Product Description

Edited by best-selling author Marilyn Sewell, this rich and diverse anthology of more than 300 poems celebrates the sacredness of women's lives: the experiences that shape them, the relationships that sustain them, and the legacy that they build. In these poems, woman grow old, defy conventions and limits, fall in love and out again, wonder at their own bodies, and sing of the earth and sky. They pray, give birth, and make sense of suffering. As Sewell explains, "Those who write these verses do so out of exquisite courage...... They show us how to live."

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #272637 in Books
• Published on: 2000-04-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

Review
"Marilyn Sewell has done us all a great service to gather together these voices, some new, some forgotten, all precious resources. The collection, together with Sewell's deeply insightful introduction, traces the spirit in all its dimensions and diversity, expanding our idea of the spiritual impulse." -Susan Griffin, author of Bending Home

About the Author
Marilyn Sewell is senior minister of the First Unitarian Church in Portland, Oregon, and editor of Claiming the Spirit Within: A Sourcebook of Women's Poetry. She lives in Portland.

Customer Reviews

Gratitude
Marilyn Sewell's work on "Cries of the Spirit" was more than worth the price and I have wanted to thank her over and over. A death in the family and I grab her book to find the right words, a marriage and there she is again, providing a womans point of view from a variety of woman that I have found extremely useful. No matter the occassion, a new baby in the family for instance, and flip of the pages and Marilyn found one more woman who said what I want to say beautifully. Not to mention the times I sit alone, staring at the bay and use the poetry for inspiration for myself. "Cries of the Spirit" (and laughter I might add) is a worth while find!

A Handboook for a Woman's Spirit
I've had this book for about three years, and given it as a gift numerous times to my women friends, because it's the perfect companion in any mood and for any occasion. Marilyn Sewell has collected a broad spectrum of poetry from women, both famous poets and not-so-famous, and collected the entries into categories that make it simple to find a reading for just about any occasion or ceremony. There are wise words here, beautifully presented. Bring this book back into print! Buy it! Have it on hand as an instant resource, along with the collections by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon ("Earth Prayers," "Life Prayers," "Prayers for a Thousand Years") for all those occasions when you need the exact right perfect reading for an important moment.

An exceptional sampler.
This volume is shaped around intuitive explorations of women's spiritual journey: "Owning Self," "The Imperative of Intimacy, "Mothering," "Generations," "Sacredness in the Ordinary," "Images of the Divine." Though my 18-year-old daughter and I have come to perceive ourselves as women very differently, this is a volume we both have come to love. I wouldn't think of sending her off to college without her own copy!