The Voice That Calls You Home: Inspiration for Life's Journeys »

Andrea Raynor received her Master of Divinity from Harvard Divinity School and served as a chaplain at Ground Zero after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. A cancer survivor herself, she now continues helping others through her hospice work. Raynor lives in Rye, New York.

A positive, affirming collection of essays that teaches how to understand and accept life’s darkest hours—The Voice That Calls You Home will improve the way you live each and every day.

Andrea Raynor has gained a keen perspective on the meaning of life and death, comfort and grief, as a hospice chaplain, a cancer survivor, and a chaplain at Ground Zero following September 11. In the heartfelt tradition of Anne Lamott and Kate Braestrup, she uses her own experiences to remind readers that even in the direst of circumstances, we still have the opportunity to recognize beauty, to be inspired by the tenacity of the human spirit, and to feel connected to something greater. We may not be able to prevent the difficulties that come in life, but we can always choose the way in which we face them.

Warm, personal, and practical, The Voice That Calls You Home is a compelling guide to appreciating the wondrous world we live in, offering wisdom on how we can bear our inevitable sorrows with a steady eye and a sense of hope, and find an increased connection between the spiritual and the everyday.

Publishers Weekly

Of the thousands of inspirational books published, it seems most revolve around the age-old question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Raynor’s work is no different. Instead of filling chapters with theological hand waving, however, Raynor, a graduate of Harvard Divinity School and a hospice chaplain, offers a simple solution. There is no good answer, she concludes, but we can soothe each other’s pain by simply sharing our own stories of grief. After an introductory chapter, the author proceeds to do just that. What follows is a triptych of personal essays categorized into first, her hospice experiences; second, taking the midnight shift as a chaplain at Ground Zero after September 11; and third, being diagnosed with breast cancer. Though there is no single message weaving through each chapter, Raynor emphasizes the strength of friendship and power of a listening ear. Readers will enjoy the author’s accessible and elegant prose as well as the power behind her personal encounters with grief. The book is not a theological tour de force, but never claims to be. Its simplicity is the strength behind its eloquent comfort. (Nov. 17)

Introduction 1

1 Holy Ground 9

2 Yankee Swap 17

3 Calabrese Sun 31

4 Seeing Leo 41

5 Zhivago 47

6 No Other Hands 55

7 Are You the One? 61

8 Girl in the Clouds 69

9 Getting There 81

10 Walking the Site Like God 91

11 Saving Anthony 97

12 The Morgue Calls 105

13 Mist and Vapor 111

14 Adam's Hand 115

15 Flags and Tags 121

16 Station 10-10 127

17 The Medical Examiner 131

18 May 6, 2002 137

19 Reentry 141

20 Living with Ghosts 153

21 Death of a Psychic 161

22 The Accident 179

23 Body and Spirit 189

24 For Jeanette 195

25 The Brave Test 203

26 The Straw Man 215

27 The Buzz Party 225

28 After 239

29 Angels and Ghosts 253

30 Allie-Allie-in-Come-Free 267

Acknowledgments 275