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A Point in Time: The Search for Redemption in This Life and the Next
A Matter of Life and Death
New York Times bestselling author David Horowitz is famous for his conversion from 1960s radicalism. In A Point in Time, his lyrical yet startling new book, he offers meditations on an even deeper conversion, one which touches on the very essence of every human life.
Part memoir and part philosophical reflection, A Point in Time focuses on man’s inevitable search for meaning—and how for those without religious belief, that search often leads to a faith in historical progress, one that is bound to disappoint. Horowitz agrees with Marcus Aurelius, whose stoic philosophy provides a focal point for the book, “He who has seen present things has seen all, both everything that has taken place from all eternity and everything that will be for time without end.…”
Horowitz remembers his father, a political radical who put his faith in just such a redemptive future. He examines this hope through the other great figure who organizes these reflections, the Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky, whose writings foreshadowed the great tragedies of the social revolutions to come. Horowitz draws on eternal themes: the need we have to make sense out of the lives we have been given, our desire to repair the injustices we encounter, and the consequences of our mortality.
Interweaving episodes of his own life with the writings of the philosopher and the novelist, Horowitz explores how we provide meaning to an apparently senseless existence and the dire consequences that follow from seeking to redeem it by attempting to make a perfect world out of the imperfect one in which we find ourselves.
Praise for
A POINT IN TIME
“David Horowitz is so powerful a polemicist that it is often forgotten how beautifully he writes. For the same reason, the deeply considered philosophical perspective and the wide-ranging erudition underlying his political passions are just as often overlooked. But it is precisely these qualities that come to the fore and shine through so brilliantly in the linked meditations that make up A Point in Time. With Marcus Aurelius, Ecclesiastes, and Dostoevsky as its guides, this little book boldly ventures into an exploration of first things and last that is as moving as it is profound.”
—NORMAN PODHORETZ, author of Why Are Jews Liberals?
“A beautiful book, both sad and uplifting. Moving in turns from the intimate to the universal, Horowitz not only explores but also embodies the dignity of the tragic worldview. A Point in Time is a poignant and elegiac reflection on life from a man who bears the burden of unknowing with courage and grace.”
—ANDREW KLAVAN, author of True Crime and Empire of Lies
“Emulating Marcus Aurelius, David Horowitz has produced a meditation on facing death that is poignant and wise. Whether invoking the Stoics or reflecting on his own father, he helps us think through that most basic of all questions: what is it that can give meaning to our existence?”
—WALTER ISAACSON, author of Einstein
“I have admired David Horowitz for decades. He has taught me many important lessons. But never have I been so moved by his writing as I am by this brief and profound book.”
—DENNIS PRAGER, author of Why the Jews?
New York Times bestselling author David Horowitz is famous for his conversion from 1960s radicalism. In A Point in Time, his lyrical yet startling new book, he offers meditations on an even deeper conversion, one which touches on the very essence of every human life.
Part memoir and part philosophical reflection, A Point in Time focuses on man’s inevitable search for meaning—and how for those without religious belief, that search often leads to a faith in historical progress, one that is bound to disappoint. Horowitz agrees with Marcus Aurelius, whose stoic philosophy provides a focal point for the book, “He who has seen present things has seen all, both everything that has taken place from all eternity and everything that will be for time without end.…”
Horowitz remembers his father, a political radical who put his faith in just such a redemptive future. He examines this hope through the other great figure who organizes these reflections, the Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky, whose writings foreshadowed the great tragedies of the social revolutions to come. Horowitz draws on eternal themes: the need we have to make sense out of the lives we have been given, our desire to repair the injustices we encounter, and the consequences of our mortality.
Interweaving episodes of his own life with the writings of the philosopher and the novelist, Horowitz explores how we provide meaning to an apparently senseless existence and the dire consequences that follow from seeking to redeem it by attempting to make a perfect world out of the imperfect one in which we find ourselves.
Praise for
A POINT IN TIME
“David Horowitz is so powerful a polemicist that it is often forgotten how beautifully he writes. For the same reason, the deeply considered philosophical perspective and the wide-ranging erudition underlying his political passions are just as often overlooked. But it is precisely these qualities that come to the fore and shine through so brilliantly in the linked meditations that make up A Point in Time. With Marcus Aurelius, Ecclesiastes, and Dostoevsky as its guides, this little book boldly ventures into an exploration of first things and last that is as moving as it is profound.”
—NORMAN PODHORETZ, author of Why Are Jews Liberals?
“A beautiful book, both sad and uplifting. Moving in turns from the intimate to the universal, Horowitz not only explores but also embodies the dignity of the tragic worldview. A Point in Time is a poignant and elegiac reflection on life from a man who bears the burden of unknowing with courage and grace.”
—ANDREW KLAVAN, author of True Crime and Empire of Lies
“Emulating Marcus Aurelius, David Horowitz has produced a meditation on facing death that is poignant and wise. Whether invoking the Stoics or reflecting on his own father, he helps us think through that most basic of all questions: what is it that can give meaning to our existence?”
—WALTER ISAACSON, author of Einstein
“I have admired David Horowitz for decades. He has taught me many important lessons. But never have I been so moved by his writing as I am by this brief and profound book.”
—DENNIS PRAGER, author of Why the Jews?
128 pages, Hardcover
First published August 29, 2011
20 people are currently reading
150 people want to read
About the author
David Horowitz
191 books334 followersDavid Joel Horowitz was an American conservative writer and activist. He was a founder and president of the David Horowitz Freedom Center (DHFC); editor of the Center's website FrontPage Magazine; and director of Discover the Networks, a website that tracks individuals and groups on the political left. Horowitz also founded the organization Students for Academic Freedom.
Horowitz wrote several books with author Peter Collier, including four on prominent 20th-century American families. He and Collier have collaborated on books about cultural criticism. Horowitz worked as a columnist for Salon.
From 1956 to 1975, Horowitz was an outspoken adherent of the New Left. He later rejected progressive ideas and became a defender of neoconservatism. Horowitz recounted his ideological journey in a series of retrospective books, culminating with his 1996 memoir Radical Son: A Generational Odyssey.
Horowitz wrote several books with author Peter Collier, including four on prominent 20th-century American families. He and Collier have collaborated on books about cultural criticism. Horowitz worked as a columnist for Salon.
From 1956 to 1975, Horowitz was an outspoken adherent of the New Left. He later rejected progressive ideas and became a defender of neoconservatism. Horowitz recounted his ideological journey in a series of retrospective books, culminating with his 1996 memoir Radical Son: A Generational Odyssey.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
November 21, 2014
Reading David Horowitz's "A Point in Time: The Search for Redemption in this Life and the Next" is like taking an autumn stroll with a gray-haired elder encountered at a family reunion. You were expecting his usual social, political, and economic rants that sometimes alienated you, and sometimes frightened you. Sometimes you saw some shaft of insight in his words, an insight you defiantly resisted because his worldview was so different from your own. You see the world through rose-colored glasses of universal brotherhood and a brighter tomorrow. This guy insistently reminded you of failed utopias.
Before you set out on your stroll, though, he made sure to bring his three pooches along. The tenderness he showed the dogs gives you pause. You realized that as different as you are in age and worldview, you both love dogs.
As you step out into the gray light, suddenly crepuscular so early in the afternoon, the elder speaks. You're used to clipped who-what-when-where-why-style headlines. Today the rhythm and care of poetry shimmers just under the surface of his prose.
He's talking about death. Well, yes, that would make sense; he is a septuagenarian. He has had a cancer scare and one of his children has pre-deceased him.
You slow your steps and listen. His words seem, like the moldering leaves, fading light, and the migrating geese overhead, to be arising organically out of the autumnal scene. You'll be pondering what you hear today for a long time.
"A Point in Time" is a meditation on death and mortality, morality, religious faith, and the Utopian urge. Horowitz uses Marcus Aurelius' and Fyodor Dostoyevsky's works as touchstones.
Horowitz's parents had been members of the American Communist Party. Horowitz himself was close to the Black Panthers. In 1974 their bookkeeper, Betty Van Patter, was murdered. Horowitz was convinced that the Panthers were responsible. In 1985, Horowitz completely and publicly broke with the left. My former comrades spoke of Horowitz as if he were the devil incarnate.
I went to heckle Horowitz ten years ago. He said something that silenced me, and that I pondered repeatedly: Camden, Newark, and Paterson have had Democratic leadership for decades. I grew up among people who vividly remember Newark and Paterson as thriving, even enviable cities. That they are now slums breaks many New Jerseyians hearts. Horowitz's comment was a significant paving stone in my own turn away from the left.
Even so I did not expect a book like "A Point in Time" from Horowitz. It is meditative, serene, and stoic. It is not a Christian book, but it treats Christianity and its impact with respect.
Horowitz talks about death using dogs, pet ownership, homes, and writing. Dogs live for about a decade, much shorter than the average human lifespan. We must watch our beloved four-footed friends age and die at a more rapid rate than our own. Homes are our carapace. We experience them almost as extensions of ourselves, renovating them with a sense that our lives might go on forever. Moving into, and then out of a home, also reminds us of mortality.
Horowitz's daughter Sarah was a writer who never married. She died relatively young, and having published relatively little. Horowitz contemplates her one bedroom apartment, and her writings, her most significant material legacy. Medical diagnoses, too, remind us of mortality. If we go on living long enough, eventually we will get cancer, or diabetes, or something. We will fight the illness as long as we can. We lose the fight in increments, as Horowitz has in the amount of walking he can do before fatigue reels him back home.
We turn to bookcases. Marcus Aurelius provides a stoic model; Dostoyevsky a Christian one. Horowitz's selection of quotes from Dostoyevsky convinces me that I need to read more of him, or at least about him. The quotes Horowitz selects are stunningly apropos to American college campuses today. Horowitz positions Dostoyevsky as the antidote to atheist nihilists and Utopians.
Horowitz considers faith, but acknowledges that he is an agnostic. He briefly describes a few unspeakable crimes from current headlines. With a few spare sentences, he describes the kind of sadism that occurs every day. How do we believe in God in a world in which not just children, but even dogs, are subject to cruel and meaningless tortures? If God is omnipotent, how do we avoid assigning responsibility to God for horrible events?
Rejection of God has been for many a sort of religion of its own. Horowitz's father did not believe in God, but he did have a myth and a telos. "When he read his morning paper it was not to gather tidings of events that actually affected him – prices rising, weather brewing, wars approaching – but to parse the script of a global drama that would one day bring history and its miseries to an end."
Similarly, Dostoyevsky's fellow conspirator Nikolay Speshnev said that his political hope "is also a religion only a different one. It makes a divinity out of a new and different object, but there is nothing new about the deification itself." The difference between Dostoyevsky and men like Speshnev is acted out on college campuses in America every day, and on the international stage. Dostoyevsky describes how radicals justify "wading through blood." One need only look to the former cradle of civilization to find examples.
The book's intimacy is typified by a lovely passage on page 22. Horowitz lays awake at night, "haunted by reflections of death." Kissing his wife, or petting "the small bodies curled like furry slippers at my feet" provides him with a reprieve from "this emptiness."
Two final notes: I felt a little wince on page 119 when Horowitz identified Poland only as a country that harbors antisemitism. I hope Horowitz will read my own book and discover Poland as much more than that. And I love the book's cover by Bosch Fawstin. It depicts the scene at Dostoyevsky's mock execution by czarist police.
Before you set out on your stroll, though, he made sure to bring his three pooches along. The tenderness he showed the dogs gives you pause. You realized that as different as you are in age and worldview, you both love dogs.
As you step out into the gray light, suddenly crepuscular so early in the afternoon, the elder speaks. You're used to clipped who-what-when-where-why-style headlines. Today the rhythm and care of poetry shimmers just under the surface of his prose.
He's talking about death. Well, yes, that would make sense; he is a septuagenarian. He has had a cancer scare and one of his children has pre-deceased him.
You slow your steps and listen. His words seem, like the moldering leaves, fading light, and the migrating geese overhead, to be arising organically out of the autumnal scene. You'll be pondering what you hear today for a long time.
"A Point in Time" is a meditation on death and mortality, morality, religious faith, and the Utopian urge. Horowitz uses Marcus Aurelius' and Fyodor Dostoyevsky's works as touchstones.
Horowitz's parents had been members of the American Communist Party. Horowitz himself was close to the Black Panthers. In 1974 their bookkeeper, Betty Van Patter, was murdered. Horowitz was convinced that the Panthers were responsible. In 1985, Horowitz completely and publicly broke with the left. My former comrades spoke of Horowitz as if he were the devil incarnate.
I went to heckle Horowitz ten years ago. He said something that silenced me, and that I pondered repeatedly: Camden, Newark, and Paterson have had Democratic leadership for decades. I grew up among people who vividly remember Newark and Paterson as thriving, even enviable cities. That they are now slums breaks many New Jerseyians hearts. Horowitz's comment was a significant paving stone in my own turn away from the left.
Even so I did not expect a book like "A Point in Time" from Horowitz. It is meditative, serene, and stoic. It is not a Christian book, but it treats Christianity and its impact with respect.
Horowitz talks about death using dogs, pet ownership, homes, and writing. Dogs live for about a decade, much shorter than the average human lifespan. We must watch our beloved four-footed friends age and die at a more rapid rate than our own. Homes are our carapace. We experience them almost as extensions of ourselves, renovating them with a sense that our lives might go on forever. Moving into, and then out of a home, also reminds us of mortality.
Horowitz's daughter Sarah was a writer who never married. She died relatively young, and having published relatively little. Horowitz contemplates her one bedroom apartment, and her writings, her most significant material legacy. Medical diagnoses, too, remind us of mortality. If we go on living long enough, eventually we will get cancer, or diabetes, or something. We will fight the illness as long as we can. We lose the fight in increments, as Horowitz has in the amount of walking he can do before fatigue reels him back home.
We turn to bookcases. Marcus Aurelius provides a stoic model; Dostoyevsky a Christian one. Horowitz's selection of quotes from Dostoyevsky convinces me that I need to read more of him, or at least about him. The quotes Horowitz selects are stunningly apropos to American college campuses today. Horowitz positions Dostoyevsky as the antidote to atheist nihilists and Utopians.
Horowitz considers faith, but acknowledges that he is an agnostic. He briefly describes a few unspeakable crimes from current headlines. With a few spare sentences, he describes the kind of sadism that occurs every day. How do we believe in God in a world in which not just children, but even dogs, are subject to cruel and meaningless tortures? If God is omnipotent, how do we avoid assigning responsibility to God for horrible events?
Rejection of God has been for many a sort of religion of its own. Horowitz's father did not believe in God, but he did have a myth and a telos. "When he read his morning paper it was not to gather tidings of events that actually affected him – prices rising, weather brewing, wars approaching – but to parse the script of a global drama that would one day bring history and its miseries to an end."
Similarly, Dostoyevsky's fellow conspirator Nikolay Speshnev said that his political hope "is also a religion only a different one. It makes a divinity out of a new and different object, but there is nothing new about the deification itself." The difference between Dostoyevsky and men like Speshnev is acted out on college campuses in America every day, and on the international stage. Dostoyevsky describes how radicals justify "wading through blood." One need only look to the former cradle of civilization to find examples.
The book's intimacy is typified by a lovely passage on page 22. Horowitz lays awake at night, "haunted by reflections of death." Kissing his wife, or petting "the small bodies curled like furry slippers at my feet" provides him with a reprieve from "this emptiness."
Two final notes: I felt a little wince on page 119 when Horowitz identified Poland only as a country that harbors antisemitism. I hope Horowitz will read my own book and discover Poland as much more than that. And I love the book's cover by Bosch Fawstin. It depicts the scene at Dostoyevsky's mock execution by czarist police.
February 26, 2012
A Big Change of Pace for Horowitz
David Horowitz is best known as a fearless in-your-face political brawler. He will literally go anywhere to debate anyone about any political topic - the more strident the opponent, the better he seems to like it. My local news and talk station interviews Horowitz once a week and I have heard a great deal of those interviews over the years. Horowitz is a formidable debater - a partisan of the first rank. To be honest, it never occurred to me that Horowitz had another gear (which, of course, is silly - we all have other interests) so when I read the description of this short book I knew I had to check it out.
In A Point in Time: The Search for Redemption in This Life and the Next, Horowitz waxes philosophical on time, how things change in this world (or more properly, how nothing ever seems to change), the way dogs live their lives compared to the way people live their lives, the paradox of the fragility and strength of horses, how out history is not really "going" anywhere and how living in a world with no faith at all is worse than living in a world with follower that follow their faiths imperfectly...
Read more at: http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/2011/...
David Horowitz is best known as a fearless in-your-face political brawler. He will literally go anywhere to debate anyone about any political topic - the more strident the opponent, the better he seems to like it. My local news and talk station interviews Horowitz once a week and I have heard a great deal of those interviews over the years. Horowitz is a formidable debater - a partisan of the first rank. To be honest, it never occurred to me that Horowitz had another gear (which, of course, is silly - we all have other interests) so when I read the description of this short book I knew I had to check it out.
In A Point in Time: The Search for Redemption in This Life and the Next, Horowitz waxes philosophical on time, how things change in this world (or more properly, how nothing ever seems to change), the way dogs live their lives compared to the way people live their lives, the paradox of the fragility and strength of horses, how out history is not really "going" anywhere and how living in a world with no faith at all is worse than living in a world with follower that follow their faiths imperfectly...
Read more at: http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/2011/...
September 5, 2017
Raised as a red diaper baby, Horowitz did a 180 in adulthood and rejected his father's belief in atheism and communism. In this book, Horowitz meditates on the possible meaning of life. In trying to make sense of life, he spends time meditating on the writings of Marcus Aurelius and Dostoyevsky, taking walks, communing with pets, and wondering about his daughter's untimely death. Redemption and utopia are not to be found in the confines of mortality. Belief in God and immortality offer humanity hope in a cruel, seemingly meaningless world.
November 20, 2022
I suppose this guy is realistic... but also way more gloomy than me. I'm glad I don't write down my depressing, rambling thoughts for other people to read.
"We are not built to last, and that age itself is a disease that overtakes us all"
"We take our worlds for granted and assume they will continue indefinitely. We create our families and plot our bloodlines as though they will go on and on, and when we bury our dead, we promise to remember them forever, although it is a promise we know we cannot keep."
"We are not built to last, and that age itself is a disease that overtakes us all"
"We take our worlds for granted and assume they will continue indefinitely. We create our families and plot our bloodlines as though they will go on and on, and when we bury our dead, we promise to remember them forever, although it is a promise we know we cannot keep."
December 14, 2016
Such a pleasure to read
One of the few books whose ending I dreaded. Though short, it's dives quickly into history and philosophy in ways most writers will not or cannot. Thank goodness for the aged perspective of David Horowitz.
One of the few books whose ending I dreaded. Though short, it's dives quickly into history and philosophy in ways most writers will not or cannot. Thank goodness for the aged perspective of David Horowitz.
September 17, 2019
I expected more. It is similar to the book of Ecclesiastes albeit lacking, there's something more that could be said hence the rating I gave.
February 28, 2023
A Point in Time by David Horowitz is a self-indulgent memoir that lacks objectivity and fails to provide a balanced account of the political landscape. While the book provides some insight into Horowitz's personal experiences and political evolution, it falls short in several key areas, making it a disappointing read.
One of the main issues with the book is Horowitz's excessive self-indulgence. He spends a significant amount of time discussing his personal relationships, his struggles with addiction, and his experiences with therapy, which detracts from the broader themes of the book. The reader is left feeling like they are slogging through Horowitz's personal journal rather than reading a memoir with a clear and focused purpose.
Furthermore, the book is heavily biased towards Horowitz's own perspective, and he spends little time exploring the views of those who disagree with him. As a result, the book feels one-sided and fails to provide a balanced account of the political landscape. Horowitz's commentary on the political polarization of modern America is particularly troubling, as he seems to be advocating for a return to a mythical golden age when political differences were less divisive.
The book's disjointed narrative structure also makes it difficult to follow. Horowitz jumps from one topic to another without providing sufficient context or explanation, leaving the reader feeling confused and disoriented. Additionally, the book lacks a clear focus or theme, which further adds to the confusion.
While A Point in Time does provide some insight into the political climate of the 1960s and 1970s, and Horowitz's account of the Black Panther Party is engaging, these sections are few and far between. Overall, the book is a self-indulgent and biased account of one man's journey, which fails to provide a meaningful contribution to our understanding of the political landscape. As such, it is a disappointing and forgettable read.
One of the main issues with the book is Horowitz's excessive self-indulgence. He spends a significant amount of time discussing his personal relationships, his struggles with addiction, and his experiences with therapy, which detracts from the broader themes of the book. The reader is left feeling like they are slogging through Horowitz's personal journal rather than reading a memoir with a clear and focused purpose.
Furthermore, the book is heavily biased towards Horowitz's own perspective, and he spends little time exploring the views of those who disagree with him. As a result, the book feels one-sided and fails to provide a balanced account of the political landscape. Horowitz's commentary on the political polarization of modern America is particularly troubling, as he seems to be advocating for a return to a mythical golden age when political differences were less divisive.
The book's disjointed narrative structure also makes it difficult to follow. Horowitz jumps from one topic to another without providing sufficient context or explanation, leaving the reader feeling confused and disoriented. Additionally, the book lacks a clear focus or theme, which further adds to the confusion.
While A Point in Time does provide some insight into the political climate of the 1960s and 1970s, and Horowitz's account of the Black Panther Party is engaging, these sections are few and far between. Overall, the book is a self-indulgent and biased account of one man's journey, which fails to provide a meaningful contribution to our understanding of the political landscape. As such, it is a disappointing and forgettable read.
May 28, 2012
I like David Horowitz and I liked this book but I cannot recommend it because of its nihilistic conclusions. It seems to me that David’s upbringing and personal experiences with the utopian socialist dream have turned him against not only communism but any other future progressive movement, or for that matter, any hope of building a lasting, better world.
In my opinion, there are two ways to view the world: 1) History (life) is a pointless churning or cycle with no direction, or 2) History has purpose and direction though clearly indescribable. David appears to accept the former. But I can’t help but see fatigue in David who, along with his father, was a life-long crusader for a better world.
I am still a believer in worldview number two even though I don’t believe in communism or socialism. I still believe in trying to make the world a better place and that in some distant point in time there will be measurable progress, peace on earth, and goodwill toward men.
History is a great sorting out, a chaotic sorting out. Out of which, progress emerges. Just because we have seen civilizations come and go, does not mean that we will not improve at forming better societies.
David, others now carry the torch. So,rest in peace, and know that in some cosmic way we are all one, all in this together. There is yet much to learn and do. And although you haven’t seen the end, you have been a great contributor of progress even though you deny being a "progressive."
In my opinion, there are two ways to view the world: 1) History (life) is a pointless churning or cycle with no direction, or 2) History has purpose and direction though clearly indescribable. David appears to accept the former. But I can’t help but see fatigue in David who, along with his father, was a life-long crusader for a better world.
I am still a believer in worldview number two even though I don’t believe in communism or socialism. I still believe in trying to make the world a better place and that in some distant point in time there will be measurable progress, peace on earth, and goodwill toward men.
History is a great sorting out, a chaotic sorting out. Out of which, progress emerges. Just because we have seen civilizations come and go, does not mean that we will not improve at forming better societies.
David, others now carry the torch. So,rest in peace, and know that in some cosmic way we are all one, all in this together. There is yet much to learn and do. And although you haven’t seen the end, you have been a great contributor of progress even though you deny being a "progressive."
January 21, 2013
The stories we tell ourselves to keep our souls in motion are numerous but their purpose is the same. Whether we imagine we are creating a family line that will continue forever, or are pursuing missions greater than ourselves whose effects will outlast us, whether we store up our illusions in personal albums or enshrine them in halls of fame, whether we record our days in intimate journals or official annals, every narrative is designed to convince us that what we do is noteworthy and that someone will be there to take it all in. Every writer tells himself the same story—that someone is listening. A word on the page is one end of a silent conversation, but who is at the other? The English novelist Julian Barnes devoted an entire book to recording the anxieties provoked by the prospect that one day his words would no longer have readers and every trace of him would be gone. His book was an attempt to exorcise a lifelong obsession with his own extinction. He took its title from the advice his friends gave him as a child when he expressed fears about death: Nothing To Be Frightened Of. Barnes wrote the book when he was sixty, and said: “A novelist might hope for another generation of readers—two or three if lucky which may feel like a scorning of death; but it’s really just a scratching on the wall of the condemned cell. We do it to say: I was here too.” But to whom?
Read
December 21, 2011Horowitz takes an introspective but meandering look at his life as well as historical accounts to compare people who want to forge an earthly paradise to people who either look to an after-life for redemption or think that no such thing is possible at all.
While touching at times, Horowitz's prose is inelegant at best. The highlight for me was his admiration for his beloved dogs as he describes their unwavering enthusiasm for each new day's same old routine and enviable (or lamentable) obliviousness to their inevitable demise.
The least satisfying aspect is that Horowitz never draws a conclusion about which view is ... well, not right but correct. But then maybe that's the point.
While touching at times, Horowitz's prose is inelegant at best. The highlight for me was his admiration for his beloved dogs as he describes their unwavering enthusiasm for each new day's same old routine and enviable (or lamentable) obliviousness to their inevitable demise.
The least satisfying aspect is that Horowitz never draws a conclusion about which view is ... well, not right but correct. But then maybe that's the point.
April 3, 2012
I was so captivated by this book that my only disappointment was reaching the end. For me it was one of those rare books that left me feeling I was a better person for having read it. Wisdom imbues this philosophical mediation on life and redemption as Horowitz, reaching the autumn of his life, looks back and reflects on the meaning of life. With a sense of grace Horowitz blends the long walks with his dogs, the tragic death of his daughter and his awkward relationship with his parents with his philosophical reflections.
August 7, 2012
In my library, this book pairs with Horowitz' 2009 book, " Cracking of the Heart," reflecting on the life of his disabled daughter, Sarah. Similarly, "A Point in Time" reflects on his own life and thought. If you are a Horowitz fan, and I am, you will want to read these books. Prepare to slow down; these are not fact-filled political or social commentary. In these books, a man who specializes in answers has no answers. "A Point in Time" is a brief 128 pages, leaving me with an unfinished feeling and hoping there is more to come.
November 21, 2011
Beautifully written! This is an introspective reflection by Horowitz on the philosophical underpinnings of his beliefs as he faces his own death. He is a fascinating man with an interesting story--raised by leftist communists and then later in life embraces conservatism and religion. This is one of those books which is difficult to describe, but which gives you a true sense of "being in someone else's mind". I plan on reading this again.
January 2, 2012
My husband and I listened to Horowitz on the Book TV channel for nonfiction and I then picked up this book at the library (he has written many). It is a contemplative book with personal ruminations, as well as thoughts on the writings of Marcus Aurelius and Dostoevsky...thoughtful attempts to address the brevity and end of life as Horowitz is now seventy-one. He is an agnostic who is still open and searching, while also understanding the comfort of a faith in Christ and God.
August 22, 2012
Get ready to wrap your mind, or attempt to, around the inner workings of David Horowitz. What genius this man is blessed with (he may say cursed). A somewhat sad but sober realization of mortality and our place in the grand scheme of life. A wonderful examination of man's need to be remembered and the lengths we will go to in efforts to live on; and how this primal urge has colored the pages of history...not always for the better.
January 16, 2013
While waiting for some of Horowitz's earlier books to become available in the library hold system, I read this short essay which takes a look at his life and the thoughts of Marcus Aurelius and Dostoevsky. It's thought-provoking, but I'm disappointed in what appears to be his willingness to accept the end of mortal life as the end of progress.
January 5, 2015
One man's thoughts on life and dying. Very thought provoking and interesting.
October 8, 2011
Neither stoicism nor class warfare are all they're cracked up to be...
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews