The book is not all about maitlands own experience. By means of a series of real life experiments the author also tries to find out what it takes to put silence at the heart of a creative life. This file is a nexusexclusive release, please respect my decision and do not reupload it elsewhere. A book of silence by sara maitland books the guardian. Over the past five years, she has spent periods of silence in the sinai desert, the australian bush, and the isle of skye. Sara maitlands search for silence and solitude turns into an intriguing spiritual quest which takes the reader deep into her inner thoughts and fears. Sara maitlands book is an earnest and deep exploration of the nature and cultural significance of silence. A book of silence out of this world books and arts. We do lack, though, a practical rather than romantic. Maitland set out with many questions about the nature of silence and its companion, solitude. A book of silence in her late forties, after a noisy upbringing as one of six children and adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland found herself living alone in the country and, to her surprise, falling in love with silence.
Maitland is the author of several books including the counterpoint press title, book of silence and daughter of jerusalem, winner of the somerset maugham award in 1978. She moved to skye, in the desert, in weardale, and finally in an isolated cottage in galloway, and her memoir travelled with her. Sara maitland, a book of silence scottish author sara. I will not give, nor want to give, permission for any kind of reupload. In the first chapter, maitland is sitting on the porch of her house on a high moor in englands county durham on a warm october morning, with nothing in my diary for the next fortnight. A book of silence sara maitland 2008 at first, i found myself totally immersed in this book the need for silence, the difficulty in finding it, searching. A book of silence is a deeply personal and, at times, courageous book. As maitland described in a book of silence 2008, she has long retreated to a shieling shepherds cottage on a lonely moorside in rural galloway, the bit of scotland where she had originally. Ms maitland is a roman catholic convert and she is frank about her desire to explore my own spirituality and deepen my growing sense of the reality of god. In this fascinating, intelligent, beautifully written book, maitland describes how she set out to explore this new love, spending periods of silence in the sinai desert. A book of silence ebook by sara maitland 9781619021426. Sara maitland writes with almost painful honesty about her desire to explore and embrace silences.
As maitland goes on to discover and describe in this book, there are many types of silence, for the natural sounds of a seascape to the brush of the wind through a meadow and the unnerving silence of a wood. However, in 2000, she decided to embrace silence to reach a deeper self and a fullness that she found terrifyingly satisfying. Maitland was, and is, religious, an anglocatholic, socialist feminist who, in the 1990s, after her marriage ended, took to living alone. A book of silence by maitland, sara and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. A retreat from the world and into utter silence is often seen as an indication of something not quite right, and a risk that isolation can lead to insanity. Since 2000, british writer sara maitland has been investigating, searching for, reaching for silence. In this fascinating, intelligent, beautifully written book, maitland describes how she set out to explore this new love, spending periods of silence in the sinai. Maitland describes how she set out to explore this new love, spending periods of silence in the sinai desert, the scottish hills.
A book of silence sara maitland counterpoint hardcover 320 pages september 2009. A book of silence grapples with ideas at the very heart of what it is to be human, and sara maitland is a joyous champion of the countercultural notion that silence is more than simply an absence of noise the times maitlands experience has been rich and thorough, and deeply enviable. For her own purposes, maitland decides, silence is that which is broken up by words and speech particularly. A personal and cultural exploration of silence and its value in our livesan artful book, mixing autobiography, travel writing, meditation, and essay independent, uk. Bristol festival of ideas book prize nomination, 2009 a book of silence bbc national short story award runner up, 2009 moss witch. We live in a noisy world, and true silence, if there is such a thing, is hard to come by. One night, under a majestically starlit sky, maitland begins telling herself the. She cites polar explorers, solo roundtheworld sailors, and idealistic young chris mccandless, who went alone into the alaskan wilderness and died. Sara maitland skillfully weaves a history of silence and solitude over the centuries with an autobiographical account of her own encounters with silence at her weardale home, on the scottish isle of skye, in the egyptian desert of st. In her late forties, after a noisy upbringing as one of six children and adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland found herself. See all 4 formats and editions hide other formats and editions. From the dust jacket in her late forties, after a noisy upbringing as one of six children and an adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland found herself living alone in the country. Book of silence paperback 2 september 2010 by sara maitland author 4. But a book of silence is not primarily a work of theology.
Eight years through the stillongoing process, she wrote about her endeavor in a book of silence. What i want to do is live in as much silence as is possible at this point in our history. As maitland seeks to both lose and find herself in silence, she articulates a remarkably graceful and penetrating response to that mysterious and essential force. Eight years through the stillongoing process, she wrote about her endeavor in a book of silence as part of this journey, maitland has done 40 days and 40 nights of something approaching complete silence in a remote, isolated house in the far north of england. Sara maitland is a british writer of religious fantasy. Rather than something that enriches, it is seen as an absence, a lack. Sara maitland born 27 february 1950, london is a british writer of religious fantasy. By chapter two, in order to more fully explore her hunch that. The book of silence sara maitland this idea, that we feel ourselves to be happy and fulfilled only when we are interacting with other people, creates a dissonance with the equally popular. In a postmotherhood at least the kind of motherhood that requires constant care, postmarriage life, she finds the. After a noisy upbringing as one of six children, and adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland began to crave silence.
The book is an examination of the importance of silence, its cultural history, and the aversion contemporary society has to it. In a book of silence, sarah maitland recounts her attempts to achieve fluctuating levels of silence in her life. Maitland is not unaware of the paradox that by writing a book, especially a storytellers book, wherein language is a means of telling, shes going to invade the very silence she recommends. In her late forties, after a noisy upbringing and then adulthood. A book of silence by sara maitland posted on january 8, 2017 by bookbii i spent a lot of time thinking about the kind of books i wanted to focus on in my attempt to read more slowly, and it wasnt too long before sara maitlands a book of silence found itself rising to the top of the pile. Sara maitland grew up in london and south west scotland. A book of silence kindle edition by maitland, sara. A novelist, she is also known for her short stories. Moving to scotland into a solitary house on the remote moors of galloway, sara maitland now lives the life of quiet she celebrates in her latest book, a book of silence. In her late forties, after a noisy upbringing as one of six children and adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland found herself living alone in the country, and, to her surprise, falling in love with silence. Maitland looks at how silence has been seen and experienced by a variety of different people and groups over time, from the desert fathers to poets and solo adventurers. A book of silence by sara maitland, paperback barnes.
In short, a book of silence is still a book by someone who loves talking. A book for silence records a brave and adventurous psychological journey that will speak to all who have doubts. In this fascinating, intelligent, and beautifully written book, maitland describes how she set out to explore this new love, spending periods of silence in the sinai desert, the scottish hills, and a. The best books on silence five books expert recommendations. In her late forties, after a noisy upbringing as one of six children and adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland found herself living alone in the country and, to her surprise, falling in love with silence.
Sara maitland the author, one of six children who grew up to be a vocal feminist and mother, describes how she fell in love with silence in. Read a book of silence online by sara maitland books free 30. Maitlands odyssey, the book of silence, is a story about a discovery of self and god in a world of silence. Introverts who read sara maitlands new book about silence may need to recommit themselves to the commandment not to covet.
It was the beginning of a book of silence that built itself slowly over the next eight years. This is an interesting book following one womans exploration of the nature of silence. The most urgent was posed in reaction to a letter from a respected friend, who argued against silence. Read unlimited books and audiobooks on the web, ipad, iphone and android. Sara maitland after a noisy upbringing as one of six children, and adulthood as a vocal feminist and mother, sara maitland began to crave silence. Anthony, and in the isolated moors of southwestern scotland where she. Read a book of silence by sara maitland for free with a 30 day free trial. What interests the author is silence itself, wherever it leads. Maitlands insightful awareness and comments on history and tradition helps the reader to discover aspects of silence that can only help build a balanced life. I use the plural, because, as maitland points out, there are different forms of silence.
A book of silence by sara maitland patrick t reardon. I say if there is such a thing because, as author sara maitland discovered, there is some sound everywhere. As a practising christian and a writer, she values silence and the way it opens up a space within. We do lack, though, a practical rather than romantic guide to silence and here maitland comes. She sets out to answer these questions both by going to remote places and by reading the accounts of others who have, voluntarily or involuntarily, spent long periods by themselves. A book of silence itself builds on the huge success of books by roger deakin and robert macfarlane. From moments on the isle of skye, to the sinai desert, to the scottish hills, maitland is driven to discover the meaning of silence and the subtle difference that lead. A book of silence was a well balanced account of maitlands search for the meaning of silence.