The Soul of Recovery: Uncovering the Spiritual Dimension in the Treatment of Addictions

Last year's marvelous book Seeds of Grace: A Nun's Reflection on the Spirituality of Alcoholics Anonymous told the story of one woman's recovery from alcoholism and how she found deep spiritual sustenance in the AA program. Now comes The Soul of Recovery: Uncovering the Spiritual Dimension in the Treatment of Addictions, a sweeping study that describes the role of spirituality in a number of treatment programs. What is special about this book is its broad ethnographic approach; author Christopher Ringwald traveled across the U.S. to seek out the stories of individuals from all walks of life who feel they have recovered from addiction through some kind of spiritual transformation. Ringwald also interviewed doctors, family members and counselors to understand more about the role spiritual belief can play in successful treatment programs. This is an encouraging, well-researched book on an important topic. (June)