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Prayers for Illumination (for Scripture Readers) Before the congregation hears the weekly scripture readings, the Prayer for Illumination turns our attention to God to ask that we hear God’s word in order to better know God’s will for our lives.
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The Illumination: A Novel Kevin Brockmeier on Amazon.com.FREE. shipping on qualifying offers. What if our pain was the most beautiful thing about us? From best-selling and award-winning author Kevin Brockmeier: a new novel of stunning artistry and imagination about the wounds we bear and the light that radiates from us all. Book, or from Holy Scripture, may be used when the needs of the congregation so require. For special days of fasting or thanksgiving, appointed by civil or Church authority, and for other special occasions for which no service or prayer has been provided in this Book, the bishop may set forth such forms as are fitting to the occasion. Pre-order Today! Living Off Vicious Evils. Limited Time Only, first 100 orders will recieve an exclusive Aqualeo poster! Unlike other books containing one subject-matter, this book “Guidelines to Illumination” contains many practical hints useful to seekers in the spiritual path. It is culled from my speeches given abroad during 1969-70, in various places.
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Illuminations chronicles the life of Hildegard von Bingen (1098–1179), who was tithed to the church at the age of eight and expected to live out her days in silent submission as the handmaiden of a renowned but disturbed young nun, Jutta von Sponheim. Instead, Hildegard rejected Jutta’s masochistic piety and found comfort and grace in studying books, growing herbs, and rej...more
Published October 9th 2012 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
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Michelle EllisonAbsolutely not! I enjoyed it purely as a historical fiction. I always learned so much in the process of enjoying this book. It is one of my favs. I…moreAbsolutely not! I enjoyed it purely as a historical fiction. I always learned so much in the process of enjoying this book. It is one of my favs. I stopped buying books and going to the library but I purchased this one to add to my shelves. (less)
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Several years ago, my husband and I went to Chicago to see a play called 'Late Nite Catechism.' It is helpful if one is Catholic and even more helpful if one has gone to Catholic School (which I did, for too long in my opinion), to understand what is going on in this play. Anyway this was about the time when the Vatican decided to pare down it's list of saints and as we were told during this play, they had decided that having an eating disorder or being mentally ill did not qualify one for saint...more
Oct 22, 2012Christy Robinson rated it it was amazing
I'd had this book on a wishlist since the author announced its publication date months ago, and it was released a few days before my birthday. A friend purchased it for me as a gift, and by my birthday, I had read only a quarter of the book. Was it because I'm a slow reader that I didn't devour the text over a weekend? No.
Illuminations is a book to savor, like exquisite musical movements, for its descriptions of physical scenes and emotional climates, the development of characters in extreme ci...more
Nov 27, 2012The Book Maven rated it really liked itIlluminations is a book to savor, like exquisite musical movements, for its descriptions of physical scenes and emotional climates, the development of characters in extreme ci...more
Recommends it for: Anyone who enjoys historical fiction or uppity women breaking the mold
Shelves: read-historical-fiction, read-medieval-historical-fiction
When I was fifteen, I discovered the beautiful music of Hildegard von Bingen. (Incidentally, the CD of her music that I discovered was a techno-trance interpretation created by Richard Souther. While I continue to love this work, it's much maligned by people with better taste than myself.) This was one of my first exposures to New-Agey, ambient type music, and also one of my first exposures to Hildegard, the Ultimate Uppity Woman.
It's just as well that von Bingen has an uppity personality; she n...more
Aug 17, 2017Suzanne rated it really liked it · review of another editionIt's just as well that von Bingen has an uppity personality; she n...more
Shelves: historical-fiction, book-club-2017, christian
I love reading about the Saints and I love historical fiction, but typically putting the two together makes for a disappointing read, in my opinion. Good historical fiction authors are difficult to find in Catholic bookstores, so I was pleased to find Illuminations, a novel about the life of Hildegard von Bingen, written by a mainstream historical fiction author.
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) was placed in an anchorage at the age of 8. An anchorage is much stricter than a typical convent, as...more
Mar 01, 2018Barbara rated it it was ok · Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) was placed in an anchorage at the age of 8. An anchorage is much stricter than a typical convent, as...more
review of another edition Shelves: on-my-shelves, started-discarded, e-book
I read one-third of this book and didn't want to finish. It has the tone of a YA novel and nothing of the mysticism of Hildegard von Bingen. One-third of the way through the book and she's only 15 years old. Not worth going on because it obviously won't deliver what I hoped for.
Jan 12, 2012Amy Bruno rated it really liked it Shelves: arcs, on-my-kindle, net-galley, read-in-2012, ebook-galley, historical-fiction
I became a fan of author Mary Sharratt when I read her novel, Daughters of the Witching Hill, so I've been anticipating the release of Illuminations with great excitement and when I was offered the opportunity to review it I jumped at the chance!
Illuminations tells the story of Hildegard von Bingen, who as a young girl was offered to the church as a companion to an anchorite nun, Jutta Von Sponheim. At the tender age of eight Hildegard was sealed in a small cell with Jutta where she would remai...more
Illuminations tells the story of Hildegard von Bingen, who as a young girl was offered to the church as a companion to an anchorite nun, Jutta Von Sponheim. At the tender age of eight Hildegard was sealed in a small cell with Jutta where she would remai...more
This was 4.5 stars for my enjoyment. The read captured Hildegard's personality. It's a gentle telling of her historical reality. This fiction by Sharratt succeeds because she grabbed the strength that was inherent in that girl from the beginning through all the changes and conditions she both endured and recorded.
The prayers, the songs, the poetry- they were exquisite. The Divine Love she describes considering the physical conditions and the mental barriers put into place as young as she was? I...more
The prayers, the songs, the poetry- they were exquisite. The Divine Love she describes considering the physical conditions and the mental barriers put into place as young as she was? I...more
Before reading this book, I would not have expected to enjoy a book about a cloistered nun in the Middle Ages. I had never heard of Hildegard von Bingen. I read this book because it was recommended to me by Goodreads based on my reviews of other books.
Based on a true story, this book provided a fascinating portrayal of a young girl sent away by her Mom to live in a monastery as a nun/servant. An older noble teen was electing to enter the monastery willingly and become a nun. Hildegard was offer...more
Aug 06, 2012Audra (Unabridged Chick) rated it it was amazingBased on a true story, this book provided a fascinating portrayal of a young girl sent away by her Mom to live in a monastery as a nun/servant. An older noble teen was electing to enter the monastery willingly and become a nun. Hildegard was offer...more
Shelves: historicals, secret-identities, women-and-religion, heroine-amazing, historical-figure-fictionalized, mood-evocative, sense-of-place, teenage-heroine-but-not-ya, skeletons-in-the-closet, era-medieval
Another book I just loved from the first line. While I was predisposed to love this novel since I adore all things Hildegard, Sharratt's articulation of the woman behind the legend is what made me unable to put this book down. (That, and the reality of what religious monastic life meant for Hildegard. Horrifying!)
Growing up Catholic, I'm still pretty enamored of saints even if I've shed most everything else of that faith tradition. The dramatic saints -- women like Hildegard -- were and still ar...more
Growing up Catholic, I'm still pretty enamored of saints even if I've shed most everything else of that faith tradition. The dramatic saints -- women like Hildegard -- were and still ar...more
Mar 09, 2018Charlene rated it really liked it
Sharratt constructed a very enjoyable imagining of what Hildegard von Bingen's life was like. With each turn of the page, I was really glad to not have lived her life. I might have had to kill myself. It was all I could do to make it through my catholic night classes I was forced to endure for most of grade school. In the 5th grade, I was asked to leave CCD before making my confirmation because I argued with the priest after he told us about the Widow's mite. She only had 2 mites (quarters) to h...more
When Hildegard was eight, her mother gave her to a church to be bricked into a chamber in a monastery wall as involuntary handmaiden and student to an ascetic teenaged girl of noble birth, Jutta von Sponheim. Hildegard had visions, and was thus unmarriageable. Giving her daughter over to this purpose not only disposed of her honorably, but bought the favor of Jutta’s rich mother, enabling Hildegard’s sisters to meet wealthy mates. As Jutta slowly killed herself with anorexia and self punishment,...more
I'm listening to this (audio form). Can I say: OMG! The story is completely fascinating, made even more so by the reader, Tavia Gilbert. I am only on the second cd and listening to the story and how it was told, made me cry! I need to just drive and drive, I guess, so I can listen to this book.
It's been a week and can I say: I don't spend enough time in the car... I am still thoroughly enjoying the book.
I really liked this book ... a lot! I am definitely going to have to do some more research on...more
It's been a week and can I say: I don't spend enough time in the car... I am still thoroughly enjoying the book.
I really liked this book ... a lot! I am definitely going to have to do some more research on...more
Sep 13, 2017Joyce rated it it was amazing
From the first to the last sentence, I was totally captivated. The book was thrilling and beautifully written. I read it in every spare moment.
In the 11th century, where men ruled both the countries and the church, women were basically nobodies. Girls at a tender age were turned over to men as wives with no rights or to the church to become nuns with no rights.
Hildegard at age 8 or perhaps 14 (history is not sure on this point) was given up by her mother fully knowing that she would become a s...more
In the 11th century, where men ruled both the countries and the church, women were basically nobodies. Girls at a tender age were turned over to men as wives with no rights or to the church to become nuns with no rights.
Hildegard at age 8 or perhaps 14 (history is not sure on this point) was given up by her mother fully knowing that she would become a s...more
Mar 11, 2018Kim Ess rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
The complete brutality of the Medieval times shines through here ALL in the name of Christianity! Hildegard von Bingen is one our first feminists. I learned so much from this historical fiction. The author did a great job of interpreting historical documents and giving us a story that was hard to put down. I had no idea about certain practices within the Benidictine Religion during the time covered in this book and it blew me away. I suggest you pick up and start reading the book without Googlin...more
This is a fictionalized biography of the 12th century mystic, Hildegard von Bingen. Although the author was consistent with the outline of the historical facts, there were some places where I questioned if she got the details of the larger setting correct. For example, she referred to the religious vows of the anchoress as “taking Holy Orders” a term I have only seen used for the ordination of deacons, priests and bishops. The voice of Hildegard never quite felt authentic. In the early years, sh...more
Jan 13, 2018Judy rated it really liked it
rating: 4.5
This was my introduction to Hildegard von Bingen. Why have I never heard of her? (And I attended a Catholic college.) I'm intrigued, and I want to learn more about this woman. Isn't that a sign of a well-written historical novel? It was a 'page-turner' but not in the usual meaning of the phrase. I never wanted to put down the book, so I kept reading 'just another few pages.' The story drooped once, about 4/5th into the story. I was wondering if the author really needed the last fifth...more
This was my introduction to Hildegard von Bingen. Why have I never heard of her? (And I attended a Catholic college.) I'm intrigued, and I want to learn more about this woman. Isn't that a sign of a well-written historical novel? It was a 'page-turner' but not in the usual meaning of the phrase. I never wanted to put down the book, so I kept reading 'just another few pages.' The story drooped once, about 4/5th into the story. I was wondering if the author really needed the last fifth...more
Oct 22, 2012Viviane Crystal rated it it was amazing
This is as disturbing a story as it is inspiring! At the age of 8 years old, in order to win dowries for Hildegard's sisters, her mother 'tithes' her to a monk's monastery to become an anchorite. That means that she and another young girl will be placed in two rooms that are completely walled in except for a small grille through which their spiritual advisor can speak to them and through which food and drink of the coarsest nature will be passed at mealtimes. Jutta with whom Hildegard is impriso...more
The Book Of Illumination
Very little is known about Hildegard von Bingen's early life, and Mary Sharratt has chosen the most traumatic of the stories as the basis for her novel. In her version, young Hildegard is already seeing visions and her mother fears she will be branded a heretic. The girl is offered to the Church as an oblate and walled into the monastery at Disibodenberg with Jutta von Sponheim at the age of 8. (Some sources put the enclosure date later, when Hildegard was 14, but in the scheme of things that ha...more
Mar 07, 2013☕Laura rated it really liked it Shelves: on-kindle, historical-fiction, owned-books
What a fascinating woman Hildegarde von Bingen was; devout yet radical, both spiritual and spirited. I was enthralled by her story, from her forced confinement as an anchorite in childhood through to the revolutionary accomplishments of her later years. I relished her evolution from a powerless, frightened child into a mature woman with the courage to publicly call out the corrupt church hierarchy and endure the consequences. I had never before read of the anchorites who confined themselves to b...more
Jun 09, 2013Tracy rated it it was ok
wow . . . really wanted to like . . . really didn't. so over- and badly written. if she described the nuns' singing as 'their voices rose up to the heavens . . .' or 'their voices rose up, intertwining in beautiful harmonies . . . ' or 'their voices rose up . . .' -- dear lord, please find a new way to describe a bunch of people singing. or better yet, stop describing people singing every few pages. yes, we get it. they sing a lot. could they do some other stuff too?! i could list many other ann...more
Illuminations by Mary Sharratt is a historical fiction novel based around the life of Hildegard von Bingen (1098 – 1179). Hildegard was given to the church by her mother and is walled into the church expected to spend her life in silent submission as the handmaiden of a renowned, yet disturbed, young nun named Jutta von Sponheim. Hildegard resists this life and, nearly thirty years later, finally breaks away to pursue her own interests and attempt to liberate other women from the anchorage.
For t...more
For t...more
Mar 09, 2013Kathleen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
A wonderful book which I will read again and again.I knew little about Hildegarde although I had read a few writings. How modern she was and wise and most of all resilient.
Hildegarde was just a fun loving little girl when she was given to the church, not only as an ordinary nun but as a companion to a self professed anchorite. She was bricked into a very small 2 rooms for 38 years with no options or recourse.Her strong personality kept her sane, as did her through-the-screen relationship with V...more
Hildegarde was just a fun loving little girl when she was given to the church, not only as an ordinary nun but as a companion to a self professed anchorite. She was bricked into a very small 2 rooms for 38 years with no options or recourse.Her strong personality kept her sane, as did her through-the-screen relationship with V...more
Oct 31, 2012Shomeret rated it really liked it
This novel about Hildegard of Bingen steers between two extreme views of this important medieval figure that I have seen in biographies. Mary Sharratt doesn't take the psycho-medical view that because Hildegard had migraines, she never had any true visions. She also doesn't deny that Hildegard had migraines in an effort to portray her as the perfect New Age saint. Instead she takes the approach that it's possible to be a great visionary while still having migraines at times. It seemed to me that...more
Dec 27, 2012Madeleine rated it liked it
This book was about Hildegard von Bingen, an 11th-century German abbess who wrote books and music inspired by visions sent to her by God. This was an incredibly interesting read and I admire Sharratt immensely for attempting to dissect the life of a saint from a saint's point of view. I felt that the book really hit it's stride after she becomes an anchorage with Sister Jutta, the self-destructive and mad nun whose piety and insanity are incredibly vivid and wonderfully realistic.
My one compla...more
My one compla...more
Fundamentals Of Lighting Pdf
I found Sharratt's book to stay true to many facets of Hildegard's life, except for her inner life.
I would have liked to see Sharratt give Hildegard a more authentic Christian and less secular inner life. I imagine she did rail against her plight and her early years in the Church as an anchorite (a hermit who leads a monastic life often times on church property in small cells). I imagine she had moments of bitterness, but she could not have gone on and become a pillar of the Christian mystic tr...more
I would have liked to see Sharratt give Hildegard a more authentic Christian and less secular inner life. I imagine she did rail against her plight and her early years in the Church as an anchorite (a hermit who leads a monastic life often times on church property in small cells). I imagine she had moments of bitterness, but she could not have gone on and become a pillar of the Christian mystic tr...more
Nov 18, 2014Colleen rated it really liked it
This was great historical fiction about a fascinating woman/nun during the Middle Ages.
There is Music of Heaven in all things and we have forgotten how to hear it until we sing. - Hildegard von Bingen
He who does not love, does not know God, for God is love.
Dedicated to women of spirit everywhere - many blessings on the quest
There is Music of Heaven in all things and we have forgotten how to hear it until we sing. - Hildegard von Bingen
He who does not love, does not know God, for God is love.
Dedicated to women of spirit everywhere - many blessings on the quest
I chose this historical novel from the Vine program because I had heard of Hildegard von Bingen but knew very little of her life. I knew she was a nun, a mystic, a writer of holy music, but I had no idea she had been consecrated to the holy life so early (at the age of eight), and in such a dismal and terrifying fashion (to this claustrophobe!), literally entombed in a small two-room enclosure attached to a monastery church. That was supposed to be the end of the story; Hildegard entered Disibod...more
Sep 03, 2012Linda rated it really liked it
Few of us today understand the lives of anchorites, individuals who for religious reasons chose to live in a sealed room, with only a hatch providing contact with the world at large. In Illuminations, Mary Sharratt presents a fictionalized biography of one of the most famous anchorites of all time, Hildegard von Bingen. As a child growing up in early medieval Germany, Hildegard experienced frequent visions, a dangerous trait in the eyes of church and society. As a result, her mother 'tithed' her...more
Aug 07, 2012Elli rated it it was amazing Shelves: middle-ages, historical-fiction, germany
A fine book. Just imagine the european world through the eyes of the people who lived in it then as portrayed by Mary Sharrat aided by extensive research and knowledge in order to make it happen. It was a set world with good and evil being the real constants and measuring devices. How it was measured in a class system which put the serfs (legalized slavery) at the bottom of the core, and the top hierarchy being the church and the political scene each with it's own hierarchy. Obedience was expect...more
Jul 11, 2012Michelle Miller (True Book Addict) rated it it was amazing Shelves: book-tour-books, historical-fiction, for-review, read-in-2013, owned
Once again, historical fiction has led me to a person and a subject I otherwise knew nothing about. I really had no idea that there was such a thing as anchorages and women (nuns) who became anchorites. These women willingly gave themselves to a monastery to be literally walled in, never seeing the outside world, for the rest of their days. In Illuminations, Hildegard von Bingen is forced to enter an anchorage with a girl (Jutta) who is perceived as the holiest of holy. However, her reasons for...more
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Mary Sharratt is an American writer who lives with her Belgian husband in the Pendle region of Lancashire, England, the setting for her acclaimed 2010 novel, DAUGHTERS OF THE WITCHING HILL, which recasts the Pendle Witches of 1612 in their historical context as cunning folk and healers.
Previously she lived for twelve years in Germany. This, along with her interest in sacred music and herbal medic...more
Previously she lived for twelve years in Germany. This, along with her interest in sacred music and herbal medic...more
“Encircling all this was a ring of flame, the holiness of God, my Mother, blazing everywhere. Our abbot and prior preached that God was above all things, and yet my vision told me that God was in all things, alive inside every stone and leaf. A white cloud, filled with light, opened and a voice began to sing. I am the breeze that nurtures everything green and growing, that urges the blossoms to flourish, the fruits to ripen. I am the dew that makes the grasses laugh with the joy of life.” — 3 likes
“Think about what you love, Hildegard. Trust it. That’s where your talents lie and that’s where you’ll find happiness, even here.” — 2 likes
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Not the book you’re looking for?Preview — The Illumination by Kevin Brockmeier
From best-selling and award-winning author Kevin Brockmeier: a new novel of stunning artistry and imagination about the wounds we bear and the light that radiates from us all.
What if our pain was the most beautiful thing about us? In the aftermath of a fatal car accident, a private journal of love notes written by a husband to his wife passes into the keeping of a hospital...more
What if our pain was the most beautiful thing about us? In the aftermath of a fatal car accident, a private journal of love notes written by a husband to his wife passes into the keeping of a hospital...more
Published February 1st 2011 by Pantheon (first published 2011)
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Deferred Gratification: 2011's Most Eagerly Awaited New Books 128 books — 403 voters
The Best Books That Follow An Object Through Time 60 books — 69 voters
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Feb 24, 2011VegasGal rated it it was ok
I don't think I've ever been so engrossed in a book like this one, and enjoyed it so much (even recommended it) but then suddenly half way through the story something happened and I got the literary rug pulled out from under me. How can something go from an 'awesome wow' to a fizzled bunch of yuck?
Since I happen to be a person who suffers from chronic pain, I found the main premise of this story to not only be intriguing but personally touching - It's about pain suddenly giving off light in ever...more
Since I happen to be a person who suffers from chronic pain, I found the main premise of this story to not only be intriguing but personally touching - It's about pain suddenly giving off light in ever...more
Sometimes a good book is hard to read. Sometimes a hard book is good to read. Sometimes, a book is as good as it is bad. The Illumination was mostly the latter.
'The Illumination' is a phenomenon that suddenly occurs across the world, where physical aches and pains light up for all to see, and suffering becomes visible. The book follows 6 protagonists in a story hand-off that is spectacularly evenly divided and yet totally unsatisfying. Initially, we find ourselves in the company of a data analys...more
Feb 08, 2011Judy rated it it was amazing'The Illumination' is a phenomenon that suddenly occurs across the world, where physical aches and pains light up for all to see, and suffering becomes visible. The book follows 6 protagonists in a story hand-off that is spectacularly evenly divided and yet totally unsatisfying. Initially, we find ourselves in the company of a data analys...more
Shelves: 21st-century-fiction
Readers of my reviews may have noticed that I am attracted to the whimsical, the magical, the fantastic, in novels. Kevin Brockmeier surprised and startled me with his first novel, A Brief History of the Dead. I wondered how he would do that again in his second.
The Illumination is another work of sheer imagination laid over the gritty reality of modern life. Brockmeier uses the device of an object which passes through the hands of six characters, in this case a book of love quotes. It is a jou...more
Aug 06, 2011Jane rated it it was amazing
I loved this book. It's a series of linked stories held together by the phenomenon of the 'illumination' and by a journal of daily love notes from a husband to his wife. The Illumination causes pain to appear as an emanation of light from the part of the body where the pain occurs. Each of the characters experiences this phenomenon in some way, and each connects in some way or other with the character whose story follows theirs. But this connection is ephemeral, it's really the book that is the...more
I am conflicted about giving this book a star rating, because it was so unremarkable. Neither great nor bad, and yet the obligatory 3 stars makes it seem like I had an opinion.
I'm about as tired of linked stories as I am of precocious child narrators. This book has both. The links in The Illumination are extremely tenuous, to the point that it feels like the journal that follows all six had to be inserted just to give us a vague sense of continuity. Similarly, the illumination itself (injuries...more
I'm about as tired of linked stories as I am of precocious child narrators. This book has both. The links in The Illumination are extremely tenuous, to the point that it feels like the journal that follows all six had to be inserted just to give us a vague sense of continuity. Similarly, the illumination itself (injuries...more
This novel asks the question, 'What if our pain is the most beautiful thing about us?' It's a compelling question, and the premise of the novel--that anywhere and anytime a person experiences pain it becomes illuminated so that everyone can see it--is ripe with potential. The common tie between characters in the novel, in addition to their pain,--Patricia's journal in which she records the messages that her husband leaves for her on the refrigerator every morning to reveal one new thing that he...more
Mar 27, 2012Helen Dunn rated it really liked it
I can't explain why, but I love Kevin Brockmeier's writing. It's sad and beautiful and oddly soothing.
The story is strange - about a world where pain glows with light - and his characters are all troubled and riddled with pain. Their stories are loosely intertwined in a way that reminded me that the world is smaller than we think.
I wish I knew what happened to all these people after the book ended.
The story is strange - about a world where pain glows with light - and his characters are all troubled and riddled with pain. Their stories are loosely intertwined in a way that reminded me that the world is smaller than we think.
I wish I knew what happened to all these people after the book ended.
Wrote a developmental edit letter as my final project for Advanced Editing class... This is the beginning of that letter:
Since the structure of your book necessitates an edit that focuses heavily on the characters, I would be fascinated to know in which order you conceived of the characters and wrote the chapters. Which came first, the journal or the characters? Your writing is always based in an extremely unique concept, and yet you manage to see past that fantastical premise to the real human...more
Since the structure of your book necessitates an edit that focuses heavily on the characters, I would be fascinated to know in which order you conceived of the characters and wrote the chapters. Which came first, the journal or the characters? Your writing is always based in an extremely unique concept, and yet you manage to see past that fantastical premise to the real human...more
The world had changed in the wake of the Illumination. No one could disguise his pain anymore. You could hardly step out in public without noticing the white blaze of someone’s impacted heel showing through her slingbacks; and over there, hailing a taxi, a woman with shimmering pressure marks where her pants cut into her gut; and behind her, beneath the awning of the flower shop, a man lit all over in a glory of leukemia.
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An interesting thing happens when reading Kevin Brockmeier’s The Illumin...more
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An interesting thing happens when reading Kevin Brockmeier’s The Illumin...more
Jan 14, 2013Melanie Lamaga rated it it was amazing
The Illumination is a literary novel with only one fantastic element, but it’s a doozy: one day, inexplicably, the bodily pain of each and every human being on earth begins to manifest as a white light. Everything from a headache to leukemia shines out of the body like a beacon for all to see.
The story follows a sequence of people who come into possession of a journal of love notes, transcribed by a woman named Patricia, from the notes her husband left her on the fridge every day of their marria...more
The story follows a sequence of people who come into possession of a journal of love notes, transcribed by a woman named Patricia, from the notes her husband left her on the fridge every day of their marria...more
The Book Of Illumination Ibn Ata' Allah Pdf
When I first read the back of the book I was very intrigued and interested, however as I read the book I became less and less enthralled in the story. This book is written
very simply and there isn't much depth to any of the characters. I didn't feel a connection with any of the characters and I think this is partly because this book follows the story line of several different people. I also didn't feel as though this book had a purpose or a point to make to the readers.
One of the main aspect...more
very simply and there isn't much depth to any of the characters. I didn't feel a connection with any of the characters and I think this is partly because this book follows the story line of several different people. I also didn't feel as though this book had a purpose or a point to make to the readers.
One of the main aspect...more
Kenneth Brockmeier is so frustrating. His eye for detail is arresting, and I found myself constantly on the brink of tears during the first half of the book because it just seemed so true and real. His writing is gorgeous. But he can't seem to structure a novel; the entire concept of this one seems better suited to a short story (light pours from wounds!) than multiple chapters. He simply runs out of ways to say the one thing he wants to say. The links between the short story-like chapters are b...more
Aug 30, 2015Jill rated it liked it · review of another edition
An almost meditative read. Stylistically beautiful, but gently -- not strikingly gorgeous, but flowing and constantly so. The stories are disjointed and occasionally convenient, but: so is life, and this book is big on life snapshots. Deus ex machina gets a bad rap -- but we've all experienced it, in some capacity, in our lives. To exclude that kind of experience completely would be disingenuous, unrealistic.
The undercurrent of pain-as-light was so cool, but not dealt with in as much depth as I...more
Jul 06, 2011Kirstie rated it really liked itThe undercurrent of pain-as-light was so cool, but not dealt with in as much depth as I...more
Recommends it for: people interested in realistic fantasy, creative fiction
I really enjoyed the topic of this book more than anything else..the idea is that somehow our wounds-be them cuts, bruises, or cancerous tumors radiate light...some feel it's beautiful and some try to disguise it. The novel explores a few different perspectives of people finding out then living with this oddity, which is what becomes termed 'The Illumination' itself. We meet a photographer, an author, a young boy who refuses to speak, an evangelist, and a homeless bookseller as well as all of th...more
I actually finished this book several hours ago but I’ve spent the subsequent time with my head in my hands, trying to figure out the rating it deserves.
I’ll start with the good points: this book was emotionally devastating on a level I was entirely unprepared for. The story is composed of several different characters (whose point of view each make up a “chapter”) and how they all interconnect thanks to a single item: a journal full of love notes written from a husband to his wife. Each charact...more
I’ll start with the good points: this book was emotionally devastating on a level I was entirely unprepared for. The story is composed of several different characters (whose point of view each make up a “chapter”) and how they all interconnect thanks to a single item: a journal full of love notes written from a husband to his wife. Each charact...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Feb 28, 2011Holly rated it it was ok
Before page 65 I was already growing impatient with the premise: I didn't require any more extended descriptions of light pouring from wounds. I also found the writing/story a little sentimental, romantic, cheap, and obvious. Brockmeier's earlier novel A Brief History of the Dead, had an intriguing premise, but there the reader projected the inevitable conclusion the concept requires/contains (a Bardo-like city where the dead carry on their lives until all the humans on Earth who remember them a...more
Oct 20, 2013Matthew Turner rated it liked it
This book had two fascinating central ideas: (a) the concept of hidden pain becoming visible; and (b) the power of something precious passing from one person to another.
So the first chapter of “The Illumination” had me hooked… I couldn’t wait to see how things unraveled. But now that I’ve reached the end, I’m left with an overwhelming sense of disillusionment… forgive the pun. My disappointments are threefold:
(1) Despite the intriguing framing, I was bored of these same two ideas being recycled...more
Apr 11, 2012Elizabeth rated it really liked itSo the first chapter of “The Illumination” had me hooked… I couldn’t wait to see how things unraveled. But now that I’ve reached the end, I’m left with an overwhelming sense of disillusionment… forgive the pun. My disappointments are threefold:
(1) Despite the intriguing framing, I was bored of these same two ideas being recycled...more
Recommends it for: people who want to know who the cutters among us are
What a beautifully written and affecting book. I can't help but think that if you liked it or not, you would ponder a lot of ideas that are brought up within it. When wounds start displaying themselves through light some media pundit coins it the 'Illumination'. We're talking any wound from lung cancer to a stubbed toe, sometimes the light might radiate and other times it might sparkle. Now that we can view all of each others physical frailties so clearly a number of things come up. What is the...more
Sep 15, 2017Wendy Wakeman rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Aqualeo Book Of Illumination Pdf
I put this book down on page 5 in a huff because I disliked the way the author used the word 'genuflect.' Sometime maybe I'll get around to writing an essay about that word, its use, and misuse, because I have a lot of feelings surrounding it that need to get out. Luckily, I'm lazy. The next book on my list was upstairs, and I wanted to sit outside on the porch and read, so I took it up again.
I love so much about this book. I love the two strangenesses that form its purpose: pain becomes visible...more
I love so much about this book. I love the two strangenesses that form its purpose: pain becomes visible...more
I read this weird and beautiful book about 3 years ago, but never entered it in here. It came up as a suggestion. This won’t be everyone’s thing, but if it’s yours, it will stick with you. The Illumination attempts to answer the question: “If everyone can see everyone else’s pain, will we learn to become more compassionate or selectively blind?”
This book breaks the rules. The thread character through the whole narrative is a diary. The storyline is neither linear nor logical but the author masterfully makes it work. This is a rare read I was not skimming through details and segments. Highly recommend.
May 11, 2011Irisjade rated it liked it
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Jul 29, 2012Amanda rated it it was ok
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Apr 20, 2012Christina Tang-Bernas rated it really liked it
The premise of this novel is that all our wounds, our pain, our diseases are illuminated with light. So, walking down the street, we can see all the people around us and their afflictions. There is no hiding it. Does this make us have more compassion? More understanding, perhaps? Do we become beautiful through our pain and suffering? These are questions this novel asks and it plays out through a series of characters and their viewpoints, who are all connected by one book full of love notes that...more
Jan 20, 2012Paul rated it liked it
This was an odd one and I have mixed feelings, I want to give it 3.5 stars. The idea is a good one; one day, very suddenly everyones pain is illuminated; shines in the form of light. Cuts and bruises, cancer, arthritis etc all shine from peoples bodies.
The story revolves around a journal put together by a wife whose husband left her a note on the fridge every day. These notes started 'I love the way you....' The notes have been pasted in a journal. This journal travels between six people, each...more
The story revolves around a journal put together by a wife whose husband left her a note on the fridge every day. These notes started 'I love the way you....' The notes have been pasted in a journal. This journal travels between six people, each...more
Jun 07, 2011Lexie rated it liked it
What a premise: Every person and creature on the planet lights up -- with pain. Whatever the wound, it's set ablaze. No more hiding our pain ... and every living thing is illumined to some degree. What happens when we perceive pain as light ...?
Quotes:
She had known days of happiness and beauty, rare moments of motionless wonder, but trying to relive them after they had vanished was like looking out the window at night from a partially lit room: no matter how interesting the view, there was alwa...more
Quotes:
She had known days of happiness and beauty, rare moments of motionless wonder, but trying to relive them after they had vanished was like looking out the window at night from a partially lit room: no matter how interesting the view, there was alwa...more
The descriptions have a certain uniqueness that captivate and allow the reader to empathize with every detail. The main character in the novel is relatable and harbors the same amount of curiosity as the reader making each moment mysterious and intriguing.
The sociological aspects of the phenomena known simply as “The Illumination” are what make this book particularly interesting.
Can you be better close to someone by knowing and seeing where
their pain exist? Seeing the smoker and seeing his il...more
The sociological aspects of the phenomena known simply as “The Illumination” are what make this book particularly interesting.
Can you be better close to someone by knowing and seeing where
their pain exist? Seeing the smoker and seeing his il...more
This is the first book I've read by Kevin Brockmeier so I wasn't sure what to expect. His writing is beautiful. He paints characters in a rich way. The book is a collection of six short stories involving two common threads: (1) a phenomenon where a part of the body experiencing pain glows. Everyone can see it; nothing private about one's pain. (2) a diary from a husband to his wife extolling all the big and small things he loves about her.
Each of the six characters are in some sort of physical/e...more
Each of the six characters are in some sort of physical/e...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
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Born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, Brockmeier received his MFA from the Iowa Writer's Workshop in 1997. His stories have been featured in The New Yorker, McSweeny's, Crazyhorse, and The Georgia Review. He is the recipient of an O. Henry Award, the Nelson Algren Award, and a National Endowment of the Arts grant.
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“Sometimes they rose up inside her, these moments of fierce happiness, kindling out of their own substance like a spark igniting a mound of grass. It was a joy to be alive, a strange and savage joy, and she stood there in the warmth and destruction of it knowing it could not last.” — 14 likes
“Occasionally, in the stillness of a taxi or an airplane, she would catalog the pleasures she had lost. Cigarettes. Chewing gum. Strong mint toothpaste. Any food with hard edges or sharp corners that could pierce or abrade the inside of her mouth: potato chips, croutons, crunchy peanut butter. Any food that was more than infinitesimally, protozoically, spicy or tangy or salty or acidic: pesto or Worcestershire sauce, wasabi or anchovies, tomato juice or movie-theater popcorn. Certain pamphlets and magazines whose paper carried a caustic wafting chemical scent she could taste as she turned the pages. Perfume. Incense. Library books. Long hours of easy conversation. The ability to lick an envelope without worrying that the glue had irritated her mouth. The knowledge that if she heard a song she liked, she could sing along to it in all her dreadful jubilant tunelessness. The faith that if she bit her tongue, she would soon feel better rather than worse.” — 6 likes
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