OPENING THE INVITATION: The Poem That Has Touched Lives Around the World
Oriah Mountain Dreamer. Harper San Francisco, $9.95 (96p) ISBN 0-06-059322-9
In 1993, Mountain Dreamer (her shamanic name) was chatting amiably with her friend Catherine when Catherine suddenly had a brain aneurysm. Although Catherine survived, Mountain Dreamer saw the incident as a spiritual wake-up call, and exactly one year after it happened, she sat down to write the prose poem “The Invitation.” After sharing it with several hundred writing students, she lost track of it, only to discover years later that the poem had taken on a life of its own on the Internet. In this illustrated gift book, the now-famous poem (which was first published by HSF in book form in 1999 and became a bestseller) is sandwiched between a foreword and afterword in which Mountain Dreamer describes its simple inception and astounding reception. Perhaps most touching is her account of receiving an admiring letter from a high school beau she had not seen in 30 years. They are now married. Fans of The Invitation will welcome this behind-the-scenes glimpse of the poem’s creation. (May)
A TREASURY OF MIRACLES FOR FRIENDS: True Stories of God’s Presence Today
Karen Kingsbury. Warner Faith, $12.95 paper (176p) ISBN 0-446-53334-3
Devotees of Kingsbury’s inspirational novels will enjoy this emotional collection of “true stories” about the miracle of friendship. (Kingsbury says that although each story is inspired by a true, miraculous event, the details are fictionalized.) Many of the vignettes explore identical themes to those addressed in her novels, all calculated to tug at the heartstrings: broken homes, struggling single parents, near-fatal illnesses, traumatic injuries, children with special needs, etc. As usual, God gives the characters inspiration in italicized text, and at least one angel-in-disguise puts in a mysterious appearance. Even the most cynical of readers will want a clean hanky nearby to stanch the inevitable tears. (May 11)
DRAWING NEAR: A Life of Intimacy with God
John Bevere. Thomas Nelson, $19.99 (304p) ISBN 0-7852-6116-8
Bevere, host of the weekly television program The Messenger, offers keen biblical insights in this spirituality book about enjoying true intimacy with God. God, writes Bevere, longs to have intimate communion with each of his children and has taken great pains throughout history to establish relationships with individual people. Drawing upon numerous biblical stories, many of which are relatively obscure tales from the Old Testament, Bevere displays a rare talent for detailed scrutiny of the text. Readers will be startled by some of his fresh, perceptive observations about various biblical passages, or the attention he gives to certain glossed-over details. The writing is not exceptional, but the prose is straightforward and conversational, as though Bevere were sitting down to a small Bible study with a few friends. (Apr.)
THE PRAYER BOX: Create, Write, and Live Your Prayers
Janell Moon. Red Wheel/Weiser, $24.95 (88p) ISBN 1-59003-058-3
Moon, a counselor and hypnotherapist whose book How to Pray Without Being Religious (Thorsons) will be released simultaneously with this one, encourages readers to create a “prayer box” that will help them experience prayer more fully. In this gift package, she offers a short book to guide readers through the process of “free writing” their prayers and creating personal prayer rituals. Moon has clearly read widely and well in spirituality literature, and she culls interesting quotes from a diverse range of sources. The book is generally well-organized and easy to follow, though the writing can be florid. The gift box also includes a blank-page paperback journal for readers to record their own prayerful musings, and a stack of 25 “prayer papers”—slips for distilling prayers into one or two lines that represent our deepest longings and intentions. (Apr.)
KIDS SAY THE BEST THINGS ABOUT LIFE: Devotions and Conversations for Families on the Go
Dandi Daley Mackall. Jossey-Bass, $12.95 (208p) ISBN 0-7879-6968-0
This follow-up to Kids Say the Best Things About God addresses some of the topics that come up in spiritual conversations. What is heaven like? (“All the beds have gold sheets with no holes in them,” says a seven-year-old.) How should kids handle it when their parents say no to something? (“You shouldn’t keep on asking and begging... although that usually works pretty good for me,” suggests Allyson, age nine.) The book is organized into 30 short devotions for “families on the go,” with a brief scripture verse and a meditation about it, conversation starters for family discussions and suggestions for applying the scripture ideas at school and at home. (Apr. 9)
FURTHER STILL: A Collection of Poetry and Vignettes
Beth Moore. Broadman & Holman, $14.99 (160p) ISBN 0-8054-3093-8
This gift book from the ever-popular Moore combines poetry, Bible study and personal anecdotes organized under the general themes of childhood, “shadow,” fellowship, service and “the road home.” Some of Moore’s poetic word choices—calling Immanuel (usually translated “God with us”) “the With of God,” for example—are unexpected enough to jar the reader into reflecting upon old teachings anew; others sound like standard 19th-century hymn texts. Moore’s prose pieces are attentive to scriptural details and to the customs of biblical times, imagining scenes such as the bris of an angrily wailing Saul of Tarsus, or the eschatological wedding supper envisioned in Revelation 19. She also tells stories from her own life, including a poignant one about the cruel teasing she endured as a child because of her severely malformed teeth. (Apr.)
