- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: The University of Alberta Press (Sep 21 2010)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0888645341
- ISBN-13: 978-0888645340
- Product Dimensions: 22.6 x 15.2 x 2.4 cm
- Shipping Weight: 522 g
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#215,215 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #71 in Books > Travel > Europe > Greece
- #76 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Orthodoxy
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"The slow recovery from the hubris of Western Civilization must include a reconsideration of Byzantine culture. Prodigal Daughter, with its perspective of personal exploration adds something new and different." John-Paul Himka, Professor in History and Classics, University of Alberta
"Myrna Kostash sets out to discover and explore the roots of Canadian-Ukrainian culture and religious essence in the ancient world of the Byzantine Empire. This brings her to a scholarly investigation of her own intricate linkage and debt to the world of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Prodigal Daughter is at one and the same time an anthropological, cultural, and religious quest on two levels: the personal, autobiographical and the wider sociological and cultural. It is both deeply spiritual and intellectually satisfying." Tom Harpur, author, journalist, TV host
"Part spiritual quest, part scholarly inquiry, part travel memoir, Prodigal Daughter is as richly layered as the civilization [Kostash] explores. A self-described secular humanist, Kostash nevertheless has a deep interest in the Orthodox Church, and the result is an intellectually vigorous study.... The journey itself, like many quests that writers undertake for self-examination and reflection, is more important than reaching conclusions.... The award-winning Kostash...weaves all of her themes of religion, Byzantine and Slavic history and the diversity of the Balkans into an engrossing and richly informative story." Cheryl Purdey, The Edmonton Journal, January 8, 2011
"...a travel memoir with a blend of creative non-fiction.... [H]ighly recommended." Midwest Book Review
http://ukietalks.com/site/news.php?extend.194
"Kostash gives an historical account of the way that Greeks, Bulgarians, Serbians and Macedonians have fought for possession of Demetrius. The writing is lively, told through interviews, mythological descriptions of the saint, and visits to ancient churches. But this is not the crux of Prodigal Daughter. The intellectual journey ends with the chapter 'Lord, have Mercy.' Talking to an icon painter, Kostash suddenly discovers that her quest is not intellectual, but spiritual. She wants transcendence; she wants to be moved by a force from outside herself. The second half of Prodigal Daughter explores this spiritual side of her journey.... [D]espite the richness of the old world, Kostash is not yet spiritually at home. Instead, it is in the moving epilogue that she brings her journey to conclusion." Jeff Stepnisky, New Trail, Winter 2011
"Myrna Kostash sets out to discover and explore the roots of Canadian-Ukrainian culture and religious essence in the ancient world of the Byzantine Empire. This brings her to a scholarly investigation of her own intricate linkage and debt to the world of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Prodigal Daughter is at one and the same time an anthropological, cultural, and religious quest on two levels: the personal, autobiographical and the wider sociological and cultural. It is both deeply spiritual and intellectually satisfying." Tom Harpur, author, journalist, TV host
"Part spiritual quest, part scholarly inquiry, part travel memoir, Prodigal Daughter is as richly layered as the civilization [Kostash] explores. A self-described secular humanist, Kostash nevertheless has a deep interest in the Orthodox Church, and the result is an intellectually vigorous study.... The journey itself, like many quests that writers undertake for self-examination and reflection, is more important than reaching conclusions.... The award-winning Kostash...weaves all of her themes of religion, Byzantine and Slavic history and the diversity of the Balkans into an engrossing and richly informative story." Cheryl Purdey, The Edmonton Journal, January 8, 2011
"...a travel memoir with a blend of creative non-fiction.... [H]ighly recommended." Midwest Book Review
http://ukietalks.com/site/news.php?extend.194
"Kostash gives an historical account of the way that Greeks, Bulgarians, Serbians and Macedonians have fought for possession of Demetrius. The writing is lively, told through interviews, mythological descriptions of the saint, and visits to ancient churches. But this is not the crux of Prodigal Daughter. The intellectual journey ends with the chapter 'Lord, have Mercy.' Talking to an icon painter, Kostash suddenly discovers that her quest is not intellectual, but spiritual. She wants transcendence; she wants to be moved by a force from outside herself. The second half of Prodigal Daughter explores this spiritual side of her journey.... [D]espite the richness of the old world, Kostash is not yet spiritually at home. Instead, it is in the moving epilogue that she brings her journey to conclusion." Jeff Stepnisky, New Trail, Winter 2011
Product Description
A deep-seated questioning of her inherited religion resurfaces when Myrna Kostash chances upon the icon of St. Demetrius of Thessalonica. A historical, cultural and spiritual odyssey that begins in Edmonton, ranges around the Balkans, and plunges into a renewed vision of Byzantium in search of the Great Saint of the East delivers the author to an unexpected place—the threshold of her childhood church. An epic work of travel memoir, Prodigal Daughter sings with immediacy and depth, rewarding readers with a profound sense of an adventure they have lived. This book will appeal to readers interested in Ukrainian-Canadian culture, the Eastern Church, and medieval history, as well as to fans of Kostash's bold creative nonfiction.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
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4.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
History, memoir and travelogue blend in a vivid personal journey of discovery, Dec 7 2010
By Midwest Book Review - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Prodigal Daughter: A Journey to Byzantium (Paperback)
PRODIGAL DAUGHTER: A JOURNEY TO BYZANTIUM provides a fine historic narrative of one woman's journey through the Balkans as she searches for the real Demetrius. Questioning her inherited religion, she embarks upon a personal and spiritual journey that begins in Canada and takes her to the Balkans. History, memoir and travelogue blend in a vivid personal journey of discovery.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty Good Read, Aug 28 2011
By Sterling Demchinsky "Slavco" - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Prodigal Daughter: A Journey to Byzantium (Paperback)
On the whole I enjoyed this book because of Kostash's folksy telling of her discoveries in Eastern Europe. However, make no mistake that this is a serious book of history because it isn't. She made one mistake in saying that St. Olga was St. Vladamir's mother (actually, she was his grandmother) and whenever I find one historical error I begin to wonder about how well the research really was. This is the telling of a very personal journey for Kostash and, if you don't take it as such, it could be disappointing. She interviews a lot of people and gets a wide spectrum of interesting views. Sometimes the interviews are more entertaining than informative and clearly some of the people that she interviews do not know what they are talking about regardless of how impassioned they may be. However, this is surely deliberate on her part, as doubtless the entertainment factor is as important to Kostash as the history and theology of the Byzantine world.Sterling
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