WHY WE LIKE IT: Imagine a modern-day DIARY OF ANNE FRANK, written by a young man who, like Anne, didn't know he was writing a book. Taken from letters home, and journal entries discovered by his father after Paul's suicide, this book definitely IS NOT the bummer you might think, given the fact that it deals in part with a loving and brilliant young man who took his own life at the age of 29 after years of Wandering and Contemplation. Really, Paul's death is only part of the story; it is his LIFE that provides the clearest lessons. Paul's story is a stirring examination of the bond between father and son, a commentary on the uncertainty that lives within us all (no matter our gifts and the love others give us), and a look at how truly difficult it can be to live with integrity in today's world. Paul's words are all the more compelling because of their straightforwardness...remember, these were journal entries and letters to his father, never intended for publication. So we're treated to glimpses of a mind and a spirit communicating back and forth, completely free of artifice. Paul was different, knew he was different, and experienced the anguish brilliant people feel when wondering why their gifts seem to matter so little. If Paul had a flaw, it was his unwillingness or inability to develop calluses around his spirit. For the rest of us, those calluses keep life’s absurdities from battering us too severely…but for people like Paul, the beatings eventually take their toll. Extreme sensitivity comes at a high price. Read this fascinating book. You’ll fall in love with Paul, with his spirit, and be reminded how very special your own life can be when you learn to tune in and live, truly. Fathers, get this book for your sons. Sons, buy it for your fathers. Teachers, buy a copy for your classroom; young people particularly need to know Paul's story, for in many cases it's THEIR story. RESTLESS MIND, QUIET THOUGHTS is a great learning experience for us all.
READERS SAY... RESTLESS MIND, QUIET THOUGHTS is the tragic story of a young man who took to heart what we teach our children: that something must be desperately wrong with you if you can't find fulfillment working in one of our culture's many glamorous and rewarding prison industries. Most children docilely accept the chains we offer them, but a few are like Paul, who refused the chains and paid for it with his life. It's time we listened to the anguished cries of these rare ones, and there's no better place to start than this. ---Daniel Quinn, author of ISHMAEL [A] remarkable book--an unusual and tender glimpse into that difficult interior world of chronic despair which is so hard for most people to undertand. I hope, and believe, Pauls's contribution will illuminate many lives. ---Barbara Kingsolver, author [H]eartbreaking--but rewarding; one of the most touching things I've ever read. ---Donald R. Marshall, university professor & author
READ AN EXCERPT "I’ve been thinking about the conflict that arises between a person’s social concern and his own personal responsibility. And it seemed to me, when I’ve dug down deep, emptied out all the pockets of my personal experience and dumped it out in front of me, lint and all, that we really have no social consciousness. But that, quite simply, the only way we can act is to become as good a friend to ourself as we can. If we can learn, through practiced calmness and faith, to dip our buckets of need deep into that quiet, fathomless well of our being, we will always draw back a full load of answers. And for me it will always be different, in some way, than for someone else. And for me to try to live by their values, for me to act out my play with their script would be madness. A person can only prepare himself for a crisis or decision by freeing himself from everything but his self. And if rational action is called for, by using only as his tools those few thoughts or memories of experience that have truly touched him. We will never be confronted by a reality beyond our cumulative experience. I need to say now, and keep reminding myself, that I am a searcher. Above all, I want a rich and fulfilling life; I want to dwell in life’s mysteries; I want to be different than most people." ----an entry from Paul’s journal, written in his 22nd year back to the list of Books Our Friends Wrote! |
