Sculpting Inner Landscapes

"Reading gives us someplace to go

when we have to stay where we are."

Mason Cooley

Pearl S. Buck, born to Chinese missionaries, was the  first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for THE GOOD EARTH and also won the Nobel Prize for her literature.   She brought exceptional attention to Asian cultures through her biographical fiction.  An advocate for women's rights she also highlighted support for Asian and mixed race adoptions.  Her books raised my awareness in high school.

Chaim Potok, born to Jewish immigrants from Poland, received numerous awards for his novels and was exceptionally accomplished in special projects in addition to his education.  As an orthodox Jew, he explored challenges between his family's culture and  his love for art and writing.    He also wrote about the value in differences between Orthodox and Hasidic Jews.  His career accomplishments included:  Author, Editor, Rabbi, Professor, and Artist.  Chaim Potok's work expressed the human experience in unforgettable ways, expanding my perceptions of childhood impacting adulthood.

Numerous authors welcomed me into a broad spectrum of reincarnation, life after death,  parallel lives, and non-denominational Divine Spirit, such as:  Jess Stearn, Taylor Caldwell,  Jane Roberts,  Machaelle Small Wright; Richard Bach,  Khalil Gibran, Mary Stewart, and Shakti Gawain.  There was always an enchanted place to visit with these authors.  Before the age of 30, I decided to invest my time in learning about the spiritual side of human nature forsaking romantic novels and horror stories.   What we choose to read sculpts are inner landscapes.