Customer Reviews

A Blue Fire

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"Blue Fire" is an anthology of selections from James A. Hillman's major works, including "Insearch: Psychology and Religion," "Suicide and the Soul," "Healing Fiction," and others, including journal and magazine articles in such diverse publications as "Spring," "Utne Reader," "Institute Newsletter," and "Loose Ends: Primary Papers in Archetypal Psychology." This should not scare you away. On the contrary, the reader will find that "Blue Fire" is quite readable and understandable. The selections in this book challenge you to think. Thomas More (editor) did an excellent job in assembling and introducing the selections in the book, tying them together so that they show a logical continuity of thought. If you read "Psychology Today," you should have no trouble with this book. You will find it delightful. If you have a deeper interest in 'depth psychology,' Jungian Psychology, or archetypal psychology, you will find this an excellent read.

Hillman's approach to psychology is one of addressing the individual as an individual within a society, paying strict attention to the needs of that individual and his/her soul. Psychology is not treating mental disorders and symptoms of such disorders, it is caring for the soul. Much of what can be accomplished is a transformation of the soul symbolically through the use of imagination, poetry, symbolism, and metaphor. "Blue Fire" was an epiphany for me. It caused me to look at many things from a different prospective. I found a new appreciation for spirituality and soulfulness, as well as the need to accept others and myself.

The reading of this book was my first contact with the work of this author, which I already knew about from my readings of Thomas Moore's books. I have already read other books by Hillman by now. This book presents passages, aspects, and ideas from his other books. I found it to be a wonderful introduction to Hillman's views allowing me to select from his vast production the type of reading that I am looking for at any given time, within this broad area of undestanding human nature. My word of appreciation also to Thomas Moore(editor),who wrote the introduction to each chapter in a very elegant style that provides valuable insights to the comprehension of the deep thought of Hillman. I recommend this book widely.

Always provocative and challenging, Hillman is one of today's greatest thinkers in my opinion. This is a solid introduction to his ideas edited by one of his biggest fans. If you haven't read Hillman, this is a good place to start. Hillman can be a little hard to read, so these short excerpts make it a bit more manageable. I also highly recommend Inter-Views, a series of conversations with Laura Pozzo and We've Had A Hundred Years of Therapy (and the World's Getting Worse)-conversations and letters betweem Hillman and Michael Ventura. These last two works are Hillman at his most readable.

In "A Blue Fire" Thomas Moore took long citations of the apparently rich collection of James Hillman's publications and rearranged them to topics. Each topic is introduced by him. The citations gain a strong rhythm that draws you in. This is probably due to Moore himself. Therefore I have the impression that Moore is more of an author than an editor of this beautiful book.

This excellent book has some prerequisites. It is a strong help to be somewhat fluent in Jungian thinking and terminology. The level of the English (and the other implied languages) is quite high. You might get along with less, but that is hard work. Also you certainly do not want to read it, if you are in a psychical unstable mood. The book is emotional and intellectual quite challenging.

The content of the book is difficult to communicate. But maybe the attitude and way of dealing with the subconscious is more important. Here the authors make a strong claim that it is important to feed the soul. Images are the core. Healing is a secondary activity. The primary activity is to befriend oneself with the internal images and consequently with the soul.

This book can be consumed as a full course meal. For example, read a chapter like "The Salt of Soul, the Sulfur of Spirit," and there is enough material to feel full for several hours as you digest the many metaphors, and delicious word play. For a snack, Hillman provides "Recipes", little snippets to be consumed in the morning or before going to bed.If consumed before bed, one's dreams may be seeded by an ever-expanding Hillman metaphor. Bon Appetit.

i

This book is soulful dynamite, appearing intellectual, but don't be fooled; read it with an open heart, and if you are into meditation, you will find much to meditate on here, e.g., "The Psyche historicizes to make it look real." Don't just think about it, meditate on it, and perhaps you, too, will pierce the veil of Illusion (Maya). I can at least hope that for you :)

eventhough i understood about 50% of this i loved nourishing myself with it each night....

This was one of the best books I have ever read, a collection of extracted writings of James Hillman with comments by Thomas Moore. Helped change the way I thought and considered the world. Introduced me to a lot of other great thinkers and writers. If I ever found myself in a position of only having one book this would probably be it.

This is an excellent overview of Hillman's work. It's just that a little at a time is all I can inhale!

I'll try to keep this short and to the point. Hillman is obtuse -- he is more of a psychological poet than a psychological writer. He has been very prolific, apparently, since these are highlights from his many (22+) books -- each article with a 'presentation' by Thomas Moore (author of the very popular Care of the Soul series). It's hard to figure out who "owns" this book; it is a selection of Hillman's writings, introduced and edited by Moore. One gets the feeling that Moore felt sorry for (his mentor) Hillman not getting the fame (and money) that the popular Moore got, so Moore decides to take excerpts from Hillman's voluminous, but unappreciated, output, then writes an (obviously necessary) introductory "explanation" for each, and then lets them fly. Hopefully, Moore was generous with the royalties. As such, Hillman's writings (and his fetish with the Greek Mythos as opposed to other more general, and therefore universal, archetypes) are, yes, pretty, and poetic, and slightly Jungian (considering), but they are damn hard to read in any kind of continuous fashion. Anyone who picks up this book should first be required to read the April 23, 1995 New York Times article, HOW THE SOUL IS SOLD By EMILY YOFFE. THEN you'll get a taste of what's going on here. Unfortunately, I didn't find out about it until after I read Blue Fire. I also find it fascinating that the (positive) reviewers on the back cover use the words "maddening, difficult, beguiling, etc." to describe Hillman's portrayal of his own brand of Jungian "archetypal psychology". I couldn't agree with them Moore.