Cathedrals of the Flesh: In Search of The Perfect Bath

Rating:
Summary: Good Style, Great Resources...BUT...
Review: As an avid travel reader and as the spouse of a Hungarian I was pleased to pick up this book. Ms. Brue has a wonderful writing style, both informative and with a wry wit that shines thru beautifully. Cathedrals of the Flesh is a great read. At the end, the author lists major baths from around the world and indeed this is what inspired me to pick it up *several baths in Budapest are listed*. I am assuming that the author did in fact visit the baths listed, but there is nothing in the book on public baths in Hungary. Considering the rather large chapter devoted to Russia, this is disappointing to say the least. Having said that and admitting that this is a personal criticism on my part, the book istelf is very good. I look forward to reading more from this author.

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Summary: "Sex and the City" go searching the perfect bath
Review: Did someone give the author an idea that in order to sell a non-fiction today, it has to have a Sex and the City flavor? Otherwise how can one explain this constant accidental meetings between good-looking exotic males and the writer, who is a single, thirty-ish, female New Yorker. From my view, this book could stand by itself without this boy meets girl side-story. At times it was very distracting to otherwise an excellent travelogue. I regret this because the central theme of the quest for the perfect bath is an honest effort with not too much cliche or stereotypes.

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Summary: A reader from Iowa.
Review: Having experienced first hand the joys of public bathing, I was excited to see a travel book about bathing cultures. I wasn't disappointed. Brue's book blends historical narrative, social commentary on our daily ritual of bathing and travel writing into a witty and engaging journal of self discovery. This fun, interesting read will inspire you not only to embark on new travels, but also to seek challenges and adventures in your own life.

Rating:
Summary: A Highly Entertaining and Illuminating Work
Review: I found this thought-provoking book to work on many levels: as a travelogue of intriguing people and off-the-beaten-path places, as a refreshing look at an historical and cultural touchstone that merits reinvigoration, and even in parts as a memoir of this talented writer's life and outlook. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: An approach to travel and an approach to life
Review: I haven't read much travel writing so I wasn't really sure what to expect. I was drawn in from the very first page to a world of public bathing that I really had no idea existed. By the end of this book I feel that I desperately need to see the baths of Turkey, Russia, Finland and Japan. But what I also discovered is that I want to have Ms. Brue's intrepid sense of daring, her willingness to following the road as it unfolds before her, and her innate ability to have respect and reverence for the various cultures she visits(without sentamentalizing them or making them precious). Brue's question "was it an approach to travel or an approach to life?" stuck with me throughout. The delightful surprise was that the book is highly personal(funny and poignant) but also historical and informative.

Rating:
Summary: A reader from Iowa.
Review: I thought this was a fantastic book. I bought this book thinking that I'd get a relatively straightforward discussion of the history of bathing, but this is actually much more. The author, a young woman with a taste for adventure, writes about her own experiences as she tackles the problem of how to open a bathhouse, crossing the globe and visiting baths in many countries. But instead of taking a highly authoritative tone from the start, she begins with a naive, befuddled tone, describing how she practically stumbles into the bathing scene, seduced not only by the baths, but by the cultures and places she visits. As a reader, I can see the transformation of the author from a novice to an expert over the course of the book, which to me is reminiscent of some of the best travel writing (consider Bill Bryson's self-deprecatory writing, the feeling that on starting his journey, he is no more informed than you or me). I think this book is only partially about bathing, and equally about getting your imagination captured by something different and exciting. I found it really inspirational, it really gives a sense that there is nothing stopping the average reader from deciding to get on a plane and travel the world to learn about something completely different, even if you don't speak the language or don't have any technical experience. So much bad travel writing condescends to the reader, makes me feel that unless I've lived 25 years in Provence or have climbed Mt. Everest, I couldn't possibly appreciate the world. This book made me feel like, with a little bit of courage and a lot of excitement, even I could explore strange places and meet different people!

Rating:
Summary: FABULOUS!!!
Review: I thought this was a fantastic book. I bought this book thinking that I'd get a relatively straightforward discussion of the history of bathing, but this is actually much more. The author, a young woman with a taste for adventure, writes about her own experiences as she tackles the problem of how to open a bathhouse, crossing the globe and visiting baths in many countries. But instead of taking a highly authoritative tone from the start, she begins with a naive, befuddled tone, describing how she practically stumbles into the bathing scene, seduced not only by the baths, but by the cultures and places she visits. As a reader, I can see the transformation of the author from a novice to an expert over the course of the book, which to me is reminiscent of some of the best travel writing (consider Bill Bryson's self-deprecatory writing, the feeling that on starting his journey, he is no more informed than you or me). I think this book is only partially about bathing, and equally about getting your imagination captured by something different and exciting. I found it really inspirational, it really gives a sense that there is nothing stopping the average reader from deciding to get on a plane and travel the world to learn about something completely different, even if you don't speak the language or don't have any technical experience. So much bad travel writing condescends to the reader, makes me feel that unless I've lived 25 years in Provence or have climbed Mt. Everest, I couldn't possibly appreciate the world. This book made me feel like, with a little bit of courage and a lot of excitement, even I could explore strange places and meet different people!

Rating:
Summary: who knew baths would be so interesting?
Review: I went to hear her speak in New York and was amazed with how passionate she was about baths and bathing cultures. This inspired me to buy the book and my curiousity was rewarded. The book is such a wonderful collection of insights into other cultures and anecdotes about her personal adventures. I highly recommend this to anyone who is looking to get inspired to travel or just wants a witty, warm and fun read on a cold Sunday afternoon.

Rating:
Summary: bathing like cooking
Review: Is practiced by all cultures. The ways in which each culture goes about it speaks both to the prevalent resources, and to the cultural style.

Rating:
Summary: A new breed of Travel Writing
Review: One of the oldest, most mysterious and fascinating institutions in the world has found a worthy biographer. Brue brings to life the public bath house as it is experienced today in Japan, Turkey, Russia, and Finnland - turning the pages of her book you feel the steam rising and the smell of herbs in the air. Having been to many of the destinations of ther trip myself, I found her to be a very observant and culturally sensitive writer. Most of all, her language gets you to dream.