Wonderland

August 10, 2009
In this short book Silberberg weaves snippets from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
with personal anecdotes, classic Buddhist sutras, koans and popular culture to illustrate Zen approaches to the true nature of enlightenment: “When we get to the other shore, to what I am calling Wonderland, we may experience One Mind.” Rather than using Zen to explain Alice
, Silberberg playfully mingles, for example, the upside-down logic of the Caterpillar and Mock Turtle with the wisdom of the Diamond Sutra to explain key ideas. A longtime practitioner and former vice abbot of the Kanzeon Zen Center in Utah, the author is adept at explaining Buddhist teachings and ideas, such as the causes of suffering and Siddhartha's search for the truth of existence. Silberberg's description of the Zen path demonstrates more rigor than gentleness, reflecting a “warrior” approach to the search for knowledge that isn't present in all forms of this Eastern philosophy; indeed, a little more clarification about which approaches are specifically Zen among the range of Buddhist practices would have been helpful for the novice. While the Alice
analogies are thin, Silberberg's clear writing and in-depth knowledge of his subject make this addition to the “Zen of” genre engaging.

October 15, 2009
In his first book, Silberberg, a Zen teacher and practicing psychologist and counselor, gives a good, brief introduction to Zen practice by drawing on ideas he finds in Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". For example, he finds something koanlike in pieces of the narrative that shake up our ways of thinking and foster new insights. To make religion or philosophy more relevant, practitioners have written many works associating philosophy or religion with popular culture, e.g., Benjamin Hoff's "The Tao of Pooh", Open Court's "Popular Culture & Philosophy" series, and the University Press of Kentucky's "Philosophy of Culture" titles. Silberberg writes clearly and with humor and intelligence, but he has a tendency to exhibit a smug certitude that some readers may find irritating. Small criticisms aside, Silberberg puts forth many valuable ideas. VERDICT Readers with some general acquaintance with Zen or other spiritual practices will find this an accessible introduction, but the lack of information on basics like sitting posture, breathing, and receptivity may puzzle those with no prior knowledge.James F. DeRoche, Alexandria, VA

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