Reviews

I've been a huge fan of Lama Rod Owens for a few years now, since I first heard of him when he first co-wrote Radical Dharma in 2016. His second book, Love and Rage changed my life and the way I interact with my anger. I even attended a (virtual) retreat with him in 2021 that has stayed with me ever since. Owens, according to his bio, is a "Black Buddhist Southern Queen," who also refers to himself as an anarchist. In a lot of ways he has made Buddhism and it's beliefs and practices more accessible to a much wider range of people.

The New Saints is my least favorite of his three books though. It felt more like a journal most of the time, and I didn't get the feeling I got from his other two or from listening to him speak. I think part of it too was the influence of christianity on him and his words. He's mentioned growing up christian in the past, but this book felt like it had more references to god and jesus and bible stories than his previous two books combined. I get very turned off by talk of christianity, so maybe the book was great and I was just distracted.

If you've never read anything by Owens, I recommend starting with Love and Rage. If you've read everything but this, I think it's still worth a try.

always_reading's review

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emotional slow-paced

3.25

geaibleu's review

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challenging funny inspiring slow-paced

4.5

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