Further Along the Road Less Traveled

October 4, 1993
Fans of psychiatrist Peck's bestselling The Road Less Traveled will enjoy this self-help sequel, a collection of edited lectures that offers a tough-minded, liberating guide to learning to live and die with dignity, creativity and meaning. Peck maps four distinct steps of spiritual growth. The first stage is exemplified by antisocial persons; in the second are those who depend on religious or other institutions for meaning in their lives; next are religiously skeptical truth-seekers; the fourth stage embraces ``mystical/communal'' people attuned to the interconnectedness of all things. At times sounding himself like a mystic, he urges readers to discover the meaning of their lives by confronting the mystery and inevitability of death; envisages God as a sexual being who endowed human lovemaking with a spiritual component; outlines his vision of heaven and hell; and fuses psychiatric insights with his highly personal approach to Christianity. He also critiques the New Age movement, explores myths as guiding metaphors for psycho-spiritual growth and plumbs the roots of addiction, guilt, blame, self-hate and self-acceptance. BOMC featured alternate; QPB alternate.

Scott Peck is a psychiatrist turned author and lecturer whose name is a household word with the self-help crowd. The Road Less Traveled is his original, classic work. BLAME & FORGIVENESS is one presentation from the spin-off lecture series, FURTHER ALONG THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED. In it, Peck reiterates his thesis that we all suffer from some degree of mental ill-health. Listeners who are unfamiliar with Peck's work may appreciate the offering, but Peck groupies will find it redundant, if not shallow. The presentation is consistently well-done. Peck reads with a soft, yet strong voice that is both self-assured and reassuring. D.W.K. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine