cover image The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life

The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life

Thomas Moore. HarperCollins Publishers, $25 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-06-017209-1

Where better to care for the soul than in the details of our daily lives? And so this profound yet practical sequel to Moore's massive bestseller, Care of the Soul, explores how we may nurture our souls while eating, dressing, traveling and so on. The soul, according to Moore, is a kind of sea of intelligence and responsiveness to life; it animates, yet exceeds, the individual. The soul can never be fully known or possessed, only glimpsed. Yet when we learn to open to it, it can pull us into the beautiful mystery of our lives. ""In a condition of enchantment, we stop doing and the soul acts,"" writes Moore of a possible soul-based therapy. ""We stop interpreting and the soul is revealed."" The soul's power of enchantment can be engaged not just by listening in the therapist's office, but by living surrounded by--and in harmony with--the textures, tastes and images that inspire the imagination. Some of Moore's reflections are simplistic, even dogmatic (for instance, that concern over the healthiness of our food will diminish its resonance) or too romantic. But this important book will dare many to believe that life really is full of enchantment, if only we can go beyond our habitual literal-mindedness and narcissism to experiment with that broader state of attunement that Moore calls soul. $250,000 ad/promo; BOMC and QPB dual main selections; simultaneous audio from HarperAudio; author tour; U.K., translation, first serial, dramatic rights: Michael Katz. (June)