From Publishers Weekly
Admired for her ardent devotion to God and her passionate mysticism, Teresa of Avila continues to fascinate and to inspire spiritual seekers. Surrounded by sickness and death as a young girl in Avila, Teresa developed a sense of life's fragility and a deep wonder about the afterlife. By the time she was 15, she had entered the convent and eventually would rise to her spiritual fame as the founder of the Order of the Discalced Carmelites, where she began a lifelong working relationship with the man who became known as John of the Cross. Using excerpts from Teresa's letters and other writings, du Boulay traces the development of Teresa's spiritual life, culminating in her now classic spiritual guides The Way of Perfection and The Interior Castle. As complete as du Boulay's study is, the contours and details of Teresa's life are well known and have already been explored expertly by Cathleen Medwick in her Teresa of Avila: The Shape of a Soul. Du Boulay's often repetitious and workmanlike biography contributes no new insights to our knowledge of this famous saint's life and work. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"A clear, reliable account of Teresa’s remarkable life." —The Times Literary Supplement

"Shirley du Boulay's engagingly written biography vividly captures Teresa and her world for us, and makes them accessible to readers of all backgrounds. The real Teresa comes palpably near in these pages." —Ursula King, author, Christian Mystics

"One leaves this book with a deep appreciation of who Teresa was. . . . A delightful read." —Keith J. Egan, author, Carmelite Prayer


Review
"One leaves this book with a deep appreciation of who Teresa was. . . . A delightful read." —Keith J. Egan, author, Carmelite Prayer


Book Description
This refreshing biography captures the compelling combination of down-to-earth humanity and profound, enriching spirituality that is Teresa of Avila’s hallmark. This intelligent, balanced portrait of an irreverent, intense, and fiery Renaissance woman and her times includes moving excerpts from her letters and sublime spiritual writings. Her unconventional, progressive views on prayer and worship, her outstanding administrative and literary talents, her travels around Spain to found and supervise convents, and how she spent much of her life under the scrutiny of the Inquisition are all detailed. For readers of any faith or none, this book brings to life an extraordinarily ordinary, lovable, and inspiring individual.


About the Author
Shirley du Boulay is the author of Beyond Darkness and The Road to Canterbury. She worked as a radio and TV producer covering religious and spiritual topics for the BBC.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) is one of the most beloved spiritual figures in history. Like Francis of Assisi, she is known around the world as a great mystic, saint, and reformer. This reffeshing and thoughtful biography captures the compelling combination of down-to-earth humanity and profound, enriching spirituality that was Teresa's hallmark. She held unconventional, progressive views on prayer and worship; had outstanding administrative and literary talents; experienced flamboyant -- arguably erotic -- raptures; traveled around Spain to found and supervise convents; and spent much of her life under the scrutiny of the Inquisition. Shirley du Boulay has written a beautiful, balanced portrait of this irreverent, intense, and fiery Renaissance woman and her times, including moving excerpts from her powerful letters and sublime writings, like The Interior Castle and The Way of Perfection. For readers of any faith or none, this book brings to life an "extraordinarily ordinary," lovable, and inspiring individual.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Admired for her ardent devotion to God and her passionate mysticism, Teresa of Avila continues to fascinate and to inspire spiritual seekers. Surrounded by sickness and death as a young girl in Avila, Teresa developed a sense of life's fragility and a deep wonder about the afterlife. By the time she was 15, she had entered the convent and eventually would rise to her spiritual fame as the founder of the Order of the Discalced Carmelites, where she began a lifelong working relationship with the man who became known as John of the Cross. Using excerpts from Teresa's letters and other writings, du Boulay traces the development of Teresa's spiritual life, culminating in her now classic spiritual guides The Way of Perfection and The Interior Castle. As complete as du Boulay's study is, the contours and details of Teresa's life are well known and have already been explored expertly by Cathleen Medwick in her Teresa of Avila: The Shape of a Soul. Du Boulay's often repetitious and workmanlike biography contributes no new insights to our knowledge of this famous saint's life and work. (Oct.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Spanish saint and mystic Teresa of Avila (1515-82) continues to inspire publications: over 50 books and theses on her have appeared in English since 2000. British author du Boulay has long covered religious and spiritual topics as a writer and producer for the BBC and has written biographies on such contemporaries as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Benedictine mystic Bede Griffiths. In this revised biography, originally published in London in 1991, du Boulay retells Teresa's captivating story as derived from her extensive writings and the work of both contemporaries and later scholars. Canonized in 1622 and declared the first woman doctor of the church by the Vatican in 1970, Teresa appears as practical, wise, humble, and human as ever. Her efforts to reform the Carmelite Order (men and women), many journeys to found convents throughout Spain, confrontation of challenges from churchmen and nobility alike (not to mention the Divine), and opposition from within her own communities, sound strangely contemporary. Bringing her background in psychology to the book, du Boulay fully captures the inner Teresa for the modern reader. Recommended for general public and academic collections. [BlueBridge, a new publisher based in New York, specializes in spirituality, history, and biography. This is one of its three inaugural titles released this fall.-Ed.]-Anna M. Donnelly, St. John's Univ. Lib., NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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