Horvilleur's deep reflections on mortality remind us that “in death a place can be left for the living.”
A collection of essays meditating on the relationship between life and death.
As one of the only female rabbis in France, Horvilleur, the leader of the Liberal Jewish Movement of France, is accustomed to playing a part in the transition between life and death. “Yet as the years go by,” she writes, “it increasingly seems to me that the profession closest to mine has a name: storyteller.” In the 10 essays that make up her latest book, the author thrives in this role, interweaving biblical stories with those about the lives and deaths of ordinary people, including a woman who planned and attended her own funeral, and public figures such as Simone Veil. Though some of the pieces are fairly anemic, their loose ends getting lost in the complex combination of stories, they all aim to show how life and death are more closely related than we like to think. “Life makes its presence felt in the very moment that precedes our dying and until the end seems to be saying to death that there is a way of coexisting,” writes Horvilleur, reflecting on the first time she saw a dead body. “Perhaps this cohabitation doesn’t in fact need to wait for death. Throughout our existence, without our being aware of it, life and death continually hold hands and dance.” Drawing from her experiences as a secular rabbi, the author shares significant wisdom, illuminating well-known biblical stories and translating even the most difficult experiences of loss—e.g., the death of a child. “Death escapes words, precisely because it signals the end of speech,” Horvilleur writes. In these thought-provoking, occasionally disjointed essays, she shows how it is possible to find language even for that which seems indescribable.
Horvilleur's deep reflections on mortality remind us that “in death a place can be left for the living.”Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781609457952
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Europa Compass
Review Posted Online: Feb. 10, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
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
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.
The late actor offers a gentle guide for living with more purpose, love, and joy.
Mixing poetry, prescriptive challenges, and elements of memoir, Heche (1969-2022) delivers a narrative that is more encouraging workbook than life story. The author wants to share what she has discovered over the course of a life filled with abuse, advocacy, and uncanny turning points. Her greatest discovery? Love. “Open yourself up to love and transform kindness from a feeling you extend to those around you to actions that you perform for them,” she writes. “Only by caring can we open ourselves up to the universe, and only by opening up to the universe can we fully experience all the wonders that it holds, the greatest of which is love.” Throughout the occasionally overwrought text, Heche is heavy on the concept of care. She wants us to experience joy as she does, and she provides a road map for how to get there. Instead of slinking away from Hollywood and the ridicule that she endured there, Heche found the good and hung on, with Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford starring as particularly shining knights in her story. Some readers may dismiss this material as vapid Hollywood stuff, but Heche’s perspective is an empathetic blend of Buddhism (minimize suffering), dialectical behavioral therapy (tolerating distress), Christianity (do unto others), and pre-Socratic philosophy (sufficient reason). “You’re not out to change the whole world, but to increase the levels of love and kindness in the world, drop by drop,” she writes. “Over time, these actions wear away the coldness, hate, and indifference around us as surely as water slowly wearing away stone.” Readers grieving her loss will take solace knowing that she lived her love-filled life on her own terms. Heche’s business and podcast partner, Heather Duffy, writes the epilogue, closing the book on a life well lived.
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.Pub Date: Jan. 24, 2023
ISBN: 9781627783316
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Viva Editions
Review Posted Online: Feb. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
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