Question 3 - How would you rate this book and why?

[Carol]

Question 3. How would you rank this book and why?

[Lauren]

I'm planning to give it a 4. I very much enjoyed it - as I said in an email to Ashley, I think this is a great example of a book that isn't as well known as it should be because the author is a woman talking about "woman's stuff."

I found it much more thought provoking and inspirational than, for example, The Alchemist.

[Carol]

Question Lauren: I started reading the Book of Signora di Vinci this afternoon. The very first chapter is called "The Alchemist." I'd just read your email and thought HMMMMM are they the same????? Are they?

[Carol]

I gave this book a 4. You ladies are so much wiser than I am that I will be able to learn from you. I was truly surprised at the wisdom, philosophy, and imagery she used in her writing. This is my first read. It was a very soothing read. What struck me is the book was written in 1955, yet the thinking is quite progressive. The author speaks of what women need to do to make sure they don't lose themselves in daily life. There's talk of taking time for yourself away from your family, your friends, your obligations. The discussion about the distractions of "modern conveniences" may seem quaint, but it's very applicable to our time!

[Lauren]

I was referring to The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I found A Gift from the Sea much more meditative, uplifting and thought provoking than that best seller.

I also found the advice applicable to 2013. And while it is dated in places, I also found it progressive.

Out of interest, Carol, did you read an edition of the book that included the 1975 afterword?

[Carol]

Lauren, YES, my version did have the 1975 Afterword. I really liked her interpretation of that period and when she used her "own words" to define what she wanted to say. I got kind of a chuckle when she mentioned the Woman's Liberation Movement. One quote I particularly liked:

"Perhaps the greatest progress, humanly speaking, in these past twenty years, for both woman and men, is in the growth of consciousness. In fact, those movements I mentioned under their popular labels could be more truly described as enlargements in consciousness. A new consciousness of the dignity and rights of an individual, regardless of race, creed, class, or sex. A new consciousness and questioning of the materialistic values of the Western world. A new consciousness of our place in the universe, and a new awareness of the inter-relatedness of all life on our planet.

[Diana S]

While I was reading this book, I was wondering: what would I ponder upon while looking at the sea?
What "Gift from the Sea" do I need at this time in my life? I love the concept of the book! A book that gets you a thinkin'!
I give it 3.5 stars***!

[Lauren]

I was also intrigued by her comment about not being prepared for being an empty nester - in the main text, she gave that advice with such authority that I sort of assumed she was either already or close to being at that stage of her life. For her to come back and say she had underestimated the transition, well, I wish she would have gone into more detail with that.