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Notes on the Need for Beauty
An Intimate Look at an Essential Quality
by J. Ruth Gendler

Beauty invites us to build bridges and make connections between the senses and the soul, between contemplation and expression, between ourselves and the world.

In this wide-ranging and deeply felt book, artist and writer J. Ruth Gendler invites us to reclaim and celebrate the often misunderstood quality of beauty as one of the most profound and essential forces in our lives. Drawing upon observations from art and mythology, science and nature, contemporary culture and personal observation, the author looks at her subject in its most generous implications – not simply as a reflection of surface and image, but as a pathway to wholeness, integrity, coherence, and ultimately, to love. Written with curiosity, courage, a discerning eye and a lyrical sensibility, and illustrated with evocative line drawings by the author, Notes on the Need for Beauty displays the strong personal voice that has made The Book of Qualities so beloved. It is a work to savor and to share.

"The very act of reading Notes on the Need for Beauty will change the way you see things. It will awaken you to notice beauty, to make beauty, to remember beauty. And this is cause for celebration."
—Christiane Northrup, MD, author of Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom

"Like a rose disciple, Ruth Gendler takes note of what is beautiful and assembles this wholly original text, full of children talking, mystical insight, the history of cosmetics, sublime etymologies, and big mirrors that someone attached to the sides of the NYC sanitation trucks. Look out. Here comes the aquarium."
—Coleman Barks, author of A Year With Rumi

"Who does not have a thirst for more beauty in their life? Who has provided themselves with the necessary time to savor the beauty that already surrounds them? Ruth Gendler's book, Notes on the Need for Beauty, is studded with wise counsel and crafted prose coaxing us gently, to turn from our current ways, to better witness and so be nourished by the infinite beauties of the world—just as it is."
—Peter London, author of No More Secondhand Art

"Beauty is as beauty does and J. Ruth Gendler outdoes herself with this completely charming illustrated compilation of information and inspiration. Notes on the Need for Beauty is warm, winsome and very very wise."
—Donna Henes, author of The Queen of My Self

"Rediscovering the sense for beauty is an urgent priority that requires conscious employment. Gendler presents us with faceted seeds that can be planted in our own souls for rumination. This book is a lighthouse of a gift."
—Paulus Berensohn, author of Finding Your Way With Clay

"Notes on the Need for Beauty is delicious, a feast for the soul. Ruth Gendler's eye and heart are true and the vividness, constancy, and meticulousness of her meditation calls us to the banquet of beauty like music heard across a meadow. This is an utterly nurturing book, savory with loveliness from the exquisite cover art to the last morsel of wisdom."
—Tim Farrington, author of The Monk Upstairs

Reviews & Multimedia

A review of Notes in Spirituality Practive

A review of Notes in Studio Online

Wisconsin Public Radio

New Dimensions

Watch Ruth's first reading of Notes at Cody's Books in Berkeley, CA. Recorded and net-cast by FORA.tv. One hour.
Click here to watch Ruth's reading of Notes.

Readings by the Author

For a current list of readings, lectures and workshops, please visit the Events page.

How to Buy Notes on the Need for Beauty

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