Customer Reviews

Introducing Ken Wilber: Concepts for an Evolving World

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This is an excellent place to start in learning Ken Wilber's work. The author has done an outstanding job of organizing and annotating Wilber's ideas. I have tried to read Wilber before but always had the feeling I was taking a graduate level course when I hadn't had the "1A" course or many of the prerequisites. I was confused by terminology and concepts relating to previous or related works and gave up. Lew Howard has started at the beginning and created a whole sequential "curriculum" of Wilber's ideas and concepts. This book also provides a kind of master index to Wilber's books so you can explore topics in greater depth.

Lew Howard provides a very useful summary at the end of each chapter. I found this a good way to self-test myself to see if I had assimilated the chapter before continuing. I also found the summaries a place to return to for reviewing terms or concepts referenced later in the book.

At the end of many chapters, the author has included a topic with the title, "What Difference Does it Make?" He illuminates the importance of ideas with respect to those in other chapters on this topic. These sections are similar to the comments an instructor might give at the end of a lecture to provide insight on a lecture subject.

This book will go on my bookshelf as my ultimate Wilber reference.

I call this book a 1st class passenger's guide to the universe (hitchhikers would not have access to the scenicruiser seats). This is essentially a survey course that puts Science and Spirituality in a perspective where both can be well understood.

Drawing heavily on Ken Wilber's work, Lew Howard defines the terms and concepts and illustrates them until you have a good working knowledge before showing how the forms and constructs work together and evolve. Each chapter starts by showing where it is leading, then breaks these complex issues into understandable pieces and concludes with a summary. Things which I had assumed, believed, or wondered about all of my life have been changed, clarified, or deepened with his clear empirical evidence.

Everything is put into focus, from the subatomic to the geopolitical levels; everything from outside of the self to deep within. This book is a great reference to Life, the Universe, and Everything. Thanks to this book, I can look at everything around me with a deeper understanding.

For those who wish to delve more deeply into Ken Wilber's work, this book will provide an excellent roadmap. For those who want to open the door to meditation, this book will do that for you as well.

My copy (which is well soiled with the stains of seeking fingers, dog eared, and paper clipped) is within arms reach as I sit by my computer.

"Introducing Ken Wilbur" is an excellent and accurate title to this book. I have enjoyed reading bits and pieces of Wilbur's works in the past but found it hard to stick with his larger works and was somewhat (not entirely) disappointed in Wilbur's novel "Boomeritis." Mr. Howard has condensed and summarized the kernals of Wilbur's philosophy. Howard's book - almost a textbook - also helped me understand how Wilbur came to the conclusions that he did.

A friend of mine also read this book and we found that it opened up some interesting discussions regarding politics and religion. As a liberal/green/analytical/sort of buddhist/sort of catholic person, it helped me understand and communicate with a conservative/pro-war/very catholic friend and colleague in a meaningful, less reactive way. I hope, really, that by educating people about their place in a complicated spiritual/psychological world, we can actually achieve that ideal of a more peaceful, successful, happy world.

I would also add that I found Mr. Howard's sincere admiration of Ken Wilbur very touching and quite appropriate. Both authors deserve our attention.

Lew Howard has done a great service I believe. This one stop shop for much of the BRILIANT Ken Wilber's work will save you much time and facilitate the assimilation of what I think are some of the most important ideas and developments in our world. The quicker we are able to live the awareness's presented, the safer and happier this world will become. Lew Howard's well laid out and explained book allows that time to come yet quicker I think. I encouraged 2 friends to buy the book and they both agree with this assessment. THANK YOU very much Lew.

As a pastor, teacher, and author who is passionate about integral philosophy I have longed for an easy to read introduction to Wilber's exciting but dense works. This is it! This is the book I recommend to my friends and others that captures the essence of integral theory and practice. Howard covers the whole territory in one book for those who want to understand a more transcendent way to view the world and a practice to enter that transforming path.