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bioniclib's review against another edition
3.0
It reads like a literary fiction book, though it's nonfiction. There's a distance between me and what's going on in the story. I have trouble getting swept up in it. Some of the transitions are abrupt and the sympathy for her suffering falls flat.
Though there are plenty of good turns of phrase to save the book. I like the middle part of the book when she was in Plum Village much more than the first and last thirds about sheep farming.
Here are my favorite quotes.
"...worries at the skill level of a forty-year-old."
"Time oppresses me, I crawl to God across the face of a clock." (86)
"As Thay says, the practice of mindfulness is a sneaky way to live a rich life." (145)
"...if you feel yourself becoming ill…you should not use metaphors ofl 'fighting it off', which rear up the spirit in a posture of violence." (148) great example of nonviolent thinking.
I should get a chiming clock to help bring me back to the now! (182)
“‘The important thing to remember, again, is that they’re your buttons, not the buttons of reality,’ Josef reminds me. ‘Someone else does not have the same buttons. Therefore, your irritation is based merely on an idea of how things should be. A relative idea. You are producing the feeling with the underlying perception skewing your judgment. You to get at the underlying idea.’” (188)
"... It's not that we exclude gadgets, it's that we want to be careful about how close we let them get ." (224) Am Amish dude in response to people wondering at their community having a shared telephone outside their house.
“...there is a rule to barn conversation that they should contain only about ten sentences, five for you and five for me…It’s rather like a Quaker meeting.” (244)
"To be yourself is to court mockery." (302)
Though there are plenty of good turns of phrase to save the book. I like the middle part of the book when she was in Plum Village much more than the first and last thirds about sheep farming.
Here are my favorite quotes.
"...worries at the skill level of a forty-year-old."
"Time oppresses me, I crawl to God across the face of a clock." (86)
"As Thay says, the practice of mindfulness is a sneaky way to live a rich life." (145)
"...if you feel yourself becoming ill…you should not use metaphors ofl 'fighting it off', which rear up the spirit in a posture of violence." (148) great example of nonviolent thinking.
I should get a chiming clock to help bring me back to the now! (182)
“‘The important thing to remember, again, is that they’re your buttons, not the buttons of reality,’ Josef reminds me. ‘Someone else does not have the same buttons. Therefore, your irritation is based merely on an idea of how things should be. A relative idea. You are producing the feeling with the underlying perception skewing your judgment. You to get at the underlying idea.’” (188)
"... It's not that we exclude gadgets, it's that we want to be careful about how close we let them get ." (224) Am Amish dude in response to people wondering at their community having a shared telephone outside their house.
“...there is a rule to barn conversation that they should contain only about ten sentences, five for you and five for me…It’s rather like a Quaker meeting.” (244)
"To be yourself is to court mockery." (302)
kath_m_'s review against another edition
5.0
the idea of not bothering your neighbours is a hard one for me, but otherwise i loved this. her treks into buddhism never felt conversion-y or preachy; she was clear about only being able to honestly adopt certain aspects of the tradition, without seeming (to me) to be reductive. her anger and the part of her that wants to 'roll around in pop culture' were relatable. i trust her as a narrator. i loved the parts about singing; i learned a lot about sheep! this changed how i think about work and community and growth & made me (!) interested in meditation.
agnela's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
4.0
I have conflicted feelings over this book. I loved narration, I am interested in stories from people visiting Buddhist monasteries, I had nothing against how this woman views religion and her beliefs. I actually found it refreshing and lovely, but the sheep stories were gruesome, I saw no love for sheep themselves, only what their loves can give the farmers. One dying or not being able to birth lambs means loss of money that makes the owners angry and furious. I think seeing this as love for these animals were nonsense, denial of truth in front of you. Maybe the PETA girls were wrong, but neither was Mary right. If you can't grow soy somewhere, you absolutely still can grow something else. We can't grow a lot of things in colder climates, but we still deal with it and grow food, I bet there's a lot of plants that people can grow in warmer climates. The thing is, it's a good argument, but not as informed as she thinks it is. So, actually, logically, she's in the same plane as PETA girls with "everyone should grow soy".
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
pattydsf's review
4.0
’In the Christian calendar, November 1 is the Feast of All Saints, a day honoring not only those who are known and recognized as enlightened souls, but more especially the unknowns, saints who walk beside us unrecognized down the millennia. In Buddhism, we honor the bodhisattvas - saints - who refuse enlightenment and return willingly to the wheel of karma to help other beings. Similarly, in Judaism, anonymous holy men pray the world from its well-merited destruction. We never know who is walking beside us, who is our spiritual teacher. That one - who annoys you so - pretends for a day that he's the one, your personal Obi Wan Kenobi. The first of November is a splendid, subversive holiday.”
“I would not say I am looking for God. Or, I am not looking for God precisely. I am not seeking the God I learned about as a Catholic child, as an 18-year-old novice in a religious community, as an agnostic graduate student, as - but who cares about my disguises? Or God's.”
“When I speak in Christian terms or Buddhist terms, I'm simply selecting for the moment a dialect. Christian words for me represent the comforting vocabulary of the place I came from hometown voices saying more than the language itself can convey about how welcome and safe I am what the expectations are and where to find food. Buddhist words come from another dialect from the people over the mountain. I've become pretty fluent in Buddhist it helps me to see my home country differently, but it will never be speech I can feel completely at home in.”
I have mentioned the serendipity of finding books often in my reviews. I am always reading reviews and making lists and trying to figure out what my next book will be. Should I follow a memoir with fiction or more non-fiction. When am I going to read more poetry? What about that book that I have heard about from more than one other reader? And what do I do about the fact that I cannot read everything I am interested in.
This lovely book was referenced in David Dark’s Life’s Too Short to Pretend You’re Not Religious. The title caught my eye and then I figured out that it was available from Hoopla. So, I checked it out. It didn’t go on my ever-growing list of to-be-read-books. I am so glad that I picked it up at once.
O'Reilley is a magical writer. She showed how the disparate parts of her life made up a fascinating whole. I learned about her novitiate, her interested in music especially Sacred Harp music, her visit to Plum Village in France and most of all her work as a shepherd. Little bits came out as if we were having a conversation, not as if I was reading her writing. O’Reilley’s style is not what I am used to, but I found that I really had to pay attention to the threads of her story.
I am not sure to whom I would recommend this memoir. It is part autobiography, part spiritual guide and all thought provoking. I would give anything to spend a day, week or whatever in O’Reilley’s company. She makes me think and I am grateful.
“I would not say I am looking for God. Or, I am not looking for God precisely. I am not seeking the God I learned about as a Catholic child, as an 18-year-old novice in a religious community, as an agnostic graduate student, as - but who cares about my disguises? Or God's.”
“When I speak in Christian terms or Buddhist terms, I'm simply selecting for the moment a dialect. Christian words for me represent the comforting vocabulary of the place I came from hometown voices saying more than the language itself can convey about how welcome and safe I am what the expectations are and where to find food. Buddhist words come from another dialect from the people over the mountain. I've become pretty fluent in Buddhist it helps me to see my home country differently, but it will never be speech I can feel completely at home in.”
I have mentioned the serendipity of finding books often in my reviews. I am always reading reviews and making lists and trying to figure out what my next book will be. Should I follow a memoir with fiction or more non-fiction. When am I going to read more poetry? What about that book that I have heard about from more than one other reader? And what do I do about the fact that I cannot read everything I am interested in.
This lovely book was referenced in David Dark’s Life’s Too Short to Pretend You’re Not Religious. The title caught my eye and then I figured out that it was available from Hoopla. So, I checked it out. It didn’t go on my ever-growing list of to-be-read-books. I am so glad that I picked it up at once.
O'Reilley is a magical writer. She showed how the disparate parts of her life made up a fascinating whole. I learned about her novitiate, her interested in music especially Sacred Harp music, her visit to Plum Village in France and most of all her work as a shepherd. Little bits came out as if we were having a conversation, not as if I was reading her writing. O’Reilley’s style is not what I am used to, but I found that I really had to pay attention to the threads of her story.
I am not sure to whom I would recommend this memoir. It is part autobiography, part spiritual guide and all thought provoking. I would give anything to spend a day, week or whatever in O’Reilley’s company. She makes me think and I am grateful.
ricefun's review against another edition
5.0
I was so intrigued by the title of this book that I immediately bought a copy on Better World Books. I spent a flight to Las Vegas reading the better part of this memoir. The chapters are short and quick to read, but the truths they hold about life and faith expand on and on and on. It is ironic that I was reading this book, which includes a significant visit to Plum Village, the spiritual community following the teachings of Tich Nhat Hanh, on the date of his passing. Having this glimpse into his Buddhist practices and teachings felt relevant and right.
While I'm not inspired to buy 40 acres and start a "religious petting zoo" as Mary's dream is characterized at one point in the book, this book is a reminder to continue learning, expanding, and spending more time deeply immersed with creation. I've already recommended it to more than one friend, with intentions to buy copies as gifts. I suspect I may re-visit this story at some future time in my life.
While I'm not inspired to buy 40 acres and start a "religious petting zoo" as Mary's dream is characterized at one point in the book, this book is a reminder to continue learning, expanding, and spending more time deeply immersed with creation. I've already recommended it to more than one friend, with intentions to buy copies as gifts. I suspect I may re-visit this story at some future time in my life.
ljcostel's review against another edition
5.0
Personal memoir of a remarkably insightful woman. One of the best books I've ever read. Felt like talking to a person thinking about and feeling so many of the things I am right now. Beautiful insights on Catholicism, Buddhism, Quakerism, religion, farming, sheep, mindfulness, singing, love, meaning, nature, family, spiritual longing and fulfillment, I could go on and on. Must have underlined half the book. Often deeply funny
nikarice's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
This book spoke to my soul so much. The mixture of specific animal science and husbandry with meditation and religion was incredible. I find it so comforting that there are others who find farming a sprititual practice. I understand myself better after reading this book. I will definitely reread in the future.
revslick's review
2.0
funny with a gift for narrative structure making the book a light jaunt into the Spirit lite section, however, the lack of depth even with the author's purported Quacker background leave the reader like eating a hollow chocolate bunny.
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