- Hardcover: 384 pages
- Publisher: New World Library (Aug 10 2008)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1577316320
- ISBN-13: 978-1577316329
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 16.3 x 3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 703 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#208,193 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #20 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Travel
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
For his Ph.D. dissertation, Kull built a cabin in the Patagonian wilderness with the intention of studying the effect of deep wilderness solitude on a human being, and this account chronicles the tortures and gifts of a year spent in near-total isolation. Kull intersperses methodological and contextual chapters between the journal's month-by-month entries, and while these chapters are informative (describing a 'tradition' of solitaries and hermits, surveys of the various cultural understandings of solitude), they do little to alleviate the sound of one man worrying. Only when the author refrains from taking his mental, emotional and spiritual temperature, writing instead about his physical explorations and observations of the surrounding area, does the narrative achieves a sense of spaciousness and relief. Kull writes that he wants to encourage others... to welcome the darkness, difficulty, and fear, but it is when he himself does this that the resultant journal entries become relaxed, expansive and enlightening. He studies ducks that defend territory outside his cabin, tracks the slow movements of limpets and explores pristine inlets and a glacier; these episodes and the accompanying insights, however, may arrive too late for some readers. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
There are echoes of Jack London here. Echoes of Thoreau, too. . . . Very few of us will ever travel to the tip of Chile, let alone try to camp out there alone for a year. But what Bob really is writing about is a spiritual challenge as close as our own heartbeats. --David Crumm, ReadtheSpirit.com
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Most helpful customer reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ask yourself just one question: "Could I do what he did?" Then read this book . . .,,
By Oblio (CA, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Solitude: Seeking Wisdom in Extremes: a Year Alone in the Patagonia Wilderness (Hardcover)
"Solitude" is a truly inspiring story, a real-life account of a man who spent a year in complete solitude on a remote wilderness island in South America. His initial aim was to "find spiritual enlightenment" and to come back with answers he could share with others through books, lectures, and film. His book is a series of captivating journal entries, mixed with contemplative interludes, about his day to day struggles dealing with the often intense and wild weather, finding food, building shelter, his complicated relation with his only companion, a cat, and coming to terms with his inner demons -- without any of the usual social "crutches" available to distract him. Although he doesn't make a big deal of it, he achieved all of this with one leg! As soon as I got into the rhythm of his story, I did not want to leave it. I put everything else on hold, so as not to break the spell of reliving the tornado of pain, grief, peace, joy, and insight that flows from the pages of this gripping, evocative, and inspiring book. His writing is captivating because it is so honest, so authentic, so real, so human. Rarely, if ever, have I read such raw honesty. It takes real courage to express -- and even to read -- the full play of light and shadow in the human soul. He went into solitude for a year, to an isolated island off southern Chile, in search of answers (or The Answer). He was intent on finding a way to spiritual enlightenment, to discover deep insights that he could take back to the world, answers he could share that would make the business of living life a little easier for others. But this is not what happened. He did not find The Answer, except to realize over and over and over again that there are no answers. However, this is no "empty message" -- we learn, instead, that the emptiness of "no-answer" is the fullest answer of all. The integrity and spirit that shine from his writing will inform and inspire the rest of us who aim for spiritual enlightenment in the comfort of our homes, surrounded by friends and family. You don't have to abandon everything, pack up supplies, and head out into the wilds to discover the heights and the depths of the human spirit. Dr. Kull has done that for us. And he has returned to tell us that enlightenment is not an achievable end-state; rather, it is an ongoing process of opening to and accepting whatever shows up-inside and outside. Most of all, when you read "Solitude" you will realize, as Bob Kull has, that experiencing the richness of "ordinary" life is the most extraordinary achievement of all. Like the bestselling book and Oscar-nominated movie "Into the Wild," Bob Kull's story brings us face to face with a "search for wisdom in extremes." The main difference, though, is that Kull lived to tell the tale. And we should be grateful for that. If you want to know what it truly means to be human, I encourage you to read this remarkable book.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
solitude,
By
This review is from: Solitude: Seeking Wisdom in Extremes: a Year Alone in the Patagonia Wilderness (Hardcover)
I first heard of this book on CBC radio when the author was being interviewed about his year in solitude off the coast of Chile. I felt compelled to read this book perhaps because I was looking for enlightenment myself. Of course there is no enlightenment or meaning to life. As the author notes there is only this - Life is its own meaning. Nothing to get out of it, and nowhere to take anything to. The book was slow moving but had its moments. I enjoy true stories and found it interesting to read about the challenges and joys of living alone in the wilderness. I certainly won't be repeating the experiment myself. Good to be reminded that regardless of where we are we all need to take time rest and recuperate rather than always doing. Enjoy the experience of living.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Solitude,
By Tami Brady "TCM Reviewer" (Calgary, Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (HALL OF FAME) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Solitude: Seeking Wisdom in Extremes: a Year Alone in the Patagonia Wilderness (Hardcover)
In 2001, Robert Kull spent an entire year on a deserted island in not far from the Andes Mountains. He did so purposefully, as part of his Ph.D. research and in hopes of spiritual enlightenment. Solitude includes diary entries during that twelve month period with interludes written after the fact to give perspective on what was happening at the time.
It's an absolutely fascinating work. I can't remember how many times I've gotten frustrated at my chaotic life and thought that if only I were alone I could meditate and really get to the bare bones of why I am here and what I'm suppose to learn. Solitude shows that enlightenment doesn't follow our schedule. We can't pencil it in on Monday evening at ten and expect to suddenly be there. It happens when we are willing to let go of control, be mindful, and willing to go out of our comfort zone. Even in the middle of nowhere with no one to judge us (except ourselves, of course), no chaotic daily schedule, and no one else to take care of we'll still find things to fixate about so that we retain the illusion of control.
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