The Lotus

A Vietnamese family is forced to flee from their homeland to escape a devastating civil war.

In this compelling, emotionally engaging novel set in 1880, a half-Chinese girl and her white father try to make a home in Dakota Territory, in the face of racism and resistance.

Since childhood, Emily Clements’ sense of self had always been shaped by the opinions of others and the need to be liked. When a stand-off with her best friend sees nineteen-year-old Emily stranded in Vietnam, she is alone for the first time and adrift in a new environment. With seemingly nothing to lose, she makes the biggest decision of her life – to stay. But Emily's attempts to bridge a yawning loneliness spur a downward spiral of recklessness, as she hurtles from one sexual encounter to the next. It will take a truly terrifying experience for her to understand that sex is both a weapon and a wound in her battle for self-worth and empowerment. Delicately interweaving past and present, The Lotus Eaters is a sharply written story of self-redemption from an exciting young voice in Australian memoir that dissects the patterns of blame and shame women can form around their bodies and relationships.

Although unable to speak or hear, lovely Lotus learns to perform the intricate story dances of the Cambodian court ballet.

A captivating history of one of the world's most iconic and mysterious flowers Bewitched by a lotus which flowered from three-thousandyear- old seeds in his English garden, Mark Griffiths set out to track the origins and significance of this sublime plant in this beautifully-illustrated book. The Lotus Quest takes Griffiths from the headquarters of the Linnaean Society in London to a mountain top in northern Japan. As he travels in search of this ancient flower, Griffiths looks at the lotus's significance in ancient Egypt and India, the plant's medicinal uses and the inspiration it has provided to Western artists. As he tracks the plant, its story unveils a stunning vision of Japan's feudal era with visits to shrines, ruins, gardens and wild landscapes as well as meetings with priests and archaeologists, philosophers and anthropologists, gardeners and botanists, poets and artists. He even dines on the lotus in a Tokyo cafe. By the end of Griffiths' journey, when he reaches the hauntingly beautiful Japanese temple of Chuson-ji, readers will finally understand why the lotus has obsessed people throughout the ages.

Drawing on a deep knowledge of Christian scripture as well as Hindu philosophy, musician and teacher Russill Paul reveals that the mystical core of religion offers us much more than the simple solace of unthinking dogma. By demonstrating that these two seemingly separate and irreconcilable religions can actually unite in one person’s spiritual practice at the center of his life — as they did in his — he offers an alternative to religious intolerance and strife, as well as hope for personal liberation.

An inspirational picture book of sacred art - Byzantine and Buddhist Icons painted by Carol Adams - with quotes from Bob Moore, Eckhart Tolle, Rumi, Thich Nhat Hanh and Herman Hesse. The paintings are a blessing and hold an energy field of peace to enjoy and inspire Peace on Earth.