Collected stories from different traditions ranging from Buddhist to Christian to Sufi to Native American and more; overall a worthwhile read, if a somewhat uneven one.
Read for a Buddhist book group. Strangely, the individual stories didn't appeal to me at all, but the brief introductions to the many mini-sections were thought-provoking. They are unsigned, but I imagine they were written by the editors, Jack Kornfield and Christina Feldman. I think I do better with sustained explorations of Buddhist thought and practice.
Beautiful stories from various religious groups without the dogma or deities attached. I thoroughly enjoyed almost every story and the introduction to each chapter. Definitely a book I'll read again and again. It's like a devotional for agnostics.
Like another comment said, I literally had to drag myself to finish this book. The stories are not relevant and they often end abruptly and without carrying much sense.
Sometimes in life you meet people who you don't understand or know their value. I was invited to speak at a small conference up in New England and went without knowing much about the people or the conference. The woman who had invited me heard me speak some years earlier at the Nonprofit Technology Conference and really wanted to bring me to her group. So off I went. She had learned just before I went about my Multiple Sclerosis and was really blown away but all that I do with MS. I usually take this all with a silent grin or dismissal. But none the less on the night before I left she took me to dinner and gave me a copy of this book. At first I was unsure what to make of the book not realizing it was ALSO by Jack Kornfield and as I continued to read the book I was moved and found peace in so many of the offerings.
Soul Food is one of the few books I do not give away, having purchased it right after its publication. Kornfield and Feldman provide a treasure trove of brief, wise, inspiring stories for our spiritual enrichment.
The editors draw widely from varied wisdom traditions, past to present, fiction and nonfiction. The stories are according to chapter themes with brief introduction. The editors do not comment on the stories themselves, leaving them to speak for themselves.
As a writer and speaker, I have relied on the delight of story-telling throughout my career, and Soul Food is the best collection of spiritual stories I have found to share with others through my work.
I'd rather read a non-fiction biography and took lesson learned from actual figures to feed my soul, than to read tales after tales... its just not for this era.
Nevertheless I stubbornly try to finish all the stories cause I believe every book has it advantages, and yes I did find some, the native american stories were good but overall.... lets put it this way, I have to drag myself to be able to read every story.. and it certainly won't get into my bookshelf.