Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A New York Times bestseller!

"We need Krista Tippett's voice and wisdom now more than ever. She has elevated the art of listening and the practice of being present in a way that is both accessible and soulful. Becoming Wise is what I've been waiting for . . . This is brilliant thinking, beautiful storytelling, and practical insight." --Brené Brown, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling author of Rising Strong

"A thoughtful chronicle of spiritual discovery. A hopeful consideration of the human potential for enlightenment." -- Kirkus Reviews

"I'm not sure there's such a thing as the cultural 'center,' nor that it's very interesting if it exists. But left of center and right of center, in the expansive middle and heart of our life together, most of us have some questions left alongside our answers, some curiosity alongside our convictions. This book is for people who want to take up the great questions of our time with imagination and courage, to nurture new realities in the spaces we inhabit, and to do so expectantly and with joy."

In Becoming Wise , Krista Tippett has created a master class in living for a fractured world. Fracture, she says, is not the whole story of our time. The enduring question of what it means to be human has become inextricable from the challenge of who we are to one another. She insists on the possibility of personal depth and common life for this century, nurtured by science and "spiritual technologies," with civility and love as muscular public practice. And, accompanied by a cross-disciplinary dream team of a teaching faculty, she shows us how.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

Artful listening is Tippett's (Einstein's God) trademark. Her mellifluous voice, adored by listeners of her radio program and podcast On Being, floats off the pages of this deftly woven collection of interviews. For over a decade, Tippett has interviewed "geniuses in the art of living": scientists, philosophers, poets, playwrights, theologians-anyone who delves deeply into what it means to be human. "I love the deep savvy about hope that religion tends," she writes, "its reverence for the undervalued virtue of beauty, its seriousness about the common human experience of mystery. Our spiritual lives are where we reckon head-on with the mystery of ourselves, and the mystery of each other." But this is not just a selection of greatest hits. Instead, rooted in Tippett's own keen insight, she provides an interlocking frame based on five themes: words, the body, love, faith, and hope. With dips into Tippett's childhood and early career, readers are embraced by her own struggle, vulnerability, and thirst for meaning. As researcher and TED-talk phenom Brené Brown told Tippett, "Hope is a function of struggle." Tippett's striving here is the grist for creative genius. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

Tippett, recipient of the National Humanities Medal and the host of the acclaimed NPR radio show On Being (originally called Speaking of Faith), is used to taking on the big questions and discussing them with some of the most influential voices in religion, philosophy, and science. This book focuses on turning elements of various spiritual traditions love, compassion, forgiveness, among them into actions. In turn, these actions are defined by words, each of which heads a chapter: flesh, love, faith, hope, and words. Pieces of Tippett's conversations about faith feature Reza Aslan, congressman and civil rights activist John Lewis, and author Eve Ensler, among many others, with heart-­lifting poetry and the author's musings infusing each chapter. These conversations and Tippett's writing throughout make for deep and thought-provoking reading. This is not another make-your-life-better how-to manual, of which there are far too many, but there are occasions where Tippett's rarefied language obscures rather than enlightens. Nevertheless, those willing to take the time to walk with Tippett and her fellow conversationalists will find much to ponder here.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2016 Booklist