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michelle0819's review against another edition
5.0
I never write book reviews or whatever but I actually LOVE this one and it will be my personal bible <3
jaimcham's review against another edition
5.0
This blew me over. Not in one big gust but in dozens of little breezes one by one -- that kind of feeling where you're on the floor and don't remember how you got there. It's a braid of many vignettes, punctuated by blank pages and the echoed refrain: "My mother left me her journals, and all her journals were blank." It's about birds and land, mothers and grandmothers, spirit and space, speaking up and staying silent. Somehow in Terry Tempest Williams' hands, all the jagged pieces fit.
jflemingwickham's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
liketheday's review against another edition
2.0
I get it. But I didn't like it. I needed more.
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mrsloudlibrarian's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
carolpk's review against another edition
5.0
The Hook - No spoilers here as every review I have read gives us this much of a summary.
The opening line in itself is enough of a hook.
“I am fifty-four years old, the age my mother was when she died.
Consider that it quickly goes on to explain the following:
Terry Tempest Williams mother leaves her a set of journals just before she dies with the instructions that they not be opened until after her death. Terry keeps this promise and when her mother dies a week later she waits for the right time to read them. On the night of the next full moon it’s time. "They were exactly where she said they would be: three shelves of beautiful clothbound books; some floral, some paisley, others in solid colors.” Terry picks one off the shelf and slowly opens it. It is blank. The next, blank. They are all blank, three shelves of blank journals.
In fifty-four variations on voice Ms. Williams explore the emptiness of these journals and so do we.
The Line – Blank – I’ll leave this blank so you may choose your own passage or segment to mull and hold in your heart.
The Sinker – Silence Voice Silence
This exquisite book is a cacophony of silence rising to a crescendo. Each reader will find his or her own interpretation of Terry Tempest Williams words. A book to savor, a book to cherish, a book to own, a book to give, a book to read again.
When Women Were Birds: Fifty-four Variations on Voice was on my list but it wasn’t until I heard Rebecca Schinsky comments about it on Bookriot Holiday Recommendation Extravaganza Bonanza that I dropped everything and picked it up. I knew I had to read it immediately. I’m so glad I did.
The opening line in itself is enough of a hook.
“I am fifty-four years old, the age my mother was when she died.
Consider that it quickly goes on to explain the following:
Terry Tempest Williams mother leaves her a set of journals just before she dies with the instructions that they not be opened until after her death. Terry keeps this promise and when her mother dies a week later she waits for the right time to read them. On the night of the next full moon it’s time. "They were exactly where she said they would be: three shelves of beautiful clothbound books; some floral, some paisley, others in solid colors.” Terry picks one off the shelf and slowly opens it. It is blank. The next, blank. They are all blank, three shelves of blank journals.
In fifty-four variations on voice Ms. Williams explore the emptiness of these journals and so do we.
The Line – Blank – I’ll leave this blank so you may choose your own passage or segment to mull and hold in your heart.
The Sinker – Silence Voice Silence
This exquisite book is a cacophony of silence rising to a crescendo. Each reader will find his or her own interpretation of Terry Tempest Williams words. A book to savor, a book to cherish, a book to own, a book to give, a book to read again.
When Women Were Birds: Fifty-four Variations on Voice was on my list but it wasn’t until I heard Rebecca Schinsky comments about it on Bookriot Holiday Recommendation Extravaganza Bonanza that I dropped everything and picked it up. I knew I had to read it immediately. I’m so glad I did.
cattylou's review against another edition
5.0
An amazing book about mothers, daughters, community, environment, faith, and healing. Everyone woman has a voice, how are you using yours?
arielamandah's review against another edition
5.0
I'm not even sure where to begin. Some books fall into your life right at the moment when you need to read them. TTW deftly balances a host of complex themes, linking them poetically into a series of short chapters, essays, etc. I found this book so deep, so rich, and so humane. I read it in a day on my kindle, but will come back, read it again, and really savor it. So much love for this.