cover image The Yoga Teacher

The Yoga Teacher

Alexandra Gray, . . Atlantic Monthly, $23 (304pp) ISBN 978-0-87113-986-3

Gray (Ten Men ) portrays the world of Westernized yoga, from its true disciples to spandex-wrapped poseurs, in this uplifting tale of starting over. Languishing in an unfulfilling pharmaceutical sales job, unhappy in her relationship with an unemployed single dad and still mourning the death of her previous boyfriend, Londoner Grace sees the daily yoga classes at Swami P’s as her only salvation. A business meeting that turns personal inspires Grace to ditch both job and boyfriend and become a yoga teacher. Yet Grace’s new path is far from blissful; she teaches “heart sinker” patients at a health clinic and privately instructs socialites, a starlet and an aging supermodel. She also carries on a correspondence with the doctor who sparked her decision to change her life, and their letters are full of potential for a future together. The narration can be frustrating—in the same passage, the reader will be inside of Grace’s head one moment and a detached observer the next—but if Grace seems distant, her decisiveness at making a new life is still an inspiration for anyone who’s ever yearned to pursue a dream. (Aug.)