193 - A New Earth; Eckhart Tolle

I have been listening to A New Earth, by Eckhart Tolle, for the last two weeks each night before I fell asleep. I must admit, I was a little skeptical about this book, but I found it very soothing and relaxing at bedtime. The first chapter drew me in immediately. When I was finished, it really made me think about the concepts, and how I could immediate apply these concepts to my personal situation.

The audio book is read by the author, and is about 8-9 hours of listening time. This book was originally released in 2005, but has become an overnight sensation thanks largely to Oprah's enthusiastic endorsement. In fact, Oprah has hosted a 10-week web based course conducted by Tolle; some two million students participated.

According to the author, The key to more joy and purpose is by living in the present moment. Rather, “being” in the present moment. This is accomplished by slowly dismantling the "ego". Many authors have written about the desirability of living “in the Now,” but few have laid out such a clear method that one can understand. The chapters are as follows:

• Chapter 1: The Flowering of Human Consciousness
• Chapter 2: Ego: The Current State of Humanity
• Chapter 3: The Core of Ego
• Chapter 4: Role-playing: The Many Faces of the Ego
• Chapter 5: The Pain-Body
• Chapter 6: Breaking Free
• Chapter 7: Finding Who You Truly Are
• Chapter 8: The Discovery of Inner Space
• Chapter 9: Your Inner Purpose
• Chapter 10: A New Earth

Although I really enjoyed listening to this book, I did find that some of the information seemed to be repeated a lot, but perhaps that was to reinforce the message. As an audio book, some of the concepts were a bit difficult to grasp and retain, so for the serious reader who wants to absorb every detail of Tolle's message, I would suggest getting the paperback copy as well to refer to.

This book is highly recommended.

RATING - 4.5/5 - COMPLETED - 11/29/08