Tales of Wonder LP: Adventures Chasing the Divine, an Autobiography - Softcover

Smith, Huston

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0061669040 ISBN 13: 9780061669040

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers, 2021

Synopsis

"In this delightful autobiography, Smith tells us how he became the dean of world religion experts. Along the way we meet the people who shaped him and shared his journey--a Who's Who of 20th century spiritual America: the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the Dalai Lama, Aldous Huxley, Timothy Leary, T.S. Eliot, Thomas Merton and Pete Seeger.... A valuable master class on faith and life."
-- San Francisco Chronicle Book Review

As Stephen Hawking is to science; as Peter Drucker is to economics; and as Joseph Campbell is to mythology; so Huston Smith is to religion. Tales of Wonder is the personal story of the author of the classic The World's Religions, the man who taught a nation about the great faiths of the world, and his fascinating encounters with the people who helped shape the 20th century.

About this title

Review:

Smith is America's best-loved religion tutor.----Jack Miles

My admiration for Huston Smith's work is boundless. With each new book I have been astonished, edified, and greatly heartened by his brilliant mind and heart. He is the wisest, sanest religious scholar of them all, and so wonderfully readable.----Anne Lamott

Huston Smith is the world's ambassador to religions everywhere.----Thomas Moore

"It is the pulse of Smith's humanity that breathes life into Tales of Wonder."--CNN.com

"Smith parts the curtain on his past and says, "Look!" with the enthusiasm of a child--something he has not yet lost at age 90. The result is a joyous romp with a favorite uncle among holy places and mystics--the most interesting of them the author of the book."--Publishers Weekly

"Remarkably brief and humbly written for a man of Smith's fame and accomplishment, Tales deals simply with his life and his encounters with the great and the good (Eleanor Roosevelt, D.T. Suzuki, and Frithjof Schuon, to name a few). Highly recommended."--Library Journal

"Tales of Wonder brims with fascinating insights and tidbits."--Boston Globe

In this delightful autobiography, Smith tells us how he became the dean of world religions. Intellectual playfulness is definitely the spirit with which this book was written. Right to his final act, Smith is proving to be the consummate professor, giving us a valuable master class on faith and life.--San Francisco Chronicle Book Review

Poignant and readable, Smith recounts professional adventures--meeting Martin Luther King Jr., befriending Aldous Huxley and the Dalai Lama, dropping acid with Timothy Leary . . . this is what it feels like to have lived a long and interesting life.--Newsweek

In his lush new memoir, the religious scholar Smith dances among the whirling dervishes in Iran, camps with the Aborigines in Australia, shares a chuckle with a gaggle of Masai warriors on the darkening Serengeti plains. Each anecdote reveals Smith's sense of marvel at the strange bounty of the world--Washington Post Book World

From the Back Cover:

Smith's life is a story of uncanny synchronicity. He was there for pivotal moments in human history such as the founding of the United Nations and the student uprising at Tiananmen Square. As he traveled the world he encountered thinkers who shaped the twentieth century, including Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr., and Thomas Merton.

In search of intellectual and spiritual treasures, Smith traveled to India to meet with Mother Teresa, befriended the Dalai Lama, and recorded music with Pete Seger. Most important, he shared the world's religions with the West--writing two bestselling books and serving as the focus of a five-part PBS series by Bill Moyers.

Huston Smith is a national treasure. His life is an extraordinary adventure, and in his amazing Tales of Wonder, he invites you to come along to explore your own vistas of heart, mind, and soul.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Publication date: 2021
• ISBN 10: 0061669040
• ISBN 13: 9780061669040
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288