Scan barcode
A review by elibrooke
Simple Taoism: A Guide to Living in Balance by Annellen M. Simpkins, C. Alexander Simpkins
2.0
I've had this book for years, but never really got around to reading it straight through. I picked it up the other night because I had run out of anything new to read, and because I'm interested in delving into Tao and Zen right now.
I'm getting a lot better sense of the history of Taoism, from the classic texts and masters to the transformation into multiple religious sects, but the writing style leaves a lot to be desired. It's a very short book but I seem to have already abandoned it again in favor of texts it's led me to find. There are overviews/short introductions to various practices that grew out of Taoism as well, but I haven't read them yet and can't comment as such. Overall, I'd say it's useful as a broad introduction to the evolution of ideas and practices of Taoism, but only as an introduction.
I'm getting a lot better sense of the history of Taoism, from the classic texts and masters to the transformation into multiple religious sects, but the writing style leaves a lot to be desired. It's a very short book but I seem to have already abandoned it again in favor of texts it's led me to find. There are overviews/short introductions to various practices that grew out of Taoism as well, but I haven't read them yet and can't comment as such. Overall, I'd say it's useful as a broad introduction to the evolution of ideas and practices of Taoism, but only as an introduction.