Chicken soup for the non-sappy soul?

May 19, 2008 9:23 AM

In 1998 I bought a paperback at a bookstore. It was an anthology of inspirational and spiritual writing by a variety of authors. It was great, I loaned it to someone, and now I'd like to find another copy of it.

It was different than a lot of similar books in that it wasn't hippy dippy, overly optimistic or sappy. The writing was generally soul searching and not preachy or simplistic.

I believe there was stuff by Gandhi, MLK, perhaps Maya Angelou (I could be wrong about all of them being in there though). It was a medium sized paperback (more rectangular than square), seems by memory to be about 450 pages or so. I think it might have been seperated by subject (hope, loss, death, family, etc)

The cover was simple, as I remember it. There was no picture, some sort of muted colors (like milkpaintish in hue, maybe barn red). I think the design was basically a rectangle within the cover that mirrored the dimensions of the book. And then the title, in some sort of happy looking script. I could be wrong about the design.

I really loved this book, and then loaned it to someone (I think my aunt, who I imagine would not be able to find it). All my details are pretty hazy. Other than it was a paperback and I bought it in the summer of 1998 in East Hampton, NY and I think the paperback was a new release.

If you could help me identify this book, that would be awesome. Thanks.

posted by sully75 to writing & language (8 comments total)

This sounds strangely like something I picked up once called simply "Life". It's proving notoriously difficult to look up on Amazon (mainly because that gives you a gazillion hits), but I do have the book and will check at home and post details later.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 9:31 AM on May 19, 2008

Is it God In All Worlds: An Anthology of Contemporary Spiritual Writing by Lucinda Vardey, first published in 1995?
posted by Jasper Friendly Bear at 10:05 AM on May 19, 2008

EmpressCallipygos that might be right...sort of sounds familiar but I'm not sure.

Jasper, I think the book I'm thinking of was less strictly spiritual/religious, but had quite a big of religious writing in it.
posted by sully75 at 10:24 AM on May 19, 2008

And thanks to both of you...
posted by sully75 at 10:24 AM on May 19, 2008

Could be Zen Soup? Although your book sounds bigger than this. (Worth a read if you don't discover the one you remember.)
posted by dowcrag at 11:48 AM on May 19, 2008

I think I might actually have a book at home that fits the bill. Damn if I can't remember the title. It's pinkish, as thick as you say, and consists of short pieces from various world spiritual traditions - koans, poems, Bible stories, creation stories, aphorisms, haiku, you name it. The one distinctive feature on the cover of mine that I can remember is that the font face is vaguely Middle Eastern-ish and maroon. I'll check later if it sounds like I'm close.
posted by Miko at 1:32 PM on May 19, 2008

Thanks Miko and Dowcrag. I think the book I'm thinking of is less religiously centered...I believe there is fiction in it, memoir...there are religious and spiritual pieces there, as well as straight ahead fiction and non-fiction. But Miko, I could be wrong, let me know if you find something...and thanks.
posted by sully75 at 1:50 PM on May 19, 2008

The Oxford Book of Prayer is another possibility.
posted by shothotbot at 3:33 PM on May 19, 2008