Jeff Andrus
Editor and Writing Coach
jeffandrus.com : A Monk's Alphabet
Site last published: 4/5/08 5:57 PM
A Monk's
Alphabet
This grand little
book by Father Jeremy Driscoll, a Benedictine monk, is an
alphabetized list of short reflections, stories and
observations. Whimsical humor infuses many of the
pieces; a few are downright funny. There are
"Ah-ha!" moments of serious truth, expressions of fear
and doubt regarding faith, and insight into the human
condition no matter what the faith. What binds them
all is a refreshing combination of the author's
innate dignity and naked honesty.
The dust cover of A Monk's Alphabet says that the book's 210 pages contain 187 "meditations." I'm sure that's what they are, but I read them as good literature and got the unencumbered joy that comes from that. The last one is breathtaking in its evocation of friendship and death, sorrow and soaring hope. In my blog of 16 October 2006 I quote "First Love," a childhood memoir from the middle of the book. It is light and airy and so readable you almost slip past the surprise--love cannot survive a lie. Then you realize this cold truth has haunted every life you know.
A Monk's Alphabet: Moments of Stillness in a Turning World by Jeremy Driscoll, OSB, is published by New Seed Books in the U.S. and Canada, and can be order from Amazon.com.
The dust cover of A Monk's Alphabet says that the book's 210 pages contain 187 "meditations." I'm sure that's what they are, but I read them as good literature and got the unencumbered joy that comes from that. The last one is breathtaking in its evocation of friendship and death, sorrow and soaring hope. In my blog of 16 October 2006 I quote "First Love," a childhood memoir from the middle of the book. It is light and airy and so readable you almost slip past the surprise--love cannot survive a lie. Then you realize this cold truth has haunted every life you know.
A Monk's Alphabet: Moments of Stillness in a Turning World by Jeremy Driscoll, OSB, is published by New Seed Books in the U.S. and Canada, and can be order from Amazon.com.