This collection visits everyday characters who, like us, are caught in the confusing and sometimes violent intersection of morality, war, religion, medical ethics, race, spiritual emergence, and for-profit Western culture. The title of this book comes from the art of reading tea leaves as divination or fortune-telling. One could think of these stories as acting as a kind of fortune-telling for where Western culture is heading as the 21st Century unfolds. Most of these stories occur in contemporary urban America; the people are the dispossessed middle class looking for meaning and purpose in a world that seems to have lost both; the themes are as evocative as the language ? love, brutality, tenderness, humor, forgiveness and redemption, death and rebirth. Written with skill and phenomenal attention to language, these are highly emotional stories that juxtapose the grandeur and insignificance of the human condition, the honor in the struggle to find meaning in our lives, and the potential for terror and salvation that exist in every life.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
This is a profound and deeply felt collection of short stories, highly recommended for those who are looking for intelligence, insight, wit and wisdom. Especially in these days of postmodern flatness, art with depth is a rarity indeed. --Ken Wilber, author of The Integral Vision
Review
Keith's Martin-Smith's writings have a layered nuance to them. His stories glide gracefully from his mind because they have an emotionally sensitive, hand-wrought quality that belies the sophistication of his thought. I celebrate the possibility that we will be showered with many more examples of his writings...I enthusiastically await more.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
These stories captured me mind, body, and soul, touching on so many aspects of human experience. Each story resonated with universal appeal, and unusual for me, once I started a story, I could not put the book down until I finished it.
Words in the hands of a gifted writer can open us up to the world's suffering as well as its joys, helping us to see life through more compassionate eyes. We get to see the whole catastrophe of this glorious life and come away wiser for it. Deep appreciation for this book. Thank you.
Words in the hands of a gifted writer can open us up to the world's suffering as well as its joys, helping us to see life through more compassionate eyes. We get to see the whole catastrophe of this glorious life and come away wiser for it. Deep appreciation for this book. Thank you.
Format:Paperback
This book is a refreshing collection of short stories. When did you last read a short story? Very few authors even attempt writing in this form because it is very difficult to create great characters and interesting plots in the span of a few pages. The author was successful in doing both. I especially enjoyed the story, "A Difficult Case." Keith Martin Smith is able to write a story where the main character, a woman in a psych hospital, communicates with her doctor through her journal. The author has captured the thoughts of this women in a most believable way. He has a natural gift for writing dialog and the pace was perfect. The stories got better and better as I made my way through this book. I look forward to the next book by this talented young writer.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've been wanting to thank you, Keith, for writing your book.
In my spare minutes here and there, I've been working my way through
it. And, a few nights ago, I read The Last Musician.
It touched something in me pretty deeply...set off a series of
dominoes in my inner world. And a couple hours later, I was crying for an hour.
Your writing has a depth of insight that I rarely see these days...can't wait to read the rest of the book.
In my spare minutes here and there, I've been working my way through
it. And, a few nights ago, I read The Last Musician.
It touched something in me pretty deeply...set off a series of
dominoes in my inner world. And a couple hours later, I was crying for an hour.
Your writing has a depth of insight that I rarely see these days...can't wait to read the rest of the book.
Inside This Book
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The Mysterious Divination of Tea Leaves, Sally Ann, Father Martin, Difficult Case, Mount Claire, Mary Kate, Other People's Children, Nature Trembled, Miss Carter, Saint Peter, First Snow, New England, The Last Musician, World Orchestra, Throne of Man, Divided Men, Mikhail Bolinski, Temptations Of The Flesh, Conversation Over Coffee, East Coast, American Philharmonic Orchestra, Great Yettow Hat, Doctor Long, New York Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!
last musician Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Mysterious Divination of Tea Leaves, Sally Ann, Father Martin, Difficult Case, Mount Claire, Mary Kate, Other People's Children, Nature Trembled, Miss Carter, Saint Peter, First Snow, New England, The Last Musician, World Orchestra, Throne of Man, Divided Men, Mikhail Bolinski, Temptations Of The Flesh, Conversation Over Coffee, East Coast, American Philharmonic Orchestra, Great Yettow Hat, Doctor Long, New York Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Surprise Me!
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