About the Book
A spiritual memoir and travelogue, God through Binoculars: A Hitchhiker at a Monastery is about where you go when you have nowhere left to go. After a difficult childhood and a series of tragedies and misfortunes, author Danusha Goska finds herself without hope for the future. Supported by her passion for travel and discovery, as well as her commitment to Catholicism, Goska decides on a retreat at a remote Cistercian monastery. What results is a story about family, friends, nature, and God; the Ivory Tower and the Catholic Church. God through Binoculars is utterly naked and, at times, politically incorrect. Some readers will be shocked. Others will be thrilled and refreshed by its candor, immediacy, and intimacy. Her previous, highly-rated book, Save Send Delete, was enormously well-received, and readers will find that Goska's ability to tell a masterful story with a powerful message continues in God through Binoculars.
About the Author :
Danusha Goska was born in New Jersey to peasant immigrants from Poland and Slovakia. Her grandfathers were coal miners. Her dad mined coal as a child and fought in the Pacific Theater in World War II. Her mom cleaned houses and worked in a candle factory. Danusha has lived and worked in Africa, Asia, Europe, on both coasts, and in the heartland, of the US. She holds an MA from the University at California, Berkeley, and a PhD from Indiana University, Bloomington. Her writing has been awarded a New Jersey State Council on the Arts Grant, the PAHA Halecki Award, and others. Reviewers have called her work "inspirational" and "groundbreaking." Her book Save Send Delete was inspired by her relationship with a prominent atheist. Julie Davis, author of Happy Catholic, called Save Send Delete one of the ten best books of the year.
Review :
"A witty, provocative, and thoroughly engaging memoir about the difficulties of faith, the complexities of love, and the consolations often found in nature. Whether she's writing about hyenas or jihad, hitchhiking or the perils of political correctness, Goska is always interesting. I loved this book!"
-- Daiva Markelis, author, White Field, Black Sheep: A Lithuanian-American Life
"As unsparing as it is tender, this book is a high-octane lyric meditation by a larger-than-life soul. Amid a multitude of coincidences, controversies, and calamities, the reader is invited to laugh, grieve, ponder, take exception, and especially, take heart."
-- Claire Bateman, author, Locals: A Collection of Prose Poems; grant recipient, National Endowment for the Arts
"The great books about spiritual journeys never give you easy answers. They don't say 'Do these ten things and you will find peace or faith or salvation.' Goska knows this truth. She has lived this truth. As you read her beautifully written, witty, and inspiring book, you will find yourself not only following her journey, you will find yourself living your own journey."
-- John Guzlowski, author and Montaigne Medal recipient, Echoes of Tattered Tongues: Memory Unfolded
"A moving, inspiring, heartfelt expression of love, pain, and healing, skillfully written with equal amounts of grace and compassion."
-- Larry Dossey, physician and author, One Mind
