ISBN: 1-931816-03-4
ISBN 13: 978-1-931816-03-8
$14.95,  $12.71 Online Price
 128 main text, 144 total pages
(Quality paperback)

BRONZE AWARD, BEST NON-FICTION, and
BEST SPIRITUAL BOOK AWARDS for 2004-2005
 from Northern California Publishers & Authors Assn.

Open the Heart of Self-Discovery through the lives and profound works of Henry David Thoreau and Walt Whitman

Henry David Thoreau and Walt Whitman were great American writers of the 19th century. But did you know that they were also mystics? Mysticism in American Literature: Thoreau's Quest and Whitman's Self  by Paul Hourihan focuses on the mysticism in the lives and major writings of Henry David Thoreau and Walt Whitman. It explains notable passages that have eluded many of us from Thoreau's classic, Walden, and Walt Whitman's ground-breaking poem, "Song of Myself" from his Leaves of Grass.

This study shows how their significant works were inspired by their spiritual revelations and struggles. It discusses reasons for Thoreau's long depression after the publication of Walden. It also compares the very different approaches that each of these Transcendentalists  took to reach their spiritual achievements.

Only from a mystical interpretation of their lives and writings can we truly discover the deeper message these two literary mystics have to offer us.

By sharing with these remarkable men of letters their wisdom and strengths as well as their faults, and failings, our own evolution advances. This book serves to open the heart of self-discovery for readers seeking their own enlightenment.

As Dr. Chari states in the Foreword:

"At a time like this, Dr. Hourihan performs a valuable service by his courageous reaffirmation of what is of permanent value in the lives and works of two of the most original minds in American literature."

Paul Hourihan, who had a Ph.D. in American literature, and 25 years teaching and writing in the field of mystical studies, combines his lifelong passion for literature and mysticism to give us an insightful look into the lives of two of America's own celebrated mystical writers of the 19th century.

Winner of 2004 Editor's Choice Award from Allbooks Reviews for their Literary category.
Recommended for religious collections by Library Journal (May 1/04 review).

Excerpt:

"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away."

This again is Thoreau to the life, a principle he followed not only at Walden but through his whole career. The mystic hears a secret music and obeys rhythms of his own. Gradually the music increases, the rhythms get stronger, and the inner symphony takes shape. But at the same time we cease to hear the music which our contemporaries are calling the truth.... More excerpts.