A Cracking of the Heart [Hardcover]

David Horowitz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 26, 2009

In his personal and poignant story about the loss of his daughter, Sarah, conservative activist Horowitz chronicles her life, his grief, and their relationship, offering comfort to all those who have suffered a grievous loss.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

After losing a loved one, "pay attention to the ways in which your relationship continues."

So advised Sarah Horowitz in an interview she gave the day before her unexpected death. In A Cracking of the Heart, David Horowitz explores the legacy of his extraordinary daughter's short life, and narrates his quest for a deeper understanding of the child he lost.

A remarkable woman and gifted writer, Sarah was afflicted with a birth condition that, while complicating and ultimately shortening her life, never affected her dreams. From an early age, she displayed inspiring courage in facing her own difficulties and boundless compassion for the underserved and overlooked in many communities, from an autistic niece in her own family to uneducated children in Africa.

A Cracking of the Heart chronicles the separation of father and daughter through political and familial conflicts, and their slow reunion. Alternately searing and uplifting, it reconciles what could have been with what is, taking the reader through a father's love, frustration, admiration, and grief, to what lies beyond.

From the Back Cover

Praise for A Cracking of the Heart

"Horowitz puts forth a touching and deeply told story between father and daughter. Similar backgrounds branch off into entirely different beliefs and lifestyles and yet with each turning page we see that blood runs far deeper than politics. A very engaging read."
--Robert Duvall, Academy Award-winning actor

"David Horowitz's book is filled with the passion born of love and commitment to family. It is a guide to family love and the triumphs of a wonderful daughter."
--Juan Williams, author of Eyes on the Prize

"This extraordinary book is a father's tribute to an amazing daughter who took on the problems of her community and her world with no regard to her own physical limitations. We treasure the time we had with this activist who left the world too soon and are deeply moved by her father's determination to tell her story that others might walk in her path."
--Ruth Messinger, President, American Jewish World Service

"David Horowitz understands tikkun olam from the inside out. He's one of those rare activists who is willing to learn from experience, from doubt, and from other people. I encourage you all to do the same by engaging with his fine and heartfelt book."
--Douglas Rushkoff, author of Life Inc. and Nothing Sacred

"A Cracking of the Heart will indeed crack your heart, as it did mine. Rarely has a parent written so movingly of the life and death of a child as David Horowitz has of his physically disabled yet powerfully alive daughter, Sarah. It is inconceivable to me that there is a parent--or child--who will not be deeply affected by the wisdom and the humanity of this book."
--Dennis Prager, nationally syndicated radio talk show host, columnist, and bestselling author of Happiness Is a Serious Problem

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Regnery Publishing; X edition (October 26, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596981032
• ISBN-13: 978-1596981034
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #895,199 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read!, October 26, 2009

By 

Michael Santomauro "What sort of Truth is it ... (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Cracking of the Heart (Hardcover)

A very moving book...How sharply contrasting political views between Horowitz and his daughter led to a large gulf in their relationship that was eventually bridged before she died...she was a liberal. A good read!

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely Touching Tribute to a Life Well-Lived, March 7, 2010

By 

Mark J. Koenig (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Cracking of the Heart (Hardcover)

David Horowitz has written a very personal and touching book about his daughter Sarah, who died in 2008 at the age of 44. In it Horowitz shares profound insights he gained through his late daughter. It is a story of love and of conflict, but ultimately of compassion and the transcendence of a father and daughter's love for one another over their differences. It is also a lesson for all of us in the virtue of seeing others, as Sarah put it, "in the fullness of their humanity."

Sarah lived a truly inspiring and triumphant life. Born with Turner Syndrome, she faced difficulties that would have been considered huge obstacles by most people. She walked slowly and with a limp, had severe hearing difficulties, a poor sense of direction, was near-sighted and unable to drive. Despite these limitations she lived life with compassion, determination and generosity, along with a fierce sense of independence. Refusing to view herself as disabled, Sarah managed to work a 40-hour week as a teaching assistant for pre-school children and simultaneously earn two Masters degrees.

In addition, later in her life she became involved with a conservative synagogue led by a rabbi who became a trusted advisor and friend. Sarah traveled overseas to India and Uganda to work with the poor, and visited Israel twice. Each month she traveled across town to cook a meal for 60 homeless people - an obligation which her synagogue had taken on, and which Sarah volunteered to organize. She even traveled to Iowa during the last presidential campaign to work in support of Barack Obama. Sarah was also a talented writer. Her father includes many excerpts from her writings in this book, which show her to have possessed wisdom far beyond her years. Some of the most poignant passages for me are those that relate dialogue between Horowitz and his daughter regarding his own writing. Sarah's commentary on her father's work was always perceptive and incisive.

Horowitz has said he considers this book a gift to him from Sarah, in that it has allowed him to reveal a side of himself of which many are unaware from his other writings. He has written a celebrated memoir, Radical Son, as well as a more recent book of personal reflection titled The End of Time, published in 2005. Though very different from these two books, I believe A Cracking of the Heart is equally well-written and in some ways surpasses them in excellence, which is no faint praise. As anyone who has read his work can attest, Horowitz is an immensely talented writer. Sarah's keen life insights, wisdom and accomplishments, which would be impressive in someone who lived twice as long as she, have inspired her father to write what I would argue is his finest book yet.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A worthwhile read, January 30, 2010

By 

Refugees' Daughter (Australia) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: A Cracking of the Heart (Hardcover)

David Horowitz's memoir of his daughter is a poignant reminder of how a life can be filled with love, determination, and meaning in spite of the impediments of birth defects. He writes in an almost dispassionate recounting of her friends and career. More moving are his regrets in their relationship. Also interesting are the descriptions of how different religions overlap. I read this book together with Left Illusions and found them both to be wonderful insights into one of the nation's most intriguing minds. The two books show him to be compassionate and caring as well generous with his innermost thoughts. I liked the book very much and only gave it three stars because I don't think Horowitz shares enough of himself in the book. Perhaps he is too close to the subject or wants the book to only be about his daughter, but I thought if he had put a bit more of himself into the book it would have made more engaging reading. A worthwhile read.