a correlation between her own situation and the story of Persephone, who alternately inhabited the worlds of light and darkness.
Customer Reviews:
What a treasure!.......2007-07-23
If you are even remotely thinking about going to Sicily, you should read this wonderful book. Deep understanding of this unique, strange amazing island, seen also with an American's eye. I was reading it while I was there, and it opened up everything I saw in ways that would have been impossible. Like being with a Sicilian friend.
Little Stilted and Hard to Get Through.......2007-02-09
I had high expectations for this book, but I find that it's quite hard to get through. I am very passionate about Italy, and especially Sicily, so it's not a lack of interest, but I find Simeti's writing to be a little hard to wade through. There's a bit of a feminist/pessimistic slant to her writing and be prepared for long sentences with multiple adjectives.
Fantastic read.......2005-08-14
This book really gave an insightful and intriguing depiction of Sicily, its traditions and its history. The story line carried it along very nicely without reverting to a guide book. I'm Italian American and throughly enjoyed it. This book is a must for those interested in the Island.
Gorgeously written, informative and evocative.......2005-03-31
Simeti does a great job of talking about her adopted home. The story works well on two levels - discussing the mythology, history, and culture of Sicily, but also weaving in her responses, frustrations, fears, and joys about her life as an American woman turned Italian wife and mother. One of my favorite books about Italy.
ON THE ISLAND OF DRECK.......2001-06-27
It irks me that Mary Taylor Simeti is in possession of any of my money! That any publisher found ON PERSEPHONE'S ISLAND worthy of print astounds me! Be warned, you get exactly what is promised, a journal! Simeti's is a dry account, devoid of humor, insight and passion and is written with a lofty phraseology: a deadly combination that had better not be contagious! To be honest, I found the book so dull I was unable to read it straight through, so after eighty pages, I began skiping around in search of entertainment, since there is no story. I found none!
If you're searching for an escape to another place, a glimpse into another life or culture, or just plain fun, look elsewhere! You will find none of the above here! Half a star-because the cover is very nice, if misleading!
Average customer rating:
- Evocative and Earthly
- The Entrance to the Underworld: Death and Classicism
- Fast, well packaged delivery
- When I Think of Louise Gluck's Averno...
- Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
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Averno: Poems
Louise Gluck
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
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ASIN: 0374107424
Release Date: 2006-03-07 |
Book Description
Averno is a small crater lake in southern Italy, regarded by the ancient Romans as the entrance to the underworld. That place gives its name to Louise Glück’s eleventh collection: in a landscape turned irretrievably to winter, it is the only source of heat and light, a gate or passageway that invites traffic between worlds while at the same time opposing their reconciliation. Averno is an extended lamentation, its long, restless poems no less spellbinding for being without plot or hope, no less ravishing for being savage, grief-stricken. What Averno provides is not a map to a point of arrival or departure, but a diagram of where we are, the harrowing, enduring presence.
Customer Reviews:
Evocative and Earthly.......2007-07-08
Louise Gluck remains an elegant poet, able to evoke the mysteries of being crafted in the forms of gods while surviving our humanity. She is quick to capture our attention and lingers as we put her book aside in response to daily obligations.
The Entrance to the Underworld: Death and Classicism.......2006-12-23
Louise Glück is a radiant poet. She molds her words and phrases, meter and lines, message and thoughts as a master craftsman. This is her tenth collection of poems and for this reader it is her finest.
The title of the book is the title of the poem ensemble: Averno is a small crater in Italy believed by ancient Romans to be the opening in earth's crust that provided a path to the underworld. It is in this setting that Glück retells the myth of Persephone in eighteen poems in a manner that visits death, anguish, dark lamentations all in a way that makes each of the poems like the intricate complex of a Chinese puzzle.
While some poets are content to re-visit the classics, 'translating' them into contemporary language, Glück is not satisfied to plagiarize. Instead she takes the myth and transforms it into paths to introspection, raising artful questions and thoughts that she adamantly refuses to answer for us. It is the work of a genius poet. It is a treasure of a book. Grady Harp, December 06
Fast, well packaged delivery.......2006-08-30
The book "Averno" appeared almost immediately after I ordered it. The service was efficient and the packaging was secure.
When I Think of Louise Gluck's Averno..........2006-04-26
I can barely breathe. It's not because I'm a female in some kind of a swoon. It's because she never fails to tell the truth no matter how hard it might be to swallow. Also, most of the Master poets (among which Ms. Gluck surely is included) never, ever fail to tackle those dark, disturbing, complex places most of us refuse to even consider let alone pen as a work of art. As a result, this collection shines, literally, in the dark. I don't care if she uses an ancient mythic-metaphor that has been employed before. I don't care if some find it 'depressing.' But I very much care when a Masterpiece like this doesn't get the 5-star rating I believe it deserves. Ms. Gluck is among the most courageous poets worldwide. I'd say that puts her at the top of my list...exactly where she has always been.
Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word.......2006-04-03
As Louise Gluck reminds us, Averno is a small lake, famous for being the entrance to the underworld. Her notoriety as a poet who will spare nothing to achieve perfection takes another corner here, as she jumps from angle to angle all the while drinking in the sad, almost preternaturally pertinent life ( and afterlife ) of the demi-goddess Persephone who, as the daughter of Demeter, wound up sold down the river to pleasure Hades in return for allowing the eternal harvest to continue here on Earth.
Averno is not only a lake, but a crater, and thus the cold darkness of the moon, beyond which Pink Floyd could only sniff the nitrate, penetrates into Gluck's patented rhythms. She is cold here because her subject is cold. We all know the myth of Persephone, and perhaps it is an overworked subject, but Gluck manages to give it a bit of a refreshener course by showing us that the US incursion into Iraq is yet another byproduct of the ever poignant power brokerage between the forces of Demeter and the forces of hellfire. As she grows older, she realizes, she just doesn't care any more about the things that obsessed her as a young, lyric poet. And she must get tired of Anne Carson continually eclipsing her reputation with classical coverage all her own, with even more quirks than Gluck. But if so, she only shows an icy hauteur, for the young and healthy (and stupid), not only the students of Yale, where she sometimes teaches, but all of us who lack her enviable distance from feeling. The sheer perfection of her syllabics is daunting, but many have endured and came to a place where her yearning to be loved meets with a corresponding affection. "I want to say--I'm just not interested anymore./ /I wake up thinking/ you have to prepare./ Soon the spirits will give up--all the chairs in the world won't help you." This is a brief medley of lines from "Averno" itself, a poem in which a bit of Gluck's own personality squeaks through the rigidly constucted dramatic monologues she has created for Persephone to speak.
In "Archaic Fragment" (page 52 of my edition), syntax itself breaks down, as does the poet's unique ability to represent the obvious: "AIAIAIAI cried/ the naked mirror." When she started so many years ago, the poet AI was a rival. Now she is almost alone on Parnassus, except for pesky Anne Carson. "I want my heart back," she cries. "I want to feel everything again--" (Blue Rotunda," one of several rotund pieces here.) She is like Robert Browning, creating a social order out of a random, often violent, vision of anarchy. She wants to "see what you're saying goodbye to." Not for nothing is "NO" the last syllable of, --AVERNO.
Customer Reviews:
Phone your bookstore, Get this book!.......2006-04-10
We all know the myth of Persephone. How she was snatched from the earth by the evil Hades, and he forced her to become his bride.
What we didn't know, was that Hades Little brother Zeus, had re-written history! The part about Hades snatching Persephone? Total rubbish. She jumped on his Chariot in an attempt to get away from her obsessive mother! Forced her to be his bride? Hades was keen on getting her out of the Underworld!
In a twist of hilarious and entertaining twists, Hades and Persephone take a liking to each other, and eventally fall in love. But Zeus has other plans. Will Hades actually be able to marry Persephone?
Phone Home, Persephone! is a fantastic read, Telling us the true story behind Persephone and Hades.
Do you like Scieszka?.......2005-11-08
Greek myths can be nifty stories just by themselves.
And these are "fractured fairy-tale" style myths, told from the perspective of long-suffering older brother Hades, who has to endure the spoilt tantrums of his youngest brother Zeus...and other myth-sized misisadventures.
Fun for read-aloud!
Greek myths are cool!.......2005-03-26
I never knew greek mythology was so interesing i mean in class i always snore but when i started reading this series boy did things cleared up.I love when persphone met hades and cupid shot that arrow at hades.Another part i liked was when persphone`s mom came and hades that myth-o-manic! came and they all knew about hades getting married! I hope everyone enjoys it as much as i did!
Wedding-wedding-wedding.......2003-09-14
This was one of the funniest books I have read in my life. Ther was no action but it was a good romance novel. there was one part in it I first thought was exceptionally good. Then I realized that part was a joke. The only to make it better is if the wedding was more detailed. But in Greek Myths it never said Hades and Persephone got married...strange.
What a Riot!.......2003-04-06
My middle school daughter has loved this series, which she read after the Lemony Snicket books. The stories have inspired her to learn more about the original Greek myths. Keep them coming! Her comments: "This book is hilarious, especially when Demeter throws a temper tantrum over her daughter. You would think a mother would behave better than that. These gods have cell phones and big screen TVs! All the books are a riot."
Amazon.com
For many, Greece is a land lost in time. It conjures up images of the looming Parthenon with its pillars of marble and the timeless whitewashed buildings of its parched islands glinting against a backdrop of the crystal blue Mediterranean. But ask about contemporary Greece and most people draw a blank. In Dinner with Persephone, poet Patricia Storace does a compelling job of filling in this empty canvas. She conjures a country where history and modernity coexist in often surprising ways, and with the past as an ineluctable backdrop, Storace paints in the everyday details that bring the country and its people vividly to life.
Book Description
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year
"Full of insights, marvelously entertaining . . . haunting and beautifully written."
--The New York Review of Books
"I lived in Athens, at the intersection of a prostitute and a saint." So begins Patricia Storace's astonishing memoir of her year in Greece. Mixing affection with detachment, rapture with clarity, this American poet perfectly evokes a country delicately balanced between East and West.
Whether she is interpreting Hellenic dream books, pop songs, and soap operas, describing breathtakingly beautiful beaches and archaic villages, or braving the crush at a saint's tomb, Storace, winner of the Whiting Award, rewards the reader with informed and sensual insights into Greece's soul. She sees how the country's pride in its past coexists with profound doubts about its place in the modern world. She discovers a world in which past and present engage in a passionate dialogue. Stylish, funny, and erudite, Dinner with Persephone is travel writing elevated to a fine art--and the best book of its kind since Henry Miller's The Colossus of Maroussi.
"Splendid. Storace's account of a year in Greece combines past and present, legend and fact, in an unusual and delightful whole. "
--Atlantic Monthly
Customer Reviews:
Greece warts and all.......2006-06-12
Storace, a Greek speaking writer goes to Athens to work for a year. She visits various islands and tourst sites describing these in interesting detail. Storace also recounts her personal contacts with oversolicitous men who make it very clear that women are meant to get married and stay home. Women are objects for men and infrequently taken seriously. The writer has ambiguous feelings about the Greeks. She does make lots of friends, but doesn't seem anxious to go back.
hate it! hate it! hate it!.......2006-01-17
In the spirit of fairness I have attempted to read this book twice now and have put it down with a sick feeling in my gut. It's the same feeling I get whenever I find myself in the company of someone extraordinarily pretentious and self-absorbed. I just wanted to read something intersesting about Greece. Instead, this book tells me a lot more about the peculiar psychology of the author more than anything else. I hate knowing I wasted my money of this drivel. I've yet to find a better example of mental mastrubation in my Amazon purchases.
Living Mythology.......2005-11-23
This book is an interesting juxtaposition of travelogue and mythology. As a child, Storace was fascinated with the stories and characters of Greek mythology. This led to a life-long fascination with Greece and Greeks, not only of the ancient culture, but as they are today. In this book, Storace takes us on a journey to her Greece, a land that is inseparable from its mythic past. She narrates to us stories of people she met in Greece, repeating the stories they told her, all the while relating the stories to the ancient tales from Greek mythology. As a travel journal, the book is a little heavy on allusions and symbolism and a little light on realistic imagery. But direct descriptions of events is not what this book is about-instead it is the personal story of how Storace finds meaning in Greek culture through her own integration of history, mythology and observation of contemporary society.
Stunning, Marvellous Book.......2005-11-10
I am busy reading this book, in Greece, and came here to try and get some insight and background on the author. As someone who first came to Greece 35 years ago, married an Athenian girl, and have lived in Greece for 10 of those years (we are now "some of the many people who have eaten the seeds of the pomegranate and live our lives in the pattern of Persephone" - six months on our island, six in Athens), I was totally knocked out by this dense, exuberant and very perceptive account of a year in Greece, astonished at the author's depth of knowledge of Classical, Byzantine, and Modern Greek history, and her proficiency in the Greek language, her poet's love of words, her sensitivity. I delighted in the descriptions of familiar places, people, attitudes and the festive occasions and rhythms of the Greek religious calendar, so many of them joyously preserved from pagan times. On virtually every page I learned new facts, gained new insight into things dimly understood, and smiled at wonderful descriptions of familiar situations. I became intrigued to learn more about the writer's background, the source of her fascination with the country, history and culture and the underlying reason for her stay.. Was this her first visit? Has she been back? I would love to spend a long summer evening at an outdoor taverna with Patricia and her friends, learning more about her and sharing that mixture of exasperation and love which is such a common response of expatriates in Greece. Worthy to be ranked with Henry Miller ("Colossus of Maroussi") and Lawrence Durrell ("Prospero's Cell" et.al.) as a literary chronicler of Greece.
Earthy, honest, and insightful !!.......2005-06-28
Storace is an excellent writer. I marvel at how much she picked up spending only one year in Greece. She writes with great detail, almost brutal honesty, and in so doing, produced an earthy and provocative look at Greece with a foreigner's insightful analysis. With Patricia you smell the herbs, the exhaust, and the perspiration. "No holds barred" travel writing!
Reviewed by David Lundberg, author of Olympic Wandering: Time Travel Through Greece
Customer Reviews:
A glimpse into our past.......2007-06-11
The subtitle to this book is Entheogens and the Origins of Religion. For those not familiar with the term entheogen it literally means `god generated within' and refers to the various psychoactive substances that have been used throughout history in a spiritual context. These include the mushroom cults of rural modern Mexico, the use of a soma by the ancient Indo-European Aryan culture of pre Hindi India, and even in the rites of the Eleusis ceremonies of classical Greece. As can be inferred at this point, the book concerns itself to the investigation of these different spiritual rites that appear to form an almost common theme throughout the development of religion around the world. Wasson is the driving force behind not only the book, but also the study of entheogens as a discipline around the world. His pioneering world in the field of ethnomycology and ethnobotany in the 1940's and 50's lead him to be the first person from the western world to partake in the sacred mushroom rituals of Mesoamerica in 1953.
The book itself is divided into two parts. The first consists of essays by R. Gordon Wasson, Stella Kramrisch, and Jonathan Ott covering everything from analysis of the last meal of the Buddha and the connections in mythology between the lightning bolt and the mushroom to the systematic gathering of evidence across cultures and history of the widespread use of entheogens in religious rites. The second part of the book consists of three essays from Carl A. P. Ruck, a distinguished Greek scholar. As would make sense, Ruck's essays focus a bit more intently on the relation of entheogens to ancient Greek society.
Any book that is a compilation of separate works from separate authors is inevitably going to suffer from a general lack of flow or cohesion and Persephone's Quest is no exception. Certain parts read better than other, notably Wasson's efforts lead the way in this regard, but as a whole the theories and ideas raised are of the prime importance. Ruck's efforts could also be viewed as a bit tiresome, but I am a bit biased in this regard as Greek history is of immense interest and an area of study for me. Some of what Ruck describes may be lost on readers not familiar with the ancient Greek world, but then again this is the case regarding almost any area. Anyone with an interest in entheogens of psychedelics in the parlance of recreational usage will do themselves well to read this book.
It certainly holds a great deal of relevance for today's world and can in fact still be seen in some of the worlds great religions such as Hinduism, where often times a surrogate has replaced the original entheogen, in the Hindu case soma was replaced with the putka mushroom, which is not psychoactive. The simple fact that the use of entheogens was/is so widespread throughout human history is a reason to study it and the current prejudice held against such substances by many academics and authority figures is completely unfounded. It seems almost to be part of a larger movement within a certain section of society that is willing to dismiss the scientific-analytical approach to such diverse topics as global warming, evolution, stem cell research and other so called `controversial' topics. In fact it seems to me that this dismissal of reason is usually coming from some sort of religion inspired dogma.
In light of this the book will probably not be accepted very warmly in religious circles, which is unfortunate. What is maybe more unfortunate is that the will the part of society that readily accepts the side of reason in most of the aforementioned topics continues to persist by in large to a wholesale rejection of examining entheogens and their importance in the development of human civilization. This book is a good start to hopefully change the popular perception on these remarkable substances.
Meno in the sky with diamonds..........2007-01-31
This is a fascinating topic, but the book is not well-written. First, the authors have a unifying theme, but the book doesn't really work as a survey. The essays are each hyperspecialized and a good editor would have included some introductory material covering the entire field and knitting the text together over any large gaps. Wasson's introductory essay doesn't seem to anticipate the material he is introducing.
Moreover, Wasson's contributions are written in a perplexing and awkward style. The text is surprisingly personal, with a lot more wistful reminiscence than straightforward argument. He clearly aimed to compose something a bit more thoughtful and artistic than is typical of academic writing. Unfortunately, his attempts at narrative break up the logical structure of his argument, and his strange word and phrase choices often obscure the points he is trying to convey. He presumes a level of familiarity with both his own prior work and with "shop talk" of biology and anthropology. He invokes the names of obscure tribes and mushrooms with which I was unfamiliar, and really doesn't lay any groundwork for his terminology.
More irritatingly, he draws conclusions much more liberally than I would, after presenting only the flimsiest evidence. He asserts (on the basis of no evidence) that Plato's "forms" were the geometric patterns that people see under the influence of ergot. In other words, in Plato's incredibly deep metaphysics he was really just describing the equivalent of mundane "tracers" or "trails" in his field of vision. On this account, the Meno is a recapitulation of that timeless insight: "Dude, the walls are breathing." Sorry, I just don't buy this. There are deep aspects of the psychedelic experience, and Plato may have been inspired by them, but gross visual hallucinations are not a likely candidate.
His case for the notion that amanita muscaria was the Biblical "Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil" begs more questions than a round of Swiss cheese. He explains that there were two trees in the garden of Eden, and that the OTHER one (i.e. the Tree of Life) has the same name as a tree that, in OTHER (unnamed) "Eurasian tribes" (could we get a bit more vague here?) is identified as the tree, UNDER which grows amanita muscaria. This convoluted argument is especially frustrating, because I really want to believe he is correct here! But the details are missing, and what remains is not nearly as helpful as the Wikipedia entry on "Amanita Muscaria."
The other stuff is uneven. Stella Kramrisch's chapter (not on Soma, but on the mushroom that came to be used in place of Soma) made me ask: "So what?" Reading it was like ordering a Guiness and being served an O'Doul's. Carl Ruck's bit is really, really good, and well worth the price of the whole book, but it's drowning in all this bad company. There must be better, more primary, more authoritative sources for this stuff...
Brilliant Source and Homage to the Mysteries.......2005-04-01
I am a student of Carl A.P. Ruck, who was one of the contributors for this collection. This volume is indeed a collection which covers several sides of the story, touching upon almost every civilization which was influenced by the entheogensis of the mushroom (Amanita and Psylocybe). For those who have read McKenna's work, this is the foundation of it, although the antithesis of his belief that the Psylocybin containing species are the Soma of ancient Aryans. The second part of this book deals with the secrets of the ancient Greeks, their worship of entheogens, their belief in their ancestors and the Eleusinian mysteries- the common temple of the world.
An incredible read, very accessible to anyone interested in mythology and with an open mind.
Excellent.......2004-10-07
A great read when read in balance with other books such as Terence McKenna's Food of the God's, Clark Heinrich's Magic Mushrooms, and James Arthur's Mushrooms and Mankind. Wasson's contributions to understanding the world's religions, and shamanism is inestimable. His open minded and non prejudicial approach to other societies was a breath of fresh air for his time.
For the record to those interested in Amanita muscaria as an entheogen:
Let's step away from the hysteria for a moment. The Amanita does contain Ibotenic Acid and Muscimol. As the other reviewer mentioned, the Ibotenic Acid is decarboxylated (converted) into Muscimol when roasted or dried, and passed thru the body. Ibotenic acid is mildly toxic. There are reports of Muscarine (a poison) being found in European species at 0.0003% which is too small an amount to effect a toxic reaction. The amount of Muscarine in American species has not been studied, and could be higher.
These mushrooms should not be eaten raw. Many mycology books WRONGLY list Amanita muscaria and pantherina as poisonous.
Here are the facts from Pharmacotheon by Jon Ott:
"Deaths following the ingestion of Amanita muscaria have not been documented sufficiently to permit the conclusion that this is a lethal mushroom when ingested by healthy persons. In two cases of ingestion of considerable quantities of both raw and cooked mushrooms, the patients experienced some discomfort but recovered quickly and completely."
I suggest buying a copy of Ott's book (if you can find one $80 to $200) and read the details on the research. Many enjoy it's use, and many others don't. My personal experiences with this substance have been for the most part good. I have consumed up to 60 grams by in Tea. The Amanita muscaria is also well known in Germany and other countries for its effectiveness in treating certain health problems.
Sweet Persephone!.......2004-06-15
Wasson's text makes this book not only worthwhile, but a must read for anyone interested in the human link to higher knowledge.
His research is outstanding and puts a conclusive stamp on many beliefs concerning human culture.
Book Description
The story of the mother-and-daughter goddesses Demeter and Persephone has seized the imagination of people in every age, from ancient times to the present. Considered today by many to be the archetypal myth for women, it touches on timeless themes in every life, such as the male-female relationship, love between women, initiations into puberty and old age, the mother-daughter bond, death, and ecological renewal. Christine Downing has combined essays, prose, poetry, and even performance art with her own insightful commentary to shed new light on the myth's ancient meanings and to offer new insights in its implications for contemporary men and women.
Book Description
Women have long identified with the expressive personalities and mythical powers of the Greek goddesses. Now they can extend the goddess metaphor beyond their spiritual and romantic lives to their favorite living spaces. Goddess at Home draws from the fascinating stories of 7 Greek goddesses to provide decorating ideas and themes, from the sensual and alluring to the strong and serene. Through quotations, stories, and gorgeous photos and images, this book conveys the unique personality of each goddess and pairs her with the room or rooms in which she commonly dwells. Packed with fun and fashionable ideas, Goddess at Home shows the reader how to use symbols, forms, and rituals to create sensuous bedroom sanctuaries inspired by Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, Sensuality, and Beauty; cozy living rooms infused with the warmth of Hestia, Goddess of Hearth and Home; serene offices inspired by Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, Discernment, and Leadership; and more. Applying the legend and lore of the 7 sisters to home decorating, this unique book shows how women can express the spirit of their "goddess within" in any home space.
Anita Llewellyn is a veteran writer, scholar, and developer whose prestigious clients include the Tech Museum of Innovation, in San Jose, California; the Smithsonian; and the Harry S. Truman Library. She lives in the San Francisco Bay area.
Customer Reviews:
A Delightful Read That Encourages Women To Recreate Their Homes Passion.......2005-09-25
I was pleasently suprised with this book. Books in the past claiming to appeal to the Goddess within your home failed. This book however delivered just as stated. Reading it helped me develope a whole new outlook of my home. After reading it I began seeing rooms in a whole new light. This book not only helps a persons inner self grow but their home. My home has been transformed and is now a personal oasis instead of just a place to exsist. I recommend this book to the woman who yearns to make her home a positive, engergetic, loving personal oasis where every room explodes in song when you enter.
Original and Inspiring.......2003-07-01
I missed the opportunity to meet the author this weekend in San Francisco. She is a respected scholar who writes like a romance novelist. I enjoyed looking at the pictures and reading the text because it reminded me of the first time I was transported by mythology...way back in eighth grade English class in San Diego.
What woman doesn't want to come out of the bath dropping clean and erotic like Aphrodite? Or to be respected for her mind reading in the library like Athena? Don't we all want our homes to exude all the sides of who we are - sensual, intelligent, outdoorsy and domestic all at the same time? The author inspires you to do that within the 'goddess' context.
Amazon (I myself am too short to be an Amazon (sigh...) should package this book as a triple threat with Nigella Lawson's How to be a Domestic Goddess, Kim Cattrall's Satisfaction: The Art of the Female Orgasm and they'll really have something for every woman.
Buy the book, place it on your coffee table, and watch how everyone is drawn to it by the glowing, irresistible cover.
Divine Inspiration.......2003-06-15
I ordered this book not knowing what to expect. As an interior designer in training and a priestess of The Goddess I was intrigued at Ms. Llewellyn's book concept. I read through it in about an hour. I was both shocked and pleased to find that Ms. Llewellyn's design inspirations were things I had already done in my own home without, perhaps, knowing why I did them. The images she chose to showcase goddess inspired rooms were breathtaking. I believe a great deal of research went into this project. The information she presented in reference to the Hellenic Goddesses she chose was concise and accurate. I recommend this book highly to anyone who loves interior design and Greek Goddesses.
Book Description
As Demeter loses Persephone to the Underworld, many mothers feel they are losing their daughters during the adolescent years. In this book, a Jungian analyst gives mothers positive, solution-oriented strategies for minimizing conflict and for coming to terms with their changing role.
Customer Reviews:
Embracing Persephone.......2003-03-09
In a time long ago and far away, the god of the Underworld, Hades, abducted Persephone, daughter of the goddess Demeter. Demeter grieved so deeply that the lush vegetation of Earth died. Hades eventually returned Persephone for six months of every year. During this time, Demeter's joy allows the plants to again grow. Traditionally, this has been the story of why we have winter and summer seasons.
Virginia Beane Rutter has another interpretation of the ancient story. She says "this myth directly invokes your relationship with your adolescent daughter as you brave her exciting but terribly risky passage to becoming a woman." Rutter is psychotherapist and Jungian analyst, with two children of her own. Embracing Persephone is her third book.
In it, she provides a wealth of advice, strategies, and wisdom for coping with the critical adolescent years. Rutter emphasizes throughout that mothers must grow along with their daughters. Mothers dealing with their daughters' issues often find themselves dealing with their own issues as well. She offers lots of encouragement, saying that "being aware of yourself and your daughter does not mean that you will handle every situation perfectly." Her focus is on establishing and keeping an ongoing relationship with daughters.
She says that "to have any influence over your daughter, you must value your relationship more than your need to control her." This can sometimes mean permitting her to do things you'd prefer she'd not do. The key is teaching daughters to accept responsibility for their choices.
Rutter discusses issues such connecting, even when conflicts seem unresolvable, body image, sexual exploration, and drugs and alcohol. Each section includes examples from real teenage girls and their mothers of how they handled some of their expectations and conflicts.
Adolescent girls face monumental challenges. Because of the way in which the world has changed, many of these challenges are different than those experienced by their parents. Embracing Persephone "will help you identify the issues that trigger conflict with your daughter [and] provide you with strategies for keeping your relationship open." It's a book that belongs in every household with a teenage girl.
A Beautiful book.......2000-06-19
I am a psychologist working with adolescent girls. I also have a 12 year old daughter, and I have been in the field of adolescent psychology for the past 20 years. This is one of the best books writen for mothers and daughters. This book breaks the false belief that mothers and daughters must have conflict. Embracing Persephone illustrates the depth and spirituality of the mother daughter relationship while interweaving sound psychological advice through many vibrant examples. Rutter is a very possitive author with hope and faith in the mother duaghter relationship. This book also reveals the strength in girls. One of the most satisfying books to read about possitive deep relationships between mothers and daughters. I have recommended it to many friends and clients.
Average customer rating:
- A rich and complex work
- Compelling and beautifully written
- This book is a "must read" for any mother or daughter.
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Life's Daughter/Death's Bride
Kathie Carlson
Manufacturer: Shambhala
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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Similar Items:
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The Homeric Hymn to Demeter
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Eleusis: Archetypal Image of Mother and Daughter
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In Her Image
ASIN: 087773903X
Release Date: 1997-09-08 |
Book Description
While picking flowers, a young woman is abducted away from the familiar world of her mother to the ghostly underworld of Hades. This splitting of Mother and Daughter is the crux of the Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone, a tale that holds as much meaning for us today as it did in ancient times. The story of how Demeter's daughter becomes Persephone, Queen of the Dead, and is ransomed back from death by her mother depicts profound psychological transformations. Writing from the perspectives of Jungian psychology and goddess spirituality, Kathie Carlson examines the deep reverberations of this myth in both ancient religion and the inner lives and relationships of contemporary men and women. Included in her discussion are: The Mother-Daughter archetype as feminine self Hades as shadow in men and animus in women The plight of women who "live the myth backwards" The Mystery path of Demeter Richly illustrated with dreams, insights, and relational dynamics drawn from psychotherapy clients, this book will appeal to both layperson and professional, and to anyone interested in myth, goddess-centered religion, or Jungian psychology.
Customer Reviews:
A rich and complex work.......2000-03-14
The myth of Demeter and Persephone is one of the most profound and important myths to all of us today who have an interest in Jungian psychology or the appearance of myths in contemporary lives. Not only it is one of the few surviving myths that celebrate the bonds between mother and daughter (instead of those between mother and son or father and son), it is also the sacred story that gives us hope for life after death, as it did for our ancestors who celebrated the Eleusinian Mysteries.
Kathie Carlson's book "Life's Daughter/Death's Bride" is a rich and complex work that deserves more than one careful reading. In the first chapter, she examines ways to approach the myth, most specifically the 'patriarchal accent' and the 'matriarchal accent'. I love the chart that lists the contrasts in these interpretations. For example, in the matriarchal view, Demeter is 'positive, benevolent, preserving, and reclaiming, becomes negative only when violated." In the patriarchal view, she is "negative, binding, possessive, overreacting, opposes the usurping Masculine." Which "accent" feels right to you?
Carlson places her own interpretation clearly in the feminist camp, but is very aware of the evidence for other views and presents those as well. I have not found such a detailed retelling of the Demeter/Persephone/Hades story in any other source. She includes every variation on the myth, including rich material on my own favortie, though minor, characters of Baubo, Triptolemus and Brimos the Divine Child. (I also love the obscure Greek folktale of Saint Demetra!). Until I read this book, I was unaware of the role of Triptolemus, the young man to whom Demeter gives the gift of teaching the people both the arts of agriculture and her Mysteries. According to Carlson, Triptolemus was the "thrice-fold warrior" who became the "thrice-fold ploughman" after his initiation into Demeter's mysteries. "The aggressor-turned-planter," she writes, " is a vivid representation....... of the death-dealing Masculine no longer at odds with the Goddess and life but relinked to her cycle and bent back to her service."
The first two chapters of this book are almost enough to satisfy my soul! But there's more. The heart of the book is a look at the archetypes of Demeter, Kore/Persephone and Hades, and how they manifest in our lives today, as illustrated through case studies from Kathie's practice as a psychotherapist. You may find yourself, your mother, your significant other or your best friend in these pages.
In the preface, Kathie Carlson writes that Life's Daughter/Death's Bride aims to be an accessible and multi-layered treatment of the Demeter-Persephone myth." In this, she has most definitely succeeded!
Compelling and beautifully written.......1999-12-17
Kathie Carlson offers up a passionate plea for women to reconnect with and be revitalized by the power of the transpersonal Feminine; and, she uses the ancient Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone to demonstrate just how this might be done.
Carlson spends the first two chapters analyzing and interpreting the fullness of the myth in which Persephone, daughter of the grain goddess Demeter, is snatched away to the underworld by Hades, the Lord of Death. She suggests that we discard any notions of Greek gods and goddesses as one-dimensional and quarrelsome creatures. Instead, she invites us to enter the mindset of ancient Greeks, that of a fluid, paradoxical and cyclical bent. "Pagan spirituality, as we know it in the present and can reconstruct from the past," she writes, "was centered in a profound relationship with Nature . . . Nature was seen as infused with Spirit; Spirit was found in and through Nature rathern than being outside and above it."
Women, according to Carlson, respond and react to the powerful connection in the myth between mother and daughter, and Demeter's unadulterated rage over the treatment of Kore/Persephone resonates. "We all want someone to protect us with that passion," Carlson says. "Demeter is unambivalently on the side of her daughter, and she isn't a mother who would blame the victim or would put a man ahead of the child."
In Chapter 7, entitled Relational Dynamics, Carlson points how modern women must learn the myth backwards. In other words, coming from a patriarchal society, we must imagine a world where the feminine aspect is powerful and valued in a central way. "Even those of us with good mothers," Carlson says, "might resist being powerful. We have pictured power as masculine, and we don't see that it's possible to be a powerful and feminine person."
Carlson believes that, if a woman from Ancient Greece could visit the world of today, she would grieve. "We think that the present is superior to the past," Carlson says, "and that we've kept improving. But, for a woman who lived when the world-view was spiritually female centered, our world would cause great emotional pain."
In therapy, Carlson often sees women suffering because they define themselves in patriarchal terms, seeing their essence how a father, brother or lover might. She believes, however, that "deep friendships, love relationships or therapy with other women may dissolve the 'false self' identity and plunge a woman into participation in women's mysteries, especially death and rebirth."
When a woman dives deeply enough into the female-to-female experience that Carlson describes, she believes that this woman might meet up with the feminine Divine. "This may lead to problematic relationships if neither woman understands that something beyond human dimensions is being carried by the relationship, but it may also be utterly transformative for one or both women."
Carlson hopes that her book allows women to connect to the relevance of ancient myths. "Our lives aren't really separate from ancient images," she says, "and they can bring us healing and expand awareness." She'd also like men who suffer with the shadow side of patriarchal power -- that represented by Hades -- to read this book.
"We need balance again," she says,"and the feminine hasn't had enough of a place in our lives for a long, long time. We can't recreate the past but need to take the best of what it had to offer and 'dream it forward,' and integrate its wisdom into the present."
This book is a "must read" for any mother or daughter........1999-01-06
In "Life's Daughter, Death's Bride" the Myth of Persephone and Demeter is beautifully explained and applied to current life-situations. The depth of the myth's profound message about the nature of Mother/daughter relationships is clearly, concisely and thoughtfully interpreted in both Jungian and general terms. It is not necesssary to be trained in psychology to find this book both timely and useful in everyday life.
The book speaks from the feminine point of view, and offers an affirmation of women's worth and integration in the 'web of life'. It is not wordy or trite, but is beautifully phrased and inspiring. The complicated structure of the myth is carefully deconstructed, so that the intrinsic value of the age-old story is laid out for all to see. I found myself internalizing many of Ms.Carlson's concepts, and have only one very mild criticism: It might have been interesting to have had Ms. Carslon's comparison of the Classic Greek myth (which she used in this book) to the Persephone that Charlene Spretnak describes in "Lost Goddesses of Early Greece: A Collection of Pre-Hellenic Myths" (Beacon Press, Boston. 1998). Ms. Spretnak's investigation and uncovering of the Myth BEFORE Homer, Hesiod and Herotodus re-wrote it, indicates a previous version of the myth that describes a very different motivation for Persephone's actions while in Hades and a NON-RAPE version of how she got there. The two books, in-concert, provide a balanced and homogenous telling of an archetypal cycle. To get a clear picture of this potent and profound myth, I recommend reading both of these books. You will never regret the time spent in doing so.
Book Description
Young Persephone is the most beautiful maiden in Hellas. But all the boys are scared away by her mother, Demeter, whose mysterious powers must have come from the gods. So Persephone keeps her distance, and spends her days living a sheltered life. Then one day, Hades-the dreaded lord of the dead-sees Persephone. Enchanted, he whisks her deep into his dark realm. At first, she rejects him-but Hades is wealthy, intelligent, and powerful. He courts Persephone as no man has ever dared before and reveals to her, in the rumored "land of the dead," a world more wondrous than she'd ever imagined-one where she may just discover a passion greater than life itself.
Customer Reviews:
Intriguing Story But a Misleading Cover.......2005-12-01
This book was an interesting read. As I am a huge fan of Greek Mythology, I was attracted to this book as I was to PC Cast's 'Goddess of Spring'. But for those of you looking for romance, sensuality and humor, this book has none. I'll tell you why. Alicia Fields took one of the most wonderful Greek stories and gives it a very realisitic view. Non sugar-coated and without frills. Hades, Demeter and Persephone are human in this book, not gods and goddesses. Alicia did a good job however sticking to the orginal story of Hades and Persephone in most aspects. Here's a little bit about the myth for those of you who are not into mythology.
When Hades kidnapped her, when he finally got Persephone to his kingdom, she proved to be stubborn. She didn't eat, bathe and refused to speak with Hades. In return to win her love, Hades heaps her with jewels, silks, anything to win her affection, (this happens in the book). In the original Greek myth, Demeter gaines word that Hades wants her daughter for his bride, but what you don't know is that Hades is Persephone's uncle (the Greeks were like the Egyptians, they kept in the family). That part isn't in the book, thank heavens.
Anyway, in the myth (but not mentioned in the book), Hades bribed Zeus for Persephone's hand and when Demeter complained to Zeus about wanting her daughter back, Zeus said that since Persephone was a goddess,Persephone would have to marry in the family if she didn't want to lower herself. Demeter flew into a rage. Cattle and humans died. Crops failed and the earthed dried up. Finally, Zeus gives in a says as long as Persephone eats or drinks nothing from the Underworld, she will be free to return. But is she does, under the Law of Abode, Persephone has to stay.
In this book, Persephone instictively knows that if you eat or drink anything within someone's home, you're bound to them in some way or another. I thought that was pretty cool.
In the myth, while Demeter rejoices at the news, Hermes goes to get Persephone. But just before he arrives, a gardener in the Underworld caught wind of Hermes' arrival. Having a grudge against Demeter for turning him into a lizard for laughing at her, the gardener gives Persephone a pomegrante. She eats six pomegrante seeds and just when Hermes is about to save her, Hades had rushes to Olympus to claim his bride under the Law of Abode. Hearing this news, Demeter claims that no crops will grow if Persephone is to be Death's bride. Zeus compromises and says that Persephone will have to spend one month in the Underworld for each seed she ate. The other half of the year, she could spend with her mother. Which is how we came to have the four seasons Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter.
In the book, Hermes is a little trouble maker and a bit of a slut puppy. He brags that he can rescue Peresphone, and when given the task, he balks and complains. His character is just annoying enough to where you really don't like him. It was very hard to picture him being a hero, being as he was whiney, immature and lazy.
Persephone's character was very different than I thought, in a pleasant way, because when you think of Spring you think feminine, etherial and girlish. This character was strong-willed, determined and a bit brattish. But her character evolved under the care of Hades, into a mature, lush and vibrant creature. I liked her. Hades was different also. He was completely different from PC Cast's version of Hades. He was quiet, not brooding and moody, not overpowering in his sexuality, but had a very commanding presence. He was intriguing, dark ,intelligent, kind, patient and understanding.
Alicia gives Demeter a strong presence as well, someone to be reckoned with. She isn't a beautiful woman, but striking. She's strongly attractive with her intellect and deeper still is the commanding presence she hereself weilds. The villagers have every right to fear her for her knowledge and powers that connect her to the earth are mysterious and powerful.
So to end my review, do not be fooled by the back of this book, or the cover for that matter. For those of you expecting steamy sex scenes and laugh out loud moments, think again. This is a whole different approach on the Hades and Persephone myth. It's a different perception but not unenjoyable. Read it for yourself and find out.
love at first page.......2005-10-21
This is one of the most creative retellings of an ancient mythological figure I have ever read. Persephone has always been sheltered from boys, the only exception being her girl crazy cousin Hermes. Her mother Demeter has a fierce hatred and a strong opinion concerning men and what they can do to a girl. Persephone leads a happy life, lazing aroung with her friends all day. On one such afternoon, Persephone is awoken from a nap by a horde of strange creatures who drag her down to the caves by the sea...the dwelling of Death himself! It is there that she is informed that Hades, (the supposed Lord of the Dead), has fallen in love with her and kidnapped her in hopes that she will consent to be his bride. Trapped underground and held against her will, Persephone has some hard decisions to make. Will she seize the first opportunity to get back home...or is she falling for the most unlikely person alive?
Great as far as retelling the myth goes.......2005-07-19
This book was EXCELLENT as far as retelling the myth of Persephone, because it made all the characters seem more real, especially, for example, by protraying Demeter as having special godlike powers, but not definitely saying whether she was a god or not. The same goes for Hermes, who says his father is Zeus, but he doesn't have any special powers in this book. The author did I really good job in portraying the ancient city of Hellas, and the people's belief in their gods, and also the people's lifestyles and characters. The book made for a very interesting read.
However, I found the book somewhat lacking as a romance--I expected the romance factor to be a major part of the book, but it just didn't really feel like it was. If you're really into Greek mythology, and go into this book looking for a nice retelling of the myth, you will be very much satisfied-- but you might be disappointed if you are just looking for a romance novel.
I think the book description on the back of the book is a little deceiving, because it makes the reader think this is predominantly a romance: "Then Persephone meets the dark, mysterious lord of the underworld--and discovers a passion of mythic dimensions...Courting Persephone as no man has ever dared, he brings her to the wondrously startling revelation that bad boys can be fun..."
The Retelling Of A Greek Myth!.......2005-07-08
Ms. Fields has done a good job on re-telling her tale of the Greek myth Persephone. Basing a romance on a myth doesn't change the story but Ms. Field has brough human qualities to both Hades and Persephone thus making them seem more real to the reader.
Persephone, daughter of Demeter is the most beautiful girl in the villiage. Upon attending a funeral, Hades spies the her and wants her for his own. Some days later while picking flowers with her friend Persephone is taken down to Hades realm where he attempts to woe the lady who will have nothing that he has to offer. During a course of time Persephone begins to "know" Hades and the things that he knows and realizes that he not much different than she is. But could she give her heart to the man that she has learned to know?
Again, this is not a new story. What is new is Ms. Fields entertaining prose, and the way she has developed unique qualities in these two famous characters. Overall this is not a strong romance so much as it's a different take on an already established myth. Don't pick this read up expecting something new as Ms. Field has stayed true to her inspiration.
Official Reviewer for Romance Designs
fantastic retelling of Persephone.......2005-07-05
In Hellas, Persephone is the prettiest maiden in the land, but though she has female friends like Echo and Narcissa, boys her age have nothing to do with her except the bodacious Hermes. Males fear her mother Demeter who has god-like powers and her great-grandfather High Priest Aristippus who communicates directly with Zeus. Persephone lives like a bird in a gilded cage as Demeter keeps her safe and apart from the other gender with an iron fist that only she and Aristippus can use.
That is until the Lord of the Underground, Hades, sees her and desires her. He comes up from under the ground in her garden to abduct Persephone. In his dark realm he offers his "soul" to her, but she rejects him. Frustrated, but not a quitter, the obstinate intelligent Hades courts his prisoner showing her what no male dared, a wondrous world even if it is home to the dead. Feeling alive for the first time Persephone begins to see passion for the first time with her underworld warden even as her mother searches heaven and earth for her.
Amanda Cockrell provides a fantastic retelling of one of the great Greek mythological tales, the story of Persephone. The heroine, her wannabe lover and her determined mother come together in a delightful romance even with the underground as the setting. Fans of modern day renditions of the ancient mythos will treasure Ms. Cockrell's entertaining novel of LOVE UNDERGROUND.
Harriet Klausner
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