| Sam's life journey is a road of twists and turns, love | | | | Monday" wipes out Sam's savings, and the California |
| and loss, poverty and wealth. | | | | earthquake claims his home that sat on the hillside. But |
| Sam grew up on the South side of Chicago, and after | | | | his life changes direction when he takes a job as an |
| the loss of his parents Sam is sent to live with his Aunt | | | | electrical engineer and he meets Sohrab, a man who |
| and Uncle. He hears their whispers in the night and | | | | would play a very significant role in his life. Through |
| knows that they can hardly afford to raise another | | | | Sohrab and his wife, Sam again meets his soul mate |
| mouth to feed. He works part-time jobs sweeping | | | | and after twenty years he is re-united with his true |
| barbershop floors and running barefoot down coal tar | | | | love. |
| streets delivering flowers, trying to ease the financial | | | | Sam's journey to finding Truth is a journey of life; we |
| burden on his Aunt and Uncle. | | | | follow him from his childhood of poverty and loss; |
| When a position working in the church becomes | | | | through his early adulthood where he questions his life |
| available, Sam moves into the basement, and his little | | | | purpose; through his years as a parent with a child and |
| cot beside the furnace becomes his sanctuary. He | | | | a loving wife, to his years as a grandparent holding his |
| devours all the books scattered about the church in | | | | grandchild on his lap and feeling the completeness of |
| search of the Light to end the darkness that he feels | | | | the cycle of life. |
| in his soul. But instead of filling his soul with peace it just | | | | I enjoyed this book, and especially liked the short |
| awakens more questions. | | | | parables that Sohrab uses to show Sam the answers |
| Sam's search for Truth takes him down various paths, | | | | that he is searching for. The best one is the story of |
| many religions and beliefs, and he meets many people, | | | | the angel looking for fire in hell to light his pipe and can't |
| all of whom turn out to be messengers in his life. He | | | | find any. Instead he finds tormented souls who feel |
| studies all of the religious denominations; Christianity, | | | | that they have wasted their lives and are looking back |
| Buddhism, Judaism, and discovers that the answers | | | | in regret. Sohrab teaches Sam that those who look for |
| can't be found from just one religion. | | | | peace and happiness often go about it backwards. |
| Sam's poverty turns to riches when he becomes a | | | | And though Sam had been looking for peace and |
| stockbroker. He is surrounded by many friends and | | | | happiness in his life, the more he looked the more it |
| enjoys the luxuries of all that life has to give him. He | | | | evaded him. In the end Sam finally experiences the |
| marries the love of his life, but loses her when he | | | | oneness of mankind and the Universe and he finds |
| becomes more absorbed in his work than his home | | | | peace and love in his life. |
| life. The shallowness of his life makes him realize that | | | | The parallelism of the author's life and this story seems |
| there must be more. | | | | obvious as he uses his own name and the names of |
| Sam is faced with some tragedies in his life that | | | | his wife and daughter in the story, maybe it is, maybe it |
| remind him of his quest for peace in his soul. "Black | | | | isn't, but in any case the story is wonderful. |