As a child in Montreal, Emily Esfahani Smith was accustomed to spiritual seekers. They filled her parents' living room twice a week, gathering to drink tea, meditate and deepen their practice of Sufism, the mystical expression of Islam. After her family moved to the U.S. and she began to study philosophy, Smith started exploring other ways of pursuing a meaningful life, but she never forgot the Sufi seekers and their warm, joyous practice of mohabbat (loving-kindness).
Disillusioned with the typical Western markers of success--career ambition, wealth and status--Smith began asking how people could truly pursue a life of meaning, beyond external symbols of achievement. She identified four "pillars" that can provide the stabilizing structure for a meaningful life: belonging, purpose, storytelling and transcendence. In her first nonfiction book, The Power of Meaning, Smith explores these pillars, sharing scientific data and individual stories to illustrate their importance.
She writes in a brisk, accessible style, weaving together psychological studies and anecdotes from researchers, ministers, trauma survivors and other people concerned with this line of thinking. She visits and explores "cultures of meaning" such as churches, veterans' communities and even the Society for Creative Anachronism, whose members share a common interest in medieval life and practices. In each chapter, Smith asks how people can foster cultures of meaning in their families, workplaces and other communities.
Part memoir, part observant field guide, The Power of Meaning is a refreshing contrast to the cultural obsession with personal happiness. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams