The Paradise Man according to Thomas Merton


Young Adult - Religious Theme
196 Pages
Reviewed on 08/04/2019
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

Author Biography

Author
Linhxuan Vu or Fr. Peter Dat Tien Vu, a priest and Cistercian monk graduated M.Div. (1983) and M.A. in Theology (1987) from Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology at Graduate Theologian Union in Berkeley, California. After some years being Sub-Novice Master at Thien Phuoc Cistercian Abbey in Vietnam, He served in Chaplain Team at Retreat House of Assumption Abbey in Ava, Missouri for 7 years. Recently he was assigned to initiate a Cistercian community in Aptos, Monterey, California since 2018.The book “The Paradise Man” began with a thesis written for Dat ’s M.A. degree in 1986 under the title: “The Recovery of Paradise : A Search for the Self according to Thomas Merton.” After graduation he stored the thesis in his book shelves. Twenty-five years later he drew the thesis out and reread pages, he said to himself “It is a sin against humanity if I continue wastefully to bury these important and useful thoughts of Thomas Merton in a book case!” Since then the book was soon developed from the fourth chapter of the thesis and published on October 16, 2018. It was also translated by himself into Vietnamese language with title “Nguoi Coi Dia Dang theo Thomas Merton” and published on August 14, 2017. Since publishing the book he feels loving life strangely and readers of his book also feel life full of joy and love because the world around us is truly a paradise as fresh as that of Adam and Eve.

    Book Review

Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

The Paradise Man According to Thomas Merton is a short work of religious discussion aimed at readers of all ages and was penned by author Linhxuan Vu. Taking the original concept of the biblical Garden of Eden, and the suffering of humanity since its leaving the garden, Vu re-explains the garden as a metaphor in modern life for the paradise we all seek inside ourselves. Written in part as a self-help guide through discovering one’s own faith in the Christian God, this work explains Thomas Merton’s philosophy of achieving paradise whilst living, but cutting away earthly ego-driven desires and opening ourselves to the goodness of God.

Written for readers in all walks of life, whether they are devout in their daily practices or not, author Linhxuan Vu approaches God from both a philosophical and devout lens, using the real-world realistic principles of Thomas Merton as a guide. The work is well organized with quotations to support the arguments of Merton and the explanations given by Vu, strengthening the concept with every passing chapter. The tone is both instructional and inspirational, attempting to evoke a sense that paradise is indeed a real feeling which can be achieved by living humans, through the toil of creating an ‘attitude of the heart’ and accepting God’s love into their lives. Overall, The Paradise Man According to Thomas Merton presents an intelligent meshing of modern and traditional takes on Christian devotion and belief, and would certainly be a useful read to anyone seeking comfort and the need to fill the emptiness in their lives.