Customer Reviews

Milton's Secret: An Adventure of Discovery through Then, When, and the Power of Now

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"That night, Milton couldn't get to sleep. He was thinking about what happened--and what would happen when he ran into Carter next time...The more he thought about all of this, the more frightened he became. He thought about it so much that he became more and more scared until he completely forgot that he was in a warm bed in his little room." - From the book

In the new book Milton's Secret, bestselling author Eckhart Tolle brings his message of the liberating power of Now to young people.

Co-authored with Robert S. Friedman, Milton's Secret uses the backdrop of school bullying, as well as a dog attack on a beloved pet cat, to weave a compelling story about a cheerful, bright boy named Milton who encounters these situations--and what happens when he becomes preoccupied with the possibility of harm on the schoolyard.

Concerned the past and worrying about the future rob us of our peace and joy.

Milton discovers that although his cat Snuggles had just been attacked by Brutus the Doberman, the furry pet was able to curl up on Milton's chest, purring blissfully. Wondering about this, Milton asks his Grandpa how his cat can be so happy after just being beaten up. Grandpa replies:

"Milton, cats are not like humans. Snuggles can easily let go of what happened yesterday, and he doesn't worry about tomorrow. He lives in the Now. That's why he's happy even though not long ago Brutus was attacking him. Most people don't live in the Now because they think of yesterday or tomorrow most of the time. And a lot of the time they are unhappy."

After dinner, Grandpa notices that Milton seemed troubled and asks him about it. Milton admits that he'd been fearful because a sixth grade bully named Carter pushed him down that day--and he was afraid he'd do it again. Grandpa then explains to Milton that worrying about Then and thinking about When are all in his mind--because they are not here Now.

That night in bed, Milton thinks obsessively about what Carter did, and what he might do next time. He then dreams about Carter and Brutus, who have him trapped in an alley. Weak with terror, Milton then notices a door that looks like an entrance to a store. "Enter Now", the sign says--so Milton quickly opens the door.

The ice-cream shop and the kind ice-cream lady he knew from his waking hours had been transformed. She offers his a ball of glowing white light on an ice-cream dish. No, it's not the sundae-of-the-month choco-cadabra--it's something much better: a light bubble that pops into a glowing shower of sparkles.

The ice-cream lady explains that the light is now "hiding" and asks Milton if he can find it. He hears a strange noise like a little engine--it's his cat, Snuggles, purring happily! She then explains that this "light" is a sense of aliveness that is felt only in the Now--that it's in his cat, the flower in the counter, herself...and Milton, too!

While Grandpa showed Milton what the "outside" of the Now looked like (Then and When), the ice-cream lady in his dream demonstrates the "inside" of the Now that is experienced from within. She explains:

"...when you feel the light inside your body, you are in the Now. And you're not scared anymore. The light helps you feel strong."

A timely message for those who worry incessantly and anticipate worst-case scenarios, Milton's Secret is a wonderful introduction to Tolle's teaching on the power of Now--yes, even for adults!

My husband and I had just been teaching our 10-year old son about the Now, especially since he tended to worry about past "mistakes" and obsess about "inventing" in the future. We reminded him that every moment he spends beating himself up over perceived imperfections or anticipating a future life as an inventor, he was missing precious treasures found only in the Now--the love from his cats, the beautiful fall leaves, the warmth of his clothes, the joy of smelling, and so on.

When we first read Milton's Secret, he was amazed. "This is what you've been telling me, Mom!" he exclaimed. Sure enough, it was! And how wonderful that Mr. Tolle and Mr. Friedman birthed this collaboration that can aid parents and caregivers in demonstrating why Now is all we really have--and how worry and anticipation can rob us of the only thing we're ever guaranteed...the present moment.

Disguised as a children's book, Milton's Secret is a wonderful book for adults, as well. However, the scene on bullying, as well as Snuggles the cat getting a chunk torn out of his ear, may be too frightening for younger children. When my son first tried to read this book on his own, he seemed uncomfortable, saying that it was "dangerous". I then read it to him, and he understood that it was actually a realistic story about things that could happen to someone (or some cat)--and how we can deal with it while still maintaining our peace and sense of well being.

-- Janet Boyer, author of The Back in Time Tarot Book: Picture the Past, Experience the Cards, Understand the Present

When I saw that the Power of Now had been moved to a picture, storybook format I bought it immediately - for myself. Let's be honest, simple is always best! WEll it is simply delightful. And I have decided to pass it along to a 10 year old girl for Christmas with the hope that it does not take her as long as it has me to realize that the Power of Now is within our reach, every single moment. The book encourages the reader (by Milton's Grandfathers wisdom) to look past the appearance or discomfort or fear of a given situation to see the truth that our reaction is a choice & to know that in this moment, all is well. Highly rcommend it & the art wokr is really well done too.

This book is nothing like I expected it to be. Maybe I expected it to be more like Eckhart Tolle's work that is directed toward adults. I own and enjoy most of his books. I am mainly concerned with promoting the idea of keeping secrets as a positive influence for a child. That seems to require more maturity from a child than I would be comfortable in discerning. I am not sure what age group the book is intended for but I could not give it as a gift to any child that I know. I returned it.

Eckhart and friends deserve credit for creating one of the few non-denominational spiritual books out there for children. Anyone interested in mindfulness, and OK with discussions of 'light' as opposed 'God', will appreciate this book. I did find it a bit wordy and overly philosophical/intellectual at points - trying too hard perhaps to be true to Eckhart's adult teachings - but that is a minor flaw.

My only other comment is that it is classified for 4-8 year olds, but I would say it is best for the upper end of that age range, probably 7-10. My four-year old is pretty mature, but this was a bit too wordy for her to follow, the plot required a lot of explanation (she doesn't know what a bully is, or a sixth-grader for that matter), and the concepts of When, Then, and Now were difficult. It did engender discussion of what it means to be 'in the now' however, and I look forward to reading it to her more when she is older.

This story of a boy who was made fun of and pushed to the ground by a bully at school is beautifully illustrated. Although the book's main lesson is not to obsess over the past and project it into the future, it does not effectively address the problem that it sets up: schoolyard bullying. Children are often injured by bullies, and being able to put your mind elsewhere will not prevent future bullying. So I think that fear of bullies is not a good example of unnecessary worrying.

The parent or librarian who reads this book to a child might use it as a starting point to discuss bullying and how to handle it (if indeed they have a good solution). Understanding that the bully is unhappy or being able to appreciate the "now" will not prevent serious injury if the child is attacked again.

Milton's Secret: An Adventure of Discovery through Then, When, and the Power of Now is a children's picturebook that teaches a basic yet invaluable lesson from Buddhism - that rather than stress out or obsess over what has happened or what will happen, there is value in living in the moment. Young Milton is an ordinary boy who loves his pet cat, but he is plagued with worry over a school bully and other problems. 'If he ever tries to hurt you again, promise me you'll tell your mom or dad at once, and you should also tell your teacher.' 'Okay, I promise.' 'When did this happen?' 'Yesterday.' 'I see, yesterday. That was When it happened. But it's not happening now, is it?' 'Of course it's not happening now. But I'm worried he'll try to do it again.' 'If he does, it will be Then, won't it? You're worrying about Then and thinking about When. Aren't you forgetting something? Then and When are in your head. They are not here Now, are they?'" The colorful illustrations bring this thoughtful parable to life, and help communicate an insight that readers age eight to eighty and beyond can benefit from. Highly recommended.

To create an awareness in youngsters regarding influences coming from the outside, I feel this is a beneficial read. I had read a review from elsewhere, however, and my expectations were not quite met but only because I expected it for a little bit older child. Graphics are good. The message is important.

I bought this for my toddler even though she's a bit young for this book. After reading it, I realized that the book was very helpful for me, not at all over-simplified and 'age specific'. Truthfully, anybody at any age would benefit from this book.

What a perfect introduction to the liberating, enlightening teachings of mystic Eckhart Tolle. He is a real way-shower for all faiths, and not only children get glimpses of the Divine by reading this first children's book by such a venerable spiritual teacher. My 10-year-old's teacher said she loved the book, our Sunday School youth group teachers said it is awesome, and my 5-year-old was helped by its anxiety soothing "techniques" during a recent hospitalization for pneumonia. She also applied its wisdom to dealing with a not-nice boy in school, and mentioned it after seeing a "bad man" on the news. "He doesn't feel the light in him," she said. I am giving it as Christmas presents to all my nieces and nephews and starting a campaign to get it in all our local school libraries, the hospital's library of children's books, and the county libraries. The adult book by Tolle to read is A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose. Milton's Secret is the golden-nugget version of that "teaching", accompanied by beautiful almost Norman Rockwell-ish illustrations. Oh, I am also sending a copy to my conservative Christian mother so that it can be at "Grandma's house," too. And great-grandma's house, in her case. She and my Dad enjoy Tolle's life-freeing teachings for adults, as well. They have read both A New Earth and The Power of Now. If you haven't yet, jump on this bandwagon. All your relationships will improve, with your partner, your children, your parents, your boss and co-workers and with God. We are talkin' about the ability to make instant connections to the Ultimate in any situation that might come your way, be it unpleasant or pleasant...

Although we have great appreciation of Eckart's work and have read most of his books, this book and its theme was a great disappointment. We also shared it with a friend who is a native German and she felt the same way. My wife's father was also born in Germany. Their opinion was that Eckhart came from a German background and this book reflects an (hopefully) old paradigm of German attitudes toward childrearing that does not reflect Eckart's current approach to life, but has an underlying basis of hostility towards children acting as children. Our friend's 21 year old daughter also read it an also felt it inappropriate for children.

Secrets, not sharing problems with parents and magical thinking are not healthy approaches to anything for children.

We were all appalled with its content, and recommend the Sarah Series by Esther Hicks as much more useful and appropriate for children. We could never in good conscience give this book to our grandchildren.