A Very Ordinary Life

A memoir in bite-size chunks from the author of the viral Modern Love column “You May Want to Marry My Husband.” “[Rosenthal] shines her generous light of humanity on the seemingly humdrum moments of life and shows how delightfully precious they actually are.” —The Chicago Sun-Times How do you conjure a life? Give the truest account of what you saw, felt, learned, loved, strived for? For Amy Krouse Rosenthal, the surprising answer came in the form of an encyclopedia. In Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life she has ingeniously adapted this centuries-old format for conveying knowledge into a poignant, wise, often funny, fully realized memoir. Using mostly short entries organized from A to Z, many of which are cross-referenced, Rosenthal captures in wonderful and episodic detail the moments, observations, and emotions that comprise a contemporary life. Start anywhere—preferably at the beginning—and see how one young woman’s alphabetized existence can open up and define the world in new and unexpected ways. An ordinary life, perhaps, but an extraordinary book.

Featuring fun text and beautiful illustrations, these books vividly capture the spirit of the Australian landscapes, wildlife and plants.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “An extraordinary short story collection that deserves our closest attention.”—Detroit Free Press “Elizabeth Berg’s gift as a storyteller lies most powerfully in her ability to find the extraordinary in the ordinary, the remarkable in the everyday.”—The Boston Globe In this superb collection of short stories, Elizabeth Berg takes us into pivotal moments in the lives of women, when memories and events come together to create a sense of coherence, understanding, and change. In “Ordinary Life,” Mavis McPherson locks herself in the bathroom for a week, shutting out her husband and the realities of their life together—and no, she isn't contemplating a divorce. She just needs some time to think, take stock of her life, and to arrive, finally, at a surprising conclusion. In “White Dwarf” and “Martin's Letter to Nan,” the secrets of a marriage are revealed with sensitivity and “brilliant insights about the human condition” (Detroit Free Press) that have become trademark of Berg's writing. The Charlotte Observer has said, “Berg captures the way women think as well as any writer.” Those qualities of wisdom and perception are everywhere present in Ordinary Life.

Though unaffiliated with any institute of higher learning, Rolf Knight has established himself as a writer of significance, and has produced some of the most influential works of history of British Columbia. A Very Ordinary Life, exploring his mother's life as a working–class immigrant to Vancouver, established his reputation in 1974. Indians at Work, published in 1976 and reissued in 1996, was originally highly contentious but has since shaped the perception of "contact" in this part of the world as no other book has. Throughout the 1970s, Knight continued to document working–class experiences in British Columbia through a series of books: A Man of our Times (with Maya Koizumi); Stump Ranch Chronicles; Work Camps and Company Towns; and Along the No. 20 Line (reissued, 2011). In 1992, he published Homer Stevens: A Life in Fishing (with Homer Stevens), and was also awarded a Clio prize by the Canadian Historical Association for his contributions to regional history. In Voyage Through the Past Century, we have Knight's autobiographical account of his far–from–ordinary past: A journey from his early years as the only child at Musketeer Mine, through his move to northeast Vancouver where he attended school and entered university. Earning a PhD in anthropology and subsequent fieldwork in Northern Quebec constitute his formal schooling, but it was Knight's travels––upcoast as a youth, trips to Berlin, Nigeria, New York and Colombia––that shaped his politics and views. Clear–eyed and written with the verve and passion of a working–class activist, Voyage Through the Past Century is an engaging record of a fascinating life, and an indispensable account of a time and place that has marked our age, even as the events that shaped it fade into the past.

Frank Derrick is 81 ... and he's just been run over by a milk float. It was tough enough to fill the hours of the day when he was active, but now he's broken his arm and fractured his foot, it looks set to be a very long few weeks ahead. He watches DVDs, spends his money frivolously at the local charity shop and desperately tries to avoid the cold callers knocking on his door. Emailing his daughter in America on the library computer and visiting his friend Smelly John used to be the highlights of his week. Now he can't even do that. Then a breath of fresh air comes into his life in the form of Kelly Christmas, home help. With her little blue car and appalling parking, her cheerful resilience and ability to laugh at his jokes, Kelly changes Frank's life.

Through fourteen weeks of daily devotionals, she guides us to understand that God is in the ordinary. The simplicity of the everydayness of living can serve as pathways to God. Life-changing moments are rare. The everyday is where humanity lives. In looking at a variety of fragments, a new and different understanding of the value of the very ordinary may emerge in the God relationship and thus change the individual journey. "Audrey Brown Lightbody is, by nature, a true weaver! Her book is a woven tapestry of vignettes, reflections, poetry, and evocative questions ... a unique presentation of guided meditations which invite us to discover what of The Holy may be close beneath the surface of the 'ordinary' of our lives. A book to be kept near at hand, these readings will prompt fresh insights and inspiration over many occasions. For group reflection, as well as individual prayer, Ordinary Fragments is a rich and deeply engaging resource." -from the Spirit Group who shared the journey

The Mysticism of Ordinary Life: Theology, Philosophy, and Feminism presents a new vision of Christian mystical theology. It offers critical interpretations of Catholic theologians, postmodern philosophers, and intersectional feminists who draw on mystical traditions to affirm ordinary life. It raises questions about normativity, gender, and race, while arguing that the everyday experience of the grace of divine union can be an empowering source of social transformation. It develops Christian teachings about the Word made flesh, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and the Christian spiritual life, while exploring the mystical significance of philosophical discourses about immanence, alterity, in-betweenness, nothingness, and embodiment. The discussion of Latino/a and Black sources in North America expands the Western mystical canon and opens new horizons for interdisciplinary dialogue. The volume challenges contemporary culture to recognize and draw inspiration from quotidian manifestations of the unknown God of incarnate love. It includes detailed studies of Grace Jantzen, Amy Hollywood, Catherine Keller, Karl Rahner, Adrienne von Speyr, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Michel Henry, Michel de Certeau, Luce Irigaray, Julia Kristeva, Gloría Anzaldúa, Ada María Isasi-Díaz, Alice Walker, M. Shawn Copeland, and more.