Resources

Reflections in a Garden of Light

Reflections in a Garden of Light; Tales of Wisdom by Patrick Douglas. Chatham, ON: Edithangel Publications, 1994. ISBN 1- 896224-12-1 118 pp $10

I am always interested in the types of stories written by storytellers. This collection is by Patrick Douglas who also has a story in Dan Yashinsky' s At The Edge and a tape of original stories for young children ( both reviewed elsewhere in this issue). each of the three types of stories is very different from the others. The stories on the tape are silly, often involving word play; the story in the collection could be described as a tall tale; and the author describes this book as a philosophical novel.

The form of Reflections is a frame story about a novice in the Garden of Light, and his teacher, the storyteller. The two discuss life, love, wisdom, freedom, government, power, interdependence and more, and each of their discussions is punctuated with one or more stories told by the storyteller character to illustrate a point.

The chapters, 25 of them, are brief. One could use them as meditations and I could see preachers using some of the stories in their sermons.

Listed on Amazon

The Second Story Review, Vol 3, No. 4, March 1998
Forgot password?