Customer Reviews

Balance Point: Searching for a Spiritual Missing Link

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Balance Point -- Searching for a Spiritual Missing Link
Joseph Jenkins, 2000

"We are spiritually balanced when we live in harmony with the greater whole - with each other, with all of life, and with the Earth mother." Eduardo


It was particularly significant to me that I received and was immediately drawn to Balance Point just two weeks after 9/11. As stunned as I was by 9/11 and as emotionally devastating as it was and is, I was also immensely grateful that over 6000 souls would agree to leave in such horrific circumstances in order to force our awareness that there is no them, there is only us. I found a similar theme in the Balance Point story regarding the environment. Jenkins teaches us that there is "no away" when we throw out the trash, there is only somewhere else. Joe Jenkins, along with his immediate family, the inimitable Aunt Lucy, Eduardo the Shaman, and the Circle of Sisters lead us on a spiritual quest from Halifax to Montana to Peru. Think James Redfield. Think page turner that you simply cannot put down. Jenkins adventure teaches us as much about our true spiritual connection to the ecology of our Earth Mother as Redfield taught us about our spiritual energy dynamics.

In an interview with Joseph Jenkins after reading this engaging book, I asked him just how much of the story was fiction and how much was fact. His response was "The story is a blending of fact and fiction.... I have been asked by many readers exactly which is the fact and which is the fiction...all of the ecological issues are factual." Jenkins leaves it to us to decide whether we care about the details of the story or the state of the ecology of the earth. If we are willing to step outside ourselves, even for just a moment, the adventure becomes significant only because of the passion and point with which the story is told. Jenkins shows us how quickly our eco-systems are dying out and does not allow us to walk away unchanged.

Balance Point is one of the most well written and beautifully produced self-published books I have had the pleasure of reviewing. The cover is lusciously printed with the gorgeous colors of Mother Earth - deep brown, mellow gold, royal purple. The typeface is easy to read and the chapter graphics are terrific. Joseph Jenkins has compiled an impressive list of resources and short blurbs on how you can begin to change your behavior today and how you can continue to make a difference in all your tomorrows. Jenkins reminds us that in finishing the story we should consider the next step the beginning of our individual mission of symbiotic living. This is a great pass along book! Read it and pass along the good news!
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Kathryn Lanier lives in Colorado with her nine year old twins. She is a freelance writer, editor, and review columnist educated at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the College of Charleston. She is an internationally published author and works world wide with clients from four continents! She can be contacted for services and workshop information through Innerchange Magazine online.

Every once in a while, a book comes along that earns a "front and center" spot in my library. This is one such book.

One of the hardest things we, as human beings, have to do is to face the man in the mirror. Too many of us have been successfully avoiding it for years. Balance Point makes continuing to do so very difficult. While some may be surprised at the theories presented, one would also be hard pressed to deny the facts behind them.

The message this book sends to the world is not new - we're in trouble and running out of time - but rarely have I seen someone hit the mark so precisely when it comes to characterizing and illustrating the responsibility of the human race for our present dilemmas. The only thing sadder than the fact that we are like a cancer killing it's host [the earth] is that continuing to ignore our mirrors will be our ultimate demise.

Balance Point is a fascinating, eye-opening, educating RED FLAG that should be required reading in junior and high school curriculums world-wide.

Balance Point is a fantastic read! An eye opening book with adventure and of ecological importance. I for one would recomend it to all high schools as a must read with a strong discussion following. The publication opens the mind, drawing the reader to desire to go further.

A semi-documentary mystery, voyage of self-discovery, and social critique, Balance Point contends that materialist civilization is a runaway train, and that we have little time left for throwing on the brakes. As it happens, I completely agree, which makes it difficult to review the book objectively.

Indeed, I found the story a bit transparent at first. I felt I knew what Jenkins was driving at, and I figured I knew where he was going with it. Before long, though, I was fully absorbed in what is, if nothing else, a great yarn, and eager to get to the Big Secret behind the title.

If for no other reason than this, the book works-but it's a multi-faceted work, and for me it worked on all of its many levels. Shades of Carlos Castenada scarcely gave me cause for pause.

The central message is simple and profound, both an answer and a challenge. Where the book leaves off, the reader must embark on a journey of their own. This reader was heartened and inspired.

I just finished this book, it was a difficult book to put down. Once you start reading you just need to know where Joe's aunt is leading him to. From meeting some women and doing a sweat lodge to his travels to Peru to meet with a "witch doctor", and along the way the reader learns a valuable lesson for our time and a need to start conserving our resources, through out our daily lives. A wonderful book that I will recommend to all my friends.
Well done Joe.

Ever speculate the future? This book is certain to color and frame your preview. The title fits the content as much as the story line; where science and spirituality meet on equal ground. Bound to contain some of your favorite reading, the author has amply spun spirituality, science, and culture into a living work. A "must-read" for the fiction and non-fiction reader alike.

I found this to be one of those books "you just can't put down". It's seemingly retrousse' chapters are full of twists, turns, and zestful characters, including the author himself. And the anecdotes are easily believable. It is adventurous and intuitive in likeness to James Redfields' Celestine series, yet with a more personal and pointed message. Both educational and entertaining, its' many punch lines may be as disturbing as they are enlightening.

Jenkins has done his homework, literally. Providing not only sound research, there is evidence that he gives credence and practice toward what he writes. He leaves the reader with a feeling of here and now, and compels self-examination. Fortunately, as with all of Jenkins' publications, he provides a wealth of follow-up ideas and information; very tasteful and helpful pointers as to "where to go from here".

Easily "Two thumbs up!"

Once in a while, a book comes along at just the right time. This is how Balance Point affected me. I had long felt a conflict between the material and the spiritual realities. I'd continuously oscillate between the two, all-or-nothing style. Joseph Jenkins' new book showed me that my conflict was both misplaced and unnecessary. A better approach is to find one's "balance point." Better written than The Celestine Prophecy, the message here is at least as important. Jenkins takes his readers on an entertaining worldwide voyage of personal discovery ... and tells us how to save the planet while we're at it. Fun to read with exotic (but convincing) settings and characters, this excellent first novel is inspiring at the same time. Oh, and for anyone who still needs to know the difference between religion and spirituality, several passages in Chapter 24 define the differences with lucidity.

After reading Balance Point, I find myself torn between stating "One Hell of a story!" and "One Hell of a warning!" This is a truly spell-binding adventure tale with an incredibly important message. Usually, I find such books to be lacking in either entertainment value or in proper research. That is not the case with Balance Point. Joe's characters are as real as my next-door neighbor, and his premise is quite plausible. All considered, I find Balance Point to be the best book I've read this year. I hope Joe will crank out another book soon.

Joseph Jenkin's book is absolutely wonderful! As an environmental educator for over 10 years, reading this book was like a breath of fresh air. The book is written with such creative style that the reader's interest is captured on the very first page. The book is very entertaining, as well as extremely informative. It is perhaps the best environmental book I have ever read. This book allows the reader to be a part of an adventure that has crucial importance for everyone and everything living on this planet. As a Christian, I have struggled for years with the priorities of organized religion. At least from my experiences, the church seems to all but ignore our responsibility of being stewards of God's creation. However, this book challenges the reader to a different way of thinking. For the first time, I am aware of the difference between religion and spirituality. As pointed out in the book, a person can be extremely religious, yet spiritually lost. The "balance point" refers to a balanced awarenesss. It happens when we "realize we're actually a real part of a greater Being and we adjust our consciousness to accomodate a more humble position in the web of life". This book explains in a very clear way the importance of the web of life. The reader is challenged to look beyond ourselves and to realize how everything we do affects everything else. I feel that this book has a very motivational effect on the reader. The publication of this book comes at a much needed time, when political leaders and our society as a whole are in complete denial of the peril of our environment. Reading this book can be a life-changing event. I hope it will be read by many people, who will then pass it on to others. With Christmas just around the corner, I know what everyone on my list is receiving from me!

The award-winning author of The Humanure Handbook and The Slate Roof Bible, Joseph Jenkins, has another provocative and well-written book to grab (and hold) your attention: Balance Point, Searching for a Spiritual Link

In this novelized book of truths, protagonist Joe Jenkins is sent on an incredible mission by his deceased Great Aunt Lucy's baffling will...an eye-opener of a voyage toward the understanding of an imminent disaster of global proportions. Joe's journey is initiated at a wicca ceremony in a sweat lodge where he is pointed to his first destination, Newfoundland.

"We're robbing the earth's resources, particularly the non-renewable ones", Joe learned at a meeting with Sir (Professor) Gaulton of St. Johns College. "...we've become so blinded by our robbing frenzy mentality, a behavior that we've learned to take completely for granted, that we've lost touch with the natural balance of the earth".

The quest to learn how to evolve the human psyche takes Joe (and his wife) on a reluctant itinerary to many remote places in both North and South America including the jungles of the Amazon. The message Joe learned is about the balance between careless selfishness in the use of natural resources, and our interaction and interdependence with each other and all of the natural world...a message of survival as well as one of spiritual awakening. As Great Aunt Lucy put it, "The forces of the Ego and Eco have become locked in combat".

Balance Point is a timely page-turner that speaks to the most important and immediate problem we face...saving our planet and ourselves. Author and seeker Joseph Jenkins has given us a book that demands thought...and isn't that the definition of a great book? This reviewer thinks so!