The author, who traces her personal history to ancient Babylon and a lineage of healers, has undertaken a four-year course of study at the shamanic school conducted by Lynn V. Andrews. This book is the second in a four-part series. At the beginning of her second year of study with Andrews, Namou recounts her husband’s tortuous path to become a US resident and the anxieties that result from that process. All the while, she’s a full-time mother/housewife dedicating all her spare time to completing a book and finding a publisher—a seemingly impossible goal at times. According to Andrews’ shamanic wisdom, Namou must learn patience to deal with the constant pulls on her energies. Contacting Andrews mainly by conference call with other students serves to keep her hopeful and offers lessons about gathering her inner resources. By the end of this fascinating year, supported by shamanic wisdom, she has completed her writing project and has the promise of publication.

With an engaging writing style, award-winning Namou subtly draws the reader into her memoir-cum-spiritual guidebook. Women particularly will identify with her many woes—in-law troubles, little time for herself, and assisting with an aging, ailing mother. The book jumps back and forth in time and place, from her childhood in Iraq to her current problems in America, at a pace at times a bit dizzying. But there is a unifying thread in the strength and understanding the author is gaining to handle her problems by transmuting them to an etheric realm where visions, dreams, signs, and symbols both console and energize her. Offering an intriguing look at unusual, exotic forms of healing and self-help, Namou’s exploration of her shamanic journey may serve to guide others to the same enriching possibilities.

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