A review by atticmoth
Dreams of Isis by Normandi Ellis

5.0

I firstly want to say that the subitle “A Woman’s Spiritual Sojourn” is not meant in the general sense; the titular woman is Normandi Ellis herself, as this book is part memoir. Don’t let this deter you, I highly recommend this book to anyone, woman or not. For various reasons, I’m back in my ancient Egypt phase, and I sought out this book after reading Ellis’ interpretation of the Egyptian Book of the Dead (Awakening Osiris) which, though it took artistic liberties, was one of the most powerful texts I have ever read. Dreams of Isis is in many ways a companion piece to her translation, marrying history and myth with autobiography. Nonlinearly, it tells of Ellis’ travels to Egypt and how ancient Egyptian spirituality has influenced her throughout her life — notably during her divorce, which she likens to the Isis and Osiris story. There may be some historical inaccuracies, but her academic study of Egyptology sets a background for her own story, and it is precisely this specificity that makes the book so moving. Had it been a simple spiritual guide (like O’Donohue’s Anam Ċara does for Irish spirituality) I would not have found it as resonant, but I found myself moved to tears many times reading this.