The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

This is an extraordinary read! Devastating in many ways. I think the review below says it best:

“Beautiful, harrowing, 
a major contribution to
twenty-first century
literature.”
Toni Morrison, Nobel Laureate
Read more>>

Wild Fibers Magazine

Exploring the animals, art and culture of natural fiber. Beautiful magazine tells stories about people all over the world who raise animals for fiber, from yaks, to cashmere goats, sheep and silkworms!

Conversations with the Goddess by Dorothy Atalla

"Never having heard of Petra, in Jordan, Dorothy (Chickee to her friends) went there on a whim.  While exploring Petra with her family in the 1970s, Chickee found herself profoundly affected by the ruins of the ancient city. She became fascinated with Petra’s ancient people. She wondered what their arts for living were like, as well as their traditions for death. At the time of her visit in Jordan her goals were modest.  One goal was to encourage her sons to perceive themselves as global citizens by way of their father’s Middle Eastern heritage. She also had always hoped to provide her sons with a well-rounded cultural and academic education. Seven years after her trip Chickee had her first encounter with a feminine Presence." 
You'll not be sorry if you read this book! Brings clarity and understanding to many long-held misunderstandings and misperceptions.

Works & Conversations

I highly recommend this magazine! It consists of well-written interviews with very interesting people. Some of the articles can be read online and the print magazine is now offered as a gift; in turn, the subscribers are invited to pay-forward a subscription to another reader. It is a bold experiment, and to this day, the magazine costs are covered entirely by unsolicited donations from grateful readers.
Their website is a project of CharityFocus, a fully volunteer-run effort that aims to empower gift-economy efforts. Carrying no advertising, making the entire texts of past interviews available on-line without charge, and running a monthly newsletter that reaches over 28 thousand readers, ours is a humble effort to "be the change we wish to see in the world."

The Making of a Teacher: Conversations with Eknath Easwaran

This is a beautiful book! It tells many stories about Eknath Easwaren's childhood in Kerala, his relationship with his grandmother and his journey to the states, teaching meditation at Berkeley and then founding the Blue Mountain Center of Meditation & Nilgiri Press. Kerala is one of the few places where a matrilineal social structure still exists and women have a very strong and central position. I highly recommend reading this exquisite and moving story.

Racing Alone by Nader Khalili

"Is it really sane to follow one's ideals and dreams 
and race alone in today's world?...
Midway in my life I stopped racing with others. 
I picked up my dreams and started a gentle walk…
I touched my dreams in reality by racing and 
competing with no one but myself."
-Nader Khalili

Originally published in 1983, Racing Alone is Nader Khalili's first book and it takes the reader on a journey through the early years of his quest to provide shelter to people in the world. It tells the story of how an Iranian-born, Western-trained architect — armed only with notebooks, a motorcycle, and his own unique vision — set off on a five-year odyssey through the poor desert villages of his native Iran in search of a simple, inexpensive, yet permanent form of dwelling — and his ultimate triumph in discovering the "untouched magic" of clay. Racing Alone begins as one man's dream, and ends with a village of ceramic houses, an exhibition in Paris, and lectures to schools of architecture all over the world.

Road to Heaven, and Zen Baggage by Bill Porter

In the spring of 2006, Bill Porter traveled through the heart of China, from Beijing to Hong Kong, on a pilgrimage to sites associated with the first six patriarchs of Zen. Zen Baggage is an account of that journey. He weaves together historical background, interviews with Zen masters, and translations of the earliest known records of Zen, along with personal vignettes. Porter’s account captures the transformations taking place at religious centers in China but also the abiding legacy they have somehow managed to preserve. Porter brings wisdom and humor to every situation, whether visiting ancient caves containing the most complete collection of Buddhist texts ever uncovered, enduring a six-hour Buddhist ceremony, searching in vain for the ghost in his room, waking up the monk in charge of martial arts at Shaolin Temple, or meeting the abbess of China’s first Zen nunnery. Porter’s previously published Road to Heaven: Encounters with Chinese Hermits has become recommended reading at Zen centers and universities throughout America and even in China (in its Chinese translation), and Zen Baggage is sure to follow suit.

In addition, his translations of Chinese poems can be found HERE.

Harvesting Color: How to Find Plants and Make Natural Dyes by Rebecca Burgess

"Harvesting Color explains where to find these plants in the wild (and for those that can be grown in your backyard, how to nurture them) and the best time and way to harvest them; maps show the range of each plant in the United States and Canada. For the dyeing itself, the book describes the simple equipment needed and provides a master dye recipe. Harvesting Color is organized seasonally; as an added bonus, each section contains a knitting project using wools colored with dyes from plants harvested during that time of the year. With breathtaking color photographs by Paige Green throughout, Harvesting Color is an essential guide to this growing field, for crafters and DIYers; for ecologists and botanists; and for artists, textile designers, and art students."

The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolan

This is a must read for anyone at all interested in understanding something about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The author makes an undeniably complex situation easier to grasp by tracing the stories of two families up to the current time. The writing is beautiful, clear and unbiased. It reads like a historical novel in the best sense, yet is completely factual. Please read the reviews on his website (click on the title above) and then read the book. There are also reading guides for schools, groups and congregations. I can't say enough about how important it to read this book.

With Roots in Heaven by Rabbi Tirzah Firestone

"At age seventeen, Tirzah Firestone left the oppressive home of her Orthodox Jewish parents and set off on a spiritual odyssey. With Roots in Heaven is the story of that journey, a fascinating and moving account of her evolution from rebellious young seeker to renegade rabbi. This is an inspiring, true account of a courageous woman with strong convictions and a passion to know and feel God. It is also a book that goes beyond one person's story of wandering and redemption to explore the dangers of modern religion and the joys and conflicts of intermarriage and raising interfaith children. An unforgettable story of love, sacrifice, and transformation--of grace sought and found--With Roots in Heaven offers hope, wisdom, and encouragement to anyone seeking deeper spiritual meaning in today's world."

I enjoyed this book immensely, in fact I couldn't put it down. The lessons she learns from the school of hard knocks about spiritual paths, teachings, and her own innate wisdom and feminine knowing would be helpful to women from many diverse backgrounds. Her wisdom and experiences are particularly timely as women and the qualities of the feminine come forward in the world in new and much needed ways.

The Receiving: Reclaiming Jewish Women's Wisdom by Rabbi Tirzah Firestone

"Receiving" is the literal translation of the word Kabbalah, the body of Jewish mysticism that has been passed down from men to men for centuries. Ironically, the art of receiving, that is, opening to the divine spirit as it manifests in the here and now, is one of the undocumented mysteries of women's spirituality. Now, respected rabbi and Jungian therapist Tirzah Firestone sets out to correct the enormous error of history that has omitted the contribution of Jewish women mystics, sages, and holy women from the Jewish annals. In what might be called an act of spiritual archaeology, Firestone searches for the traces of the divine feminine in the Jewish tradition in order to answer the question, "What is a woman's way to God?" Drawing on the remarkable stories of seven historical holy women--who, despite tremendous obstacles, found ways to embrace the sacred feminine in their lives--Firestone teaches us the mysteries of Jewish Kabbalah from a woman's vantage point."

This book is very helpful in understanding some of what predicated such deep schism between spirit and matter in the Western world and what is needed from the feminine to heal this deep divide.

The Spy of the Heart by Robert Abdul Hayy Darr

This is a beautiful book and I highly recommend it. The author spent five years traveling in Afghanistan bringing medicine, food, and other aid to refugees. He helps the reader to understand the politics there as well as Islamic spirituality in clear, and simple language.  Several times in his journeys he sits with Sufi teachers and these beautiful meetings are movingly described. Four of the chapters are available on the author's website or you can order the entire book.

The Heart of the World: The Journey to the Last Secret Place

by Ian Baker.  This book describes many harrowing journeys in search of Shangri-La, a remote and hidden area along the Tsangpo River of Tibet.

The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating

by Elisabeth Tova Bailey.  I can't recommend this jewel of book highly enough! It is the story of a woman who has a long-term illness and from her bed she begins to observe a small garden snail that lives in a potted plant by her bed. She has been slowed down by her illness and so can truly perceive the life of this little snail. Would that we all could have our faculties of perception return to us again, as this is truly a lost skill!

It is a beautiful book, filled with wonder, enjoy!