Customer Reviews

Walking Through Walls: A Memoir

5 star:		(83)
4 star:		(65)
3 star:		(26)
2 star:		(22)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

This engaging memoir is so readable that I could hardly put it down. It is the story of a family living in Florida, with the author growing up in the 1950's and coming of age during the '60s. His mother is a wonderful, lovely woman. It sounds patronizing to say she is "colorful," and I don't mean it like that. She is a beautiful, interesting person who walks to her own music. His father is a successful interior decorator and there is a great story of him being kidnapped to work in a palace in Haiti during the 1950's.

The idyllic life changes, however, when the father begins to acquire a "spiritual healing power." Soon there is talk of reading the Akashic record, using pendulums to discern truth, psychic healings, etc. A large part of the book is about the strain this puts on the marriage, and how difficult, yet also magical, it was to grow up around all of this.

I don't want to say too much more, since I am borderline spoiler already. But this is a worthwhile read, and I hope it makes bestseller.

On a personal note, I also grew up with a family member who claimed this kind of ability. I felt happy, in a bittersweet way, that it wasn't so bad for the author. For me, I felt like I lived in a Stephen King book sometimes. I usually hate this sort of thing (imagine growing up in Rose Red or the Overlook!). I state this to show how compelling and well written this book is!

This book contains two stories: one, the account of Lew Smith's metamorphosis from society decorator to psychic healer and two, the author's pathway from embarrassment, to acceptance and finally to admiration for his father's talents.

We are able to follow Lew Smith's metaphysical pathway and growth, as well as the hurdles and derision he must overcome in practicing his healing. For those who have a firm belief in the superiority of allopathic medicine, the recounting of Lew Smith's use of healing energies, discussion of the etheric body and use of a pendulum to diagnosis disease will probably have a few eyes rolling. For those who share Smith's view of modern medicine ("You know what your wonderful doctors do? They give you some pills that make you sicker than when you walked in the door. Then they give you more pills to counteract the first pills..."), you'll wish he could have taught in a medical school and been given the latitude to introduce an entirely new aspect to the teaching of medical care. Instead, Lew Smith had to contend with visits from FDA inspectors, confrontations with arrogant doctors and being hauled away by police when he tries to help an accident victim.

Being "normal" is the life wish of most kids and we see the author's struggle for normal in statements such as "At the age of ten, I was not about to sit down and simply be the only acid-balanced, nontoxic macrobiotic kid in all of Miami." The dualism of his growing up - "out of necessity I developed a dual personality. During school hours I needed to appear as normal as possible, in order to avoid being beaten up or laughed out of class...", and his desire for a 'normal' father - "What I really wanted was a father who mowed the lawn, drank beer, and fell asleep in front of the TV."

Fortunately for all who read this book, Philip does take in his father's lessons ("I didn't want to tell my father, but since that first lesson, I had been practicing the pendulum a lot...") because this acceptance of his father's teachings allows for a better and more insightful retelling of his father's talents. The culmination of the author's coming full circle and fully appreciating what a remarkable man his father was comes with his eulogy at his father's funeral: "...my father devoted his life to creating the future of medicine. He struggled against official ignorance and prejudice...We may not begin to even understand what he did until the next century...I know he would want his work to live on...".

Lew Smith's son has ensured his story and work will live on in this wonderful book.

I read it within two days, and I had a hard time dragging it out that long! Having spent several years living in the Keys, I immediately connected with Philip's surroundings in his memoir.

He tells the story of his beautiful, classy mother, and his father, a prominent Miami decorator, who was best known for creating the beaded curtain of the 60's, and of himself, a young boy growing up with highly unusual parents. In the beginning, it seems they live the idyllic life, being successful in business and moving in exciting social circles. One day, his father comes home convinced he has a disorder called sanpaku, starts a vegetarian macrobiotic diet, and with that, everything changes. It doesn't take long before he has a spiritual awakening, and finds he has the gift to heal others.

All this is very stressful on the family. Philip's father, Lew Smith, wants to pursue his gift, refine and develop it, and his mother has a hard time supporting him, or even in time showing any interest in his gifts whatsoever.She has her own interests which include sleeping in, unfiltered Camel cigarettes, diet pills, glamour and fashion. The main part of this memoir is about the struggle Philip goes through alternating between resentment, embarrassment, and finally acceptance of his father's new way of life. He has to learn to fend for himself because at times, his parents seem to forget that he even exists, but, eventually his father keeps tabs on him like no other father ever could. Philip never has any privacy because his father can see what he's doing at all times, either through his spirit guides or through the use of his pendulum. He must endure other embarrassments as well. Just going grocery shopping becomes a public spectacle as his father holds his pendulum above the melons, asking his spirit guides which one is the ripest and has the least amount of pesticides. Philip's father brings him along on exorcisms and healings, all which have become everyday occurences in their lives, and then he must attend school and pretend to be just an average kid to fit in.

To try and define his own life, Philip rebels, and describes his experiences with great detail; smoking "mellow yellow", experimenting sexually, and disappearing to Ecuador, among other things. Eventually, he comes to the realization that even though his father has his faults, he loves him and is proud of him as he sees how others have come to view his father, as a selfless healer.

All in all, this was a fascinating book that I didn't want to end. Whether you believe in the metaphysical or not, it's a great read that brings back lots of those 60's memories!

The wide approval that this book already received in the 188 reviews presented here says enough about its quality and offers the certainty that reading it will bring joy along with an uplifting motivation to anyone who decide to take the chance. Notwithstanding the negative literary critics that a few reviewers tried to impose on the author's skills and credibility, what truly comes out of this incredibly well written and fun reading story, is a remarkable lesson which can be worthy of consideration and service to anyone of us in terms of being open minded in regard to the many facets of life.
My understanding is that the main purpose of this memoir is a very clear one, and from the author's stand point, it is also clear to me that he did a wonderful job in depicting the facts with clarity and humility. Apart from this, I don't think that the author left any room to a belief that he at any rate tried to convince anyone or had any expectation of an overall acceptance on the part of the incurable skeptics neither the blind faith followers, about the truthfulness of the facts he portrayed in the book. To me one of the most valuable and important peculiarities in this book in terms of credibility is the fact that the author is not a psychic himself nor a religious catechizer who tries to win over adherence. In this manner, claims such as "I tend to be suspicious anyway", are completely inappropriate and misplaced, to say the least.
It is time for men and women to break the trammels imposed by orthodox religions and the hard core skepticism of the pundits of the scientific establishment, by opening their eyes and minds to the overwhelming outpouring of the so called "paranormal phenomena", which have been the object of serious studies to appear in a vast amount of books and scholarly papers in the last two centuries. It is about time for each one of us to get acquainted with these matters and educate ourselves towards the reality of life, death and the afterlife. After all, as the great Bernard Shaw warned us "Death is the ultimate statistic - one out of one of us dies".
Philip's memoir is a delightful reading that offers us a great opportunity to get rid of the ignorance which yet prevails about these matters. As the incomparable William Shakespeare once stated "Ignorance is a sin. Knowledge is the wing wherewith we fly to heaven". In this manner, Philip's outstanding book and the intricacies and struggles that prevails in this incredible story of a family relationship, should be seen and considered without the bias or barriers of suspicion to become rather a ground basis for one to go further in the worthy studies of these matters.
For those who are not familiar with the facts and puzzles that this book brings about, it is important to remember that no matter how amazing, intriguing and unusual it may appear, the fact is that it is not a novelty. On the contrary, along with the massive outpouring of a late literature approaching these matters, there are also hundreds of books and thousands of scholarly papers produced in the last century trying to decipher and give a rational explanation to these phenomena. Hundreds of men and women of science along with great scholars have carefully studied the problem and given most of their precious time to study these matters to bring forth a practical and reasonable theory, whose main goal is to help humanity in its march towards progress. Unfortunately, for a long time their works and achievements were kept under the rugs of bigotry in format of rare copies of books standing in the shelves of a lost and inaccessible library. Now, thanks to the miracle of the internet and the wonder of globalization, this precious knowledge shines upon the light of day. They can be of great help to those who are humble, free from bias or prejudice and are willing to learn how to dig deep into knowing thyself.
Undoubtedly, Mr. Philip's memoir are a delightful reading that I highly recommend to anyone. By reading it, let us take the opportunity to rid ourselves of bias and prejudice, and give heed to the warning of one of the greatest American philosopher, psychologist, free thinker and psychical researcher, William James, who stated the following:
"We may be in the universe as dogs and cats are in our libraries, seeing the books and hearing to conversation, but having no inkling of the meaning of it all". Antonio Leite

This is a great book for people who have any link at all to Miami -- the way it was or the way it is now. Miami has evolved into sort of a mystical place. It had magic to the many people who retired here in the 1950s and 1960s. As those people died, Miami had such a reputation as an old folks' home that no one came to replace them. So suddenly, in the 1980s, it was discovered all over again by the disco, swinging and drug taking population. This book happens between those 2 elements. But his story joins them -- it's an odd Jewish family who have come to a place where their oddness is celebrated not condemned.
So much happens in this book that you might doubt that it could all possibly be true. But for me, each new incident had a ring of truth so that I was never inclined to doubt it. It seems odd that parents would let a young boy drink tropical cocktails at a bar -- but within the context of this family, of course!
This is a memoir for people who love odd families. To have a designer father who is heterosexual and a spiritual healer is so far out there that it has to be true. For all their oddness, there is a permeating love throughout which is sweet and comforting as you read. I recommend this book to everyone. It's particularly good as one that rests beside your bed. You can dip into it for a short time every night and get a relaxing laugh. It's not a book in which you reconize yourself -- it's a book for wondering about what everybody else is up to.

Walking Through Walls: A Memoir

Walking Through Walls is a poignant memoir about psychic healer, exorcist, visionary and interior designer of the fifties and sixties, Lew Smith, written by his son Philip.

It's the story of a wacky family with glimpses into the cocktail and design set of Miami, told with wit and a touch of pathos.

Young Philip recounts the world of fast cars, fast people and a young boy's coming of age in an era when Miami was at the edge of nowhere and the design jobs were for Caribbean dictators and such.

Born to parents who couldn't have been more different, Philip's world suddenly veers into the bizarre when his father embraces psychic healing, macrobiotics, past life regression, exorcism and much more.

Smith tell his tale with verve and a tongue-in-cheek manner that keep you turning pages. He is a master at metaphor and simile; at the same time he manages to make the most outlandish seem commonplace.

The book takes the reader on a journey, not only of Philip's coming of age and of his father's curious psychic healing adventures, but a story of a father who watched over his son, even when the son didn't want to be looked after.

Walking Through Walls gives an exciting glimpse into the Miami of the fifties and sixties, of the hippie and acid generation, but also of a rare time to grow up and an even rarer man who was years ahead of his time.

The book was written from countless tape recordings, letters and other documented evidence of Smith's father's case experiences.

Recommended.

I could not put this book down - a truly compelling memoir of a truly unique life. Be prepared to open your mind to Philip Smith's unusual upbringing and appreciate the amazing and often mind-boggling experiences that formed his world (how many fathers can "spy" on you via their army of spirit friends? how many dads cure cancer in their free time?). For those of us who can only wish to experience even one small part of what Philip Smith did, you may find yourself frustrated with his continued resistance and rebellion to his father's gift. But ultimately, no matter how "normal" or "abnormal" our childhoods might have been, the lessons and examples set by our parents indelibly imprint themselves on us; and clarity is often only achieved with age and time. Philip Smith recounts this process in a beautiful, readable manner. Even those who will find themselves distracted by skepticism about the metaphysical can enjoy this memoir for the more universal themes of growing up, rebelling, and ultimately reaching peace with one's parents.

The item description, and indeed the back of the book promise something nearing the calibre of "Running With Scissors". However, it seems that the biggest quality Philip Smith shares with Augusten Burroughs, is a penchant for embellishment.

Don't get me wrong, the writing is above average, and the characters are intriguing -- though as others have noted, there's a serious "something" that makes the reader lose interest in them as the book progresses. And perhaps that sums up the book well...

There's "something" that's keeping this book from being brilliant. There are more than a few times when you find yourself thinking "This would be great, *if*..." and it makes you start to question how much of the book is accurate, and how much is the product of artistic license.

Without question, a decent beach book. A not-terrible coffee shop book. But overall, unsatisfying and not worth much commitment.

An EXCELLENT READ, I didn't want to set the book down....
For those who have ever thought their childhood was "different" or "strange" you have NO IDEA. This is an extended coming of age book, as the main character, Philip, relies on his father for more than just the normal parental advice for much longer than most offspring. Well, probably because his father just had so much more to offer than the average parent.

I don't think it matters if you believe or don't believe in the supernatural to totally enjoy this book. How Phil views his father, and how he views how OTHERS view his father is the unique twist.

I highly recommend this book. I found it well written, from the heart and soul. A good read. Buy extra copies, I want to give some as gifts, and keep mine to reread again. And again.
This is a great book. Pass it on. :)

The further I got into this book, the less I wanted to read it. I started it with high hopes: it's not every day you have the chance to gain insight into what it's like to grow up around a psychic healer. Smith writes well enough, a lively though somewhat plastic prose that occasionally generates enthusiasm for his material (there is a great chapter on signing up with the Scientologists). Some of the episodes he describes are interesting and comical but the overall effect is deadening. The author's parents were quite a pair! His chain-smoking, fashion-driven mother was unconvinced by and increasingly impatient with the ever-expanding list of nutritional and psychic fads her husband embraced in serial chain; his father started out as interior designer to the Miami wealthy but morphed into a faith healer, and while he charged for his design work, he never took a penny for his psychic healing. But Philip reports, or recreates, way too many of his father's monologues on healing. That's a major problem with this book because they're the same patter that psychics, faith healers, reincarnation and spirit guide freaks and UFO/alien abduction enthusiasts spout forth everywhere, and it's all distressingly vague. To top it off, the characters in this book aren't appealing and as the book progresses, they become caricatures. I wish I liked this book more, but I don't.