#17
Title: Fragrant Palm Leaves: Journals, 1962-1966
Title: Fragrant Palm Leaves: Journals, 1962-1966
Author: Thích Nhất Hạnh
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Year: 1999
Genre: Memoir/Buddhism
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Year: 1999
Genre: Memoir/Buddhism
224 pages
+ Personal/philosophical memoir from an historically significant period
- Somewhat confusing time sequence; no particular reason for start or end points
This early volume (published in Vietnamese in 1966 but not in the U.S. until 1998) chronicles several years of Thích Nhất Hạnh's young adulthood in the U.S. and Viet Nam against the larger backdrop of the war. It provides a glimpse of the early years of Engaged Buddhism and provides some insights into the polarization of Vietnamese society and the suspicion under which anyone critical of the government functioned. Sadly, this will not be foreign to contemporary Americans concerned about the U.S. government's contemporary actions.
The structure is nominally in journal format, but since it focuses on just a few topics, and includes long essays about previous events, it is best read and understood as a memoir rather than a day-to-day account of experiences and impressions. This combination of present and retrospective accounts is confusing at times, but this does not detract much from the overall positive impression made by the volume. For me, the accounts of daily life, contrasts between the U.S. and Vietnam, and relationships are by far the most interesting aspects of the narrative; the philosophical and poetic segments are less engaging and sometimes abstract and disassociated from the heart of the book.
A sometimes-intimate portrait of Thích Nhất Hạnh as a young monk that will increase the reader's appreciation for his courage, vision, and deep concern for justice and the dignity of all people.
This early volume (published in Vietnamese in 1966 but not in the U.S. until 1998) chronicles several years of Thích Nhất Hạnh's young adulthood in the U.S. and Viet Nam against the larger backdrop of the war. It provides a glimpse of the early years of Engaged Buddhism and provides some insights into the polarization of Vietnamese society and the suspicion under which anyone critical of the government functioned. Sadly, this will not be foreign to contemporary Americans concerned about the U.S. government's contemporary actions.
The structure is nominally in journal format, but since it focuses on just a few topics, and includes long essays about previous events, it is best read and understood as a memoir rather than a day-to-day account of experiences and impressions. This combination of present and retrospective accounts is confusing at times, but this does not detract much from the overall positive impression made by the volume. For me, the accounts of daily life, contrasts between the U.S. and Vietnam, and relationships are by far the most interesting aspects of the narrative; the philosophical and poetic segments are less engaging and sometimes abstract and disassociated from the heart of the book.
A sometimes-intimate portrait of Thích Nhất Hạnh as a young monk that will increase the reader's appreciation for his courage, vision, and deep concern for justice and the dignity of all people.
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