Books
Every one of these poems has struck me a blow, a direct hit, each of them, into the heart of hearts. Every one of them has opened a door for me to go deeper into my own experience, my own joys and sorrows, my own longings, and into the silence that surrounds all of this, all of us, always.
Seven Sins for A Life Worth Living (Dec 2005)
As this book shows us,“When you die, God and the angels will hold you accountable for all the pleasures you were allowed in life that you denied yourself.” Tennis star Maria Sharapova says that this is "One of the most inspirational books I have ever read.”
How the incredible life and work of Rembrandt can serve as a wise and honest mirror to clarify our own hopes, struggles and aspirations.
Great poetry calls into question not less than everything. It dares us to break free from the safe strategies of the cautious mind. It amazes, startles, pierces, and transforms us. This is what you will find in this book.
Ten Poems to Set You Free (2003)
Poems on work in the world, passion, and claiming the life that is truly yours.
Dancing With Joy: 99 Poems (2007)
This enchanting story, set in the late 1950s, takes us from the hills and piazzas of Florence to the green domed mosques of Konya, Turkey. Upon discovering a poem by the thirteenth-century Sufi dervish Rumi, Georgiou, a young Greek icon painter, is compelled to travel to the land that this poet called home. Inspired by Rumi’s magical words, Georgiou leaves his father and their small business in hopes of recapturing the transcendent power of an early childhood vision. In the tradition of The Alchemist and Siddartha, Chasing Rumi is a spellbinding and enduring story for all.
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What Roger is reading now:
Books highly recommended by Roger Housden
Books highly recommended by Roger Housden
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What Is The What by Dave EggersA searing, brilliantly written account of the life of one of the "lost boys of Sudan," one of hundreds of thousands who have been displaced by the conflict in Darfur and southern Sudan. Walking for months at ten years old through the desert, death and destruction everywhere, the refugee camp in Ethiopia, then Kenya, then a new but difficult life in America, home of the not so free.
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Why Can't We Be Good? by Jacob NeedlemanA philosopher whose mind is in his heart rather than somewhere above his head. With empathy and deep reflection, he explores why we are so often unable to do what we know we should do. Why is it, for example, so difficult to love unconditionally?
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Yoga For People Who Can't Be Bothered To Do It by Geoff DyerCompletely original and hilarious. Dyer is a profound and profoundly irreverent writer. He describes the romantic, traveling life that so many of us dream of, but that he flounders in, always wishing he were elsewhere.
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Refusing Heaven Poems by Jack GilbertOne of the rare collections where I find more than two or three poems that knock me off my seat. Gilbert is a master.
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In Praise of Mortality Selections from Rilke's Duino Elegies and Sonnets to Orpheus, translated by Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy.Rilke is for all time, of course, but it's all in the translation, and to my ear this version is the best I have come across.
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Mules of Love Poems by Ellen BassIf you want juicy, sexy, deeply alive, mordant, funny, poignant, this is the book for you.