Widening Circles: A Memoir »

In this absorbing, and sometimes thrilling memoir, well-known eco-philosopher, Buddhist scholar, and deep ecology activist /teacher Joanna Macy recounts her adventures of mind and spirit in the key social movements of our era. Macy's autobiography reads like a novel as she relates her multi-faceted life experiences and reflects on how her marriage and family life enriched her service to the world.

Macy's formative years with an abusive father and oppressed mother set her on an irrevocable path of self-definition and independence. A short-lived stint with the CIA exposed Macy first hand to the Cold War's darkest threats: the construction of the hydrogen bomb and the building of the Berlin Wall. With three children in tow, Macy and her husband traveled with the Peace Corps to Africa, India, and Tibet, where her encounter with the Dalai Lama and Buddhism led to Macy's life-long embrace of the religion and a deep commitment to the peace and environmental movements.

In Widening Circles, the unique synthesis of spiritualism and activism that define Macy's contribution to the world are illuminated by the life-events and experiences that have paved her uncommon path.

Joanna Macy has created an international following over her 20-year career and continues to be a tireless speaker and workshop leader (she is already scheduled for 30 national, international, and internet events in 2000). She is the author of seven previous books including Despair and Personal Empowerment in the Nuclear Age (New Society Publishers, 1983) and Coming Back To Life (New Society Publishers, 1998). She teaches in these San Francisco Bay area graduate schools: TheCalifornia Institute of Integral Studies, The Starr King School for Ministry, and The University of Creation Spirituality. Macy lives in Berkeley, California.