Overview

Hope for American democracy in an era of deep divisions In Healing the Heart of Democracy, Parker J. Palmer quickens our instinct to seek the common good and gives us the tools to do it. This timely, courageous and practical work intensely personal as well as political is not about them, those people in Washington D.C., or in our state capitals, on whom we blame our political problems. It's about us, We the People, and what we can do in everyday settings like families, neighborhoods, classrooms, congregations and workplaces to resist divide-and-conquer politics and restore a government of the people, by the people, for the people. In the same compelling, inspiring prose that has made him a bestselling author, Palmer explores five habits of the heart that can help us restore democracy's foundations as we nurture them in ourselves and each other: * An understanding that we are all in this together * An appreciation of the value of otherness * An ability to hold tension in life-giving ways * A sense of personal voice and agency * A capacity to create community Healing the Heart of Democracy is an eloquent and empowering call for We the People to reclaim our democracy. The online journal Democracy & Education called it one of the most important books of the early 21st Century. And Publishers Weekly, in a Starred Review, said This beautifully written book deserves a wide audience that will benefit from discussing it.

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9780470590805

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Reviews

He bravely takes on the current political climate, and this book provides therapy for the American body politic. His insights are heart-deep: America gains by living with tension and differences; we can help reclaim public life by actions as simple as walking down the street instead of driving. Hope's hardly cheap, but history is made up of what Palmer calls 'a million invisible acts of courage and the incremental gains that came with them.' This beautifully written book deserves a wide audience that will benefit from discussing it. (Publishers Weekly, 8 August 2011)

He bravely takes on the current political climate, and this book provides therapy for the American body politic. His insights are heart-deep: America gains by living with tension and differences; we can help reclaim public life by actions as simple as walking down the street instead of driving. Hope's hardly cheap, but history is made up of what Palmer calls 'a million invisible acts of courage and the incremental gains that came with them.' This beautifully written book deserves a wide audience that will benefit from discussing it. (Publishers Weekly, 8 August 2011) Healing the Heart of Democracy is a hopeful book that lifts up and hallows the heart as a source of inner sight. Inspired by the efforts to understand and undergird democracy by Abraham Lincoln, Alexis de Tocqueville, Rosa Parks, and others; the author sends us on our way rejoicing with the small portion of hope that he has planted in our minds and souls. -Spirituality & Practice (http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/books.php?id=21525) There is a deep and disturbing cloud hanging over the United States. It is a malaise that is leading to cynicism and self-centeredness. The antidote is to be found in the healing of the heart of our democracy, so that we might emerge from this private focus to a public one, which recognizes our interdependence. I know of no better guide to discerning the problem and the solutions, than this book by Parker Palmer. It is a prophetic book, one that needs to be taken with all due seriousness, if we are to emerge from our malaise stronger and healthier than before. (Englewood Review of Books , 2011)

Author Information

Parker J. Palmer 's writing speaks deeply to people in many walks of life. Author of nine books-including the bestsellers The Courage to Teach, Let Your Life Speak , and A Hidden Wholeness -Palmer is the founder of the Center for Courage & Renewal. His work has been recognized with ten honorary doctorates and many national awards, including the 2010 William Rainey Harper Award, previously won by Margaret Mead, Paulo Freire, and Elie Wiesel.

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