Rating: 
Summary: This is one hell of an interesting book
Review: I've always seen this book at book stores and I've always had in the back of my mind to read the book. I had no idea what cloister walk would be about. One day, I decided to take it out of the library and I started to read it and I couldn't put it down and I went out and bought a copy of the book, because the book was so moving. Ms. Norris, starts out telling what an oblate is. I've never heard of the term, even though i am Catholic. I didn't even realize that protestants or any other denominations, let alone Catholic lay people could join an order. Ms. Norris describes the workings of a monestary and she does a good job in pointing out that monestaries do not produce everyone in it alike. Quite the contrary. There are individualists in the monestary and they are characters. Ms. Norris's prose is very clear, simplistic and easy to follow. She talks about the importance of being able to hear the stories from the bible. On the whole, she tells s! ome fascinating tale, although once in a while, the book wanders, like a chapter on gardening, where she admits that she's no good at it, but it lets me wonder, why does she bring this topic up in the first place. I was hoping that she might have learned some tips from the monks on how to garden, or that maybe she had a tip or two on herbs, something that monks are known for. Besides these minor irrations, it's a supurb book.
Rating:
Summary: A soothing book for upsetting times
Review: I stumbled upon this book one day. Taken by the title and the image on the cover, I bought it. I was not misled. This is one of the most soothing and comforting books I have read in a long time. Norris describes life in the Benedictine monastery where she is a writer-in-residence and an oblate. Her descriptions are terse and poetic. This book really speaks to me, because it helps me to remember that there's more to life - and more meaningful and fulfilling ways to live one's life - than the images depicted in the media. I long for a world where the most important things are not how much money you can make or how many people you can impress. In Norris' description of cloistered life, I see a glimpse of a world like that. I'm keeping this one on my "therapy shelf" to read when I feel battered by the world. It's a book to read slowly and savor, and to read again.
Rating:
Summary: Poetic, pensive, and thought-provoking
Review: I stumbled on this treasure in early January 1997, and read the whole thing in less than a week. Reading it -- and pondering it afterwards -- was like being on a spiritual retreat.I was especially intrigued by the descriptions of Benedictine monastic life.I look forward to reading more from Norris.
Rating: 
Summary: Aimless and self-absorbed
Review: This book was one of the most boring books I've had to read in a long time. I found the writing to be unimaginative and felt like the book had no direction. I was very disappointed and had forgotten it before it was even finished.
Rating:
Summary: Must read for the disillusioned
Review: This is the most wonderful book on spirituality I have ever read, mostly because it was not a didactic. Kathleen Norris writes as a poet and a genuine soul, not someone looking to tout his/her 14 steps to peace with God. Her honest and beautifully written observations about the ups and downs of monasticism, and the revelation of the people who live as ascetics in the pursuit of God's love, provided a much needed reassurance to someone who has been abused and disillusioned by the contemporary Church that God loves us in spite of our best efforts and worst failings. I just finished it, and will be reading it again very soon.
Rating: 
Summary: A cloistered walk for open minds.
Review: Kathleen Norris has lightly lifted the veil from the world of the cloistered square in a book that has universal appeal. Like the inspiring "THE Autobiography of Jesus of Nazareth and the Missing Years" by Richard G. Patton, Norris does not patronize when dealing with profound concepts. She has a deft touch when sketching the Inner view of the Benedictine life and it's beguiling scriptures. Where Patton's wonderful book depicts Jesus' inner search for God OUTSIDE of Religion, Norris' finds deep comfort within the structure and continuity of Religion. Both these authors take us convincingly on an inner journey, constantly tested by dilemma. These two remarkable books present both sides of the same coin, joined by the common bond of revelation.
Rating:
Summary: This book is an opportunity to explore one's spiritual path
Review: This is not a book one gives away but rather one that is shared with new copies for others that they also might share in the wisdom of its pages. Holy reading is what this is and remnants of the spiritual guidance gleaned by Kahtleen Norris's walk among and with the monks serve us well in needed moments of reflection and meditation. Weaving Scripture into the chapters as the cornerstone of the discussions only serves to make us all a little less theologically illiterate. Human experiences of anger, pride, listlessness, love,gratitude, generosity emerge instructively through the liturgical explorations and the wonderful stories that abound in this reflective spiritual journey. For all of us who would be much improved by partaking in an opportunity to vicariously experience some soul searching questions on life's pupose and meaning, I heartily recommend this lectio divina
Rating:
Summary: A smooth relation of the lessons of monastic life
Review: Norris lifts the veil from monastic life, discussinghonestly and gently the real heart of the matter. As aProtestant and a poet, she is uniquely situated to bring the lessons of the cloister into everyday life. She dwells at some length on such lessons as chastity, scripture, and the lives of the saints. She does spend what I took to be an unwarranted amount of time discussing claims of misogyny on the part of the church, but on the whole, the work is well- balanced, and well worth the time.
Rating:
Summary: Glimpse of Peace
Review: This book was a last minute grab from an airport newstand. Frankly, I expected to be disappointed. (Betty J. Eadie's "Embraced by the Light" and James Redfield's "The Celestine Prophecy" had similarly let me down on a long flight.)I find that much of contemporary spiritual literature, although frequently heartfelt and sincere, is glib and unsubstantial. "The Cloister Walk" was different. It was thoughtful and aware, but maybe better than that, it was smart. Although the author's preoccupation with her status as a tortured poet was less than riveting, I appreciated the context that Kathleen Norris' scholarly impulses provided and I found that I could agree with many of her various points of view. (That whole virgin martyrs phenomenon does have a wierd legacy.) As I read, I felt much of my self-generated tension drain away from me. Norris took me along on the journey with her, and I was glad to go. She offered me a sense of the peace I so desperately craved. Let me say this, I'm a voracious and consumptive reader. Few are the books I revisit. "The Cloister Walk" is still on my nightstand, two years after I first picked it up.
Rating:
Summary: A pleasant surprise!
Review: I had been curious about "The Cloister Walk" for many years, but have been inexplicably reluctant to read it. Recently I had the opportunity to listen to the abridged audio version of the book, read by actress Debra Winger. Now that I've heard the tape, I'm looking forward to reading the entire book someday. As a convert from Protestantism to the Eastern Orthodox Church, I found that many of Kathleen Norris' thoughts, feelings and experiences in discovering and participating in liturgical life paralleled my own. Her writings remind me of Orthodox writer Frederica Mathewes-Green, notably "Facing East" and "The Illumined Heart," a well-known convert from the Episcopal Church. I appreciate Norris' penetrating insights into the monastic life. By living with the Benedictines, she was able to answer many of the questions that those of outside of the monastic life have undoubtedly wondered about. I'd recommend this book to anyone curious about liturgical life, monasticism or about going deeper in the Christian walk. While Debra Winger did an adequate job of reading this abridgment, I was unconvinced that she knew what she was reading about. Fortunately Norris' narrative is captivating on its own.
|
