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365th out of 613 books
—
557 voters
Now Is the Time to Open Your Heart
The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Color Purple, Possessing the Secret of Joy, and The Temple of My Familiar now gives us a beautiful new novel that is at once a deeply moving personal story and a powerful spiritual journey.
In Now Is the Time to Open Your Heart, Alice Walker has created a work that ranks among her ?nest achievements: the story of a woman’s spiritual...more
In Now Is the Time to Open Your Heart, Alice Walker has created a work that ranks among her ?nest achievements: the story of a woman’s spiritual...more
Audio CD, 0 pages
Published
April 20th 2004
by Random House Audio
(first published 2004)
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"Oh, she said, what I've discovered is that with lovers as with everything, there are cycles, seasons. If you live your life in such a way as to become free rather than to become not free, she continued, you will find Life presents you with regular summers and winters and autumns and springs. There will be times when the masculine will demand your interest and attention, she said. Times when the feminine will rise and exact her due."
"When you are caught up in the world that you did not design as...more
"When you are caught up in the world that you did not design as...more
This novel tells the tale of a woman who is experiencing a midlife crisis of sorts and goes on a quest (including meditation retreats and trips to Latin America) to try to find herself. Her partner Yolo also experiences his own journey. Like some of Walker's novels, it features characters floating in and out, telling their own stories within stories. I really felt this book lacked direction and needed more focus. Perhaps the novel's structure was meant to mirror the protagonist's own searching a...more
I couldn't finish this book. I had trouble following the chronology -- I got halfway through the book and still couldn't tell if the action was taking place before or after the first chapter. The characters' values and thought processes were so foreign to me that I had trouble following the action and dialog. That's an unusual experience for me, since I cut my teeth on speculative fiction. I usually like Alice Walker, which is why I picked this book up, but this one was just a little weird for m...more
This is my first Alice Walker novel, so my expectations might have been a bit too high. I think if it had been a first novel from a new author, I would have been pleasantly surprised, but when I picked this one up I was kind of hoping for a dazzling work from a master author late in her career.
I liked reading a novel about a woman who is over 40, unmarried, black, confident, and not yearning for a romantic relationship. It seems rare to read about an older woman on a quest outside of chicklit or...more
I liked reading a novel about a woman who is over 40, unmarried, black, confident, and not yearning for a romantic relationship. It seems rare to read about an older woman on a quest outside of chicklit or...more
This reads more like a character study of Kate than as a novel. What saved it from being a one is that it does make you feel and think in spots and in those spots ,there are some wonderful thoughts or quotes that I could extract.however, the book meanders quite a bit. For those not familiar with the book ,it is about Kate and her love (r) Yolo who reach an autumn of their relationship and each go on a quest/retreat/vacation to find themselves.What transpires on those trips is quite fantastical ....more
I just love the vibe I get from Alice Walker's books, so much about self-care and empowerment, totally in a California style. That being the case, this book's certainly not for everyone. Here's some of my fave quotes:
--"He did not use these things anymore, and yet, the thought of letting them go made him sad. He felt they represented times in his life he could not recall without their presence. They represented stories." (p 25)
--"She had an instinctive understanding, perhaps from birth, that peo...more
--"He did not use these things anymore, and yet, the thought of letting them go made him sad. He felt they represented times in his life he could not recall without their presence. They represented stories." (p 25)
--"She had an instinctive understanding, perhaps from birth, that peo...more
As I read this book, I kept thinking, "Wait, Alice Walker is one of our great American writers, right? What am I missing?" To the extent that there's a plot, it's about a couple who take separate vacations: she to an Amazonian meditation retreat where everyone takes some kind of hallucinogen they call "Grandmother"; he to Hawaii, where he lands in a consciousness-raising circle that raises his consciousness about everything from processed food to the history of transgender shamans. My tolerance...more
This book had such great timing, like I couldn't believe. I picked it up at a used bookstore a few months ago, thinking, "Alice Walker is a good author, I bet I'd like this..." and nothing more. When I picked it up to begin reading I couldn't believe the timing. It was about exactly the kind of things I'm interested in at the moment: how to serve the planet and the great spirit all around us, but from a fictional viewpoint.
This book is hardly the book for everyone. It jumps back and forth in tim...more
This book is hardly the book for everyone. It jumps back and forth in tim...more
This book chose me. It is beyond profound. The saying goes, "when the student is ready, the teacher will come". Alice Walker is by far one of my favorite writers. She is superb. I just recently began reading her work and I cannot seem to get enough.
This book just "spoke" to me. It put it all in perspective. It will take some work to overcome my ego, but it can be done. We are here only for a short time. There is so much to know and understand.
What I took from this story could not begin to be c...more
This book just "spoke" to me. It put it all in perspective. It will take some work to overcome my ego, but it can be done. We are here only for a short time. There is so much to know and understand.
What I took from this story could not begin to be c...more
Reading this book was, well, an interesting experience. The author's world view is very different from my own, so I would be inclined to interpret things quite differently from the way she interprets them.
For example, here's an excerpt taken from pages 67-68:
"And, said Kate [the main character] into Anunu's [a shaman Kate was opening up to] silence, there is the question of sex. One's sexuality.
"Ah, said Anunu.
"I don't seem to find much of a difference between women and men when it comes to lovi...more
For example, here's an excerpt taken from pages 67-68:
"And, said Kate [the main character] into Anunu's [a shaman Kate was opening up to] silence, there is the question of sex. One's sexuality.
"Ah, said Anunu.
"I don't seem to find much of a difference between women and men when it comes to lovi...more
1 like · like · see review
Alice Walker is a sage. She is pain, love, beauty and soul. If I could have one wish it would be just to have a conversation with her over tea. She makes me see myself all old and tattered one minute and all new and shiny the next, and I love her and myself all the more for it.
This book is everything short of amazing. I blindly purchased this book at a used book store several months ago and it patiently collected dust on my book shelf until recently. I am so thankful that I pulled it off of the shelf and indulged in it. This book is exactly what I needed.....a transformation on many levels and permission to seek out these opportunities!
Alice Walker has a beautiful way of pulling you into each of her poignant characters and launching you on a journey with each of them;...more
Alice Walker has a beautiful way of pulling you into each of her poignant characters and launching you on a journey with each of them;...more
Written by The Color Purple lady! It's a spiritual journey that an older woman takes. It was really pleasurable. I have a qoute from this book on my wall "opening beyond where i am afraid to go will be the medicine for my cure."
Just finished this last night. I started reading this book because I was in a bad space. It helped pull me out of that; which is exactly why I decided to read it. I didn't realize it was going to be very much about Iawasca, a hallucinagenic mixture of a root and vine from south america, which i have been wanting to experience for a long time. It's a very spiritual plant and I have not yet had that opening come into my life. I know it will and it's certianly not something i'd ever want to rush. I...more
I picked this book up from the stacks at the library when my other requested books were not becoming available on the proper schedule and then had to put it down about halfway through the book when, as always, two of the books I had requested that everyone else in Seattle is also requesting, became available at the same time. I was a bit reluctant to put the book down because it seemed to be saying something to me that I really wanted to hear, but I find it hard to hold on to books that I know a...more
Reading the works of Alice Walker is nothing short of transformative. When I first began to read her books, I was an awkward and shy 18 year-old; her generous vision of the world and of humanity changed me forever. It really doesn't matter which of her books I pick up to read and reread; the fictional space I enter is vast, hopeful, uplifting, progressive, and nonjudgmental. There is welcoming room for women and men of all sizes, and for all races. Everyone can rewrite their story, revise their...more
I think this is a book that is meant to be "felt" not read, not experienced, not enjoyed, but felt. And because at some point i put the book down, read three or four books, then picked it back up and completed it, i didn't feel the book, either that or the writing didn't move me....i don't know. but the parts i did feel were fairly good, and i think when i'm older it would be wise of me to reread the book.
on a side note i read the color purple in 9th grade i believe and i recall loving it, altho...more
on a side note i read the color purple in 9th grade i believe and i recall loving it, altho...more
This was a good book, but not great.. I appreciated the journeys that Kate took and her desire to reconnect with spirit.. I sort of got the impression that this story may be somewhat autobiographical. When I pictured Kate in my mind, I saw Alice. Most of us can’t take a trip down the Colorado River or a trip into the rainforest of the Amazon, so it’s nice to go along with Alice as she makes her journey. The novel is indeed dream-like and is almost a parable instead of a novel. Her writing style...more
Jan 05, 2011
Natalie
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
everyone
Recommended to Natalie by:
no one
This is another of the top 30 books that changed my life. The story of a souls unfolding in a most unconventional way. Alice Walker is always a little ahead of her time. This book, with it's honest portrayal of the questions and pains that arise in shared spiritual journeys was a refreshing change from the "feel good" delusions of much of contemporary Western portrayals of spiritual practices. Like "The Temple of My Familiar" I expect to read this one over and over again.
Two persons of color take a trip: one to Hawaii where he meets and interacts with native people and learns about their culture, the other to South America to meet with a Shaman, ingest poisonous plants for their hallucinogenic effects and see what “the Grandmother” (who is the plant) can teach them. Transformations abound as they return home, share their experiences, and begin to live what they've learned.
A novel of which I learned through a conversation with Walker (23 April 2004) on KUOW's Weekday. This was a visit into two people's lives that provided timely insight and inspiration for me. One of those books which remind you of the human condition in which all those around us are living. I've added all Walker's other books to my reading list
I really needed this book. I read it at just the right time of my life. Parts of it are really out there, and the ending was disappointing, but the quest for spiritual (re)awakening that happens in this book almost moved me to tears.
This book was very well-written, and though I wanted to read it all in one sitting, I found it is much better to read it in bits and to slowly digest it. Amazing.
This book was very well-written, and though I wanted to read it all in one sitting, I found it is much better to read it in bits and to slowly digest it. Amazing.
If this book were not written by Alice Walker, who is a fantastic storyteller ususally, I would have stopped after the description of the main character's altar (Jesus next to Che). Apparently she writes menopausal, new age, soul-searching tripe now. Next time I want to read Walker, I'll go back to "The Color Purple" or "The Temple of my Familiar."
I tend to be good at picking up books that pertain to my life experience and desires of the moment. My absolute favorite book of Alice Walker is Temple of my familiar because the stories are elaborate and almost mythical. This novel is pretty straight forward its about a woman around her 50s who has reached a stagnant point her life and seeks inspiration, self and love for life through travel. From as far as I've read she's braved the Colorado river and is now in a jungle somewhere in South Amer...more
I love this book!
It made me look at the world with new eyes. I had been feeling very weary, and this book gave me a freshie.
It brought magic into my life.
I learned that it's still ok to be weird. that there are alternate views besides the corporate box I live in most days. I knew this but needed the reminder.
It made me look at the world with new eyes. I had been feeling very weary, and this book gave me a freshie.
It brought magic into my life.
I learned that it's still ok to be weird. that there are alternate views besides the corporate box I live in most days. I knew this but needed the reminder.
i can't decide if the title pertains to opening our hearts to the sufferings of the world, or of healing the world or if rather to Kate's (main character)renewed faith in love. in the novel-she's been in and out of several relationships and marriages that she came to think of marriage as bondage.
one thing - i liked Yolo's (Kate's partner) character and story more. his road to self-discovery and awakening to being-ness and one-ness with the world, the environment etc...an awakening that was not c...more
one thing - i liked Yolo's (Kate's partner) character and story more. his road to self-discovery and awakening to being-ness and one-ness with the world, the environment etc...an awakening that was not c...more
I have already read a good chunk of Walker's novels and short stories and the title of this book always appealed to me. Love the Womanistic theme and general holistic approach to life Walker takes, and this book is no exception. The 911 motif at the end is kind of odd, though.
This novel is a vacation for the soul, a guide for a better way to live and a better way to be human-filled with joy and poetry and sheer delight to be alive and present in the moments before they pass on into the next one.
Walker is a writer who loves life and that love lives in her words.
Read it.
Walker is a writer who loves life and that love lives in her words.
Read it.
Alice Walker does philosophy. I did the audio-book so not sure if it affected my experience, i really loved the narration, style and pace. A few chapters in I would have given it 5 stars for sure, unfortunately I found it really dragged, it just wasnt really going anywhere although there were some nice stories within the story. All in all i was glad to finish with it despite the beauty of the storytelling.
I listened to this as an audiobook, and the beautiful prose made this a very fun way to read this book. But, I may need to get a hard copy now as the book is full of poignant quotes that I want to remember. I really enjoyed this book!!
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Alice Walker (b. 1944), one of the United States’ preeminent writers, is an award-winning author of novels, stories, essays, and poetry. In 1983, Walker became the first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for fiction with her novel The Color Purple, which also won the National Book Award. Her other books include The Third Life of Grange Copeland, Meridian, The Temple of My Familiar, an...more
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“The savage rushing of the river seemed to be inside her head, inside her body. Even when the oarswomen, their guides, were speaking to her, she had the impression she couldn't quite hear them because of the roar. Not of the river that did indeed roar, just behind them, close to the simple shelter they'd made for her, but because of an internal roar as of the sound of a massive accumulation of words, spoken all at once, but collected over a lifetime, now trying to leave her body. As they rose to her lips, and in response to the question: Do you want to go home? she leaned over a patch of yellow grass near her elbow and threw up.
All the words from decades of her life filled her throat. Words she had said or had imagined saying or had swallowed before saying to her father, dead these many years. All the words to her mother. To her husbands. Children. Lovers. The words shouted back at the television set, spreading its virus of mental confusion.
Once begun, the retching went on and on. She would stop, gasping for breath, rest a minute, and be off again. Draining her body of precious fluid... Soon, exhausted, she was done.
No, she had said weakly, I don't want to go home. I'll be all right now.”
—
1 person liked it
All the words from decades of her life filled her throat. Words she had said or had imagined saying or had swallowed before saying to her father, dead these many years. All the words to her mother. To her husbands. Children. Lovers. The words shouted back at the television set, spreading its virus of mental confusion.
Once begun, the retching went on and on. She would stop, gasping for breath, rest a minute, and be off again. Draining her body of precious fluid... Soon, exhausted, she was done.
No, she had said weakly, I don't want to go home. I'll be all right now.”
“Do you know what O'Keefe Says about blue? he asked her, blowing out a cloud of smoke, warming to her voice, though he did not remember her face clearly from the opening night's exhibition.
What?
That it is the color that will remain after everything is destroyed.”
—
1 person liked it
More quotes…
What?
That it is the color that will remain after everything is destroyed.”
Dec 28, 2008 01:11pm