Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith

"On my forty-ninth birthday, I decided that all of life was hopeless, and I would eat myself to death." So begins PLAN B: Further Thoughts on Faith, a collection of delightfully honest and gritty essays from Salon.com columnist Anne Lamott.

Lamott, like the best essayists, finds most of her inspiration in the ordinary stuff of living: the exhaustion of parenting, the frustration over a middle-aged body, and despair over the state of the world. In OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS, Lamott gave us a window into her life as a new single mother and her battle to kick her addictions. In TRAVELING MERCIES, she chronicled her spiritual awakening (kicking and screaming) into Christianity.

In PLAN B, Lamott's Sam is a teenager, Sam's birth father is back in the picture (sort of), and she is moving toward a menopausal 50. With all the hormones rocketing around, "Sometimes the house gets crowded." Her faith has matured, but she quickly cuts through any notions of super-spirituality. Lamott refuses to put a "holiness filter" on her prose or her lifestyle; her language leans more toward truck driver than toward Tipper Gore. In an early essay, she writes of a talk she gives at church that receives enthusiastic applause, followed a few hours later by a rip-roaring fight with Sam. "It's hard to imagine things can get so ugly so quickly, just because the word "homework" has come up...." Any parent of a teenager will commiserate.

It's these moments when Lamott shares what she calls our "ugly common secrets" that make us keep turning the pages, sort of like rubbernecking at an accident site. Her language is vivid and fresh, whether she's describing a ham she wins unexpectedly at the market as "ten pounds of salty pink eraser," or the hills behind her house where she walks almost every day, "a quiet and holy space."

Some of Lamott's best observations are on prayer. "The problem with God --- or at any rate, one of the top five most annoying things about God --- is that He or She rarely answers right away. It can take days, weeks." She reminds herself that when you pray, "you are not starting the conversation from scratch, just remembering to plug back into a conversation that is always in progress." Some days, she refreshingly admits, she hardly knows what to pray for. "Peace? Well, whatever."

When she starts a Sunday school, she unearths some unpleasant truths. "It turned out that I did not like children, or at any rate, they made me extremely nervous, and I had almost nothing to share with them, except that Jesus loved them, and I did too, even when I was in a bad mood." Teaching Sunday school also unexpectedly spawns racial tension. After working toward reconciliation, she philosophically concludes, "Time, and showing up, turn most messes to compost, and something surprising may grow...."

Reconciliation isn't easy, as we see when Lamott reflects on her departed mother. "While she was alive, I spent my life like a bitter bell-hop, helping my mother carry around her psychic trunks.... For a while I did not miss her at all, and did not forgive her a thing." Forgiveness, she finds, comes not as a landslide, but rather as small "mosaic chips." The ability to do so arrives as a gift: "Grace means you're in a different universe from where you had been stuck, when you had absolutely no way to get there on your own."

It's this same grace she claims for herself; "God must see me as so many people at once: beloved, nuts, luminous, full of shadow." Whether she is reminiscing about her persona at 48 (the Menopausal Death Crone), participating in a peace march, lamenting the loss of a beloved dog, or nicknaming the jiggly areas on her legs and butt "the aunties," we see her as she believes God does, full of flaws and creativity, insecurity and pride, and rage and love. Someone a lot like us.

Like any collection of essays, this one is a bit uneven in spots (one chapter is a commencement address of sorts), and the time frame skips around. Savor it a chapter at a time rather than gulping it down in one long narrative read. Less ardent Democrats may also find the continual Bush-bashing a too-easy device. But what makes this book sparkle is Lamott's signature voice, wrenching honesty, willingness to look at our "ugly common secrets," and authentic, hard-won faith. Don't miss it.

--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby

I've been missing out on reading Anne Lamott. What a joy. She gets to the center of things, she made me laugh, ache, smile with recognition, and say many times, "You've got that right" about her comments about the current administration.

Every person trying to raise a child should read the section titled adolescence. Every bride's maid would profit from reading flower girl. And everyone would profit from Anne's comment about resting. "When you rest, you catch your breath, and it fills your lungs and holds you up, like water wings, like my father in the deep end of the rec center pool."

Lamott does it again!

Deeply spiritual, deeply honest, and incredibly funny, Anne Lamott once again presents a collection of 'thoughts on faith' that is so much more. What Lamott calls thoughts are really heart-deep reflections and ponderings from everything from the mundane to the most sacred, from the stuff of parenting and pet-rearing and travel, to the realms of politics, church life, spiritual disciplines, and the ongoing journey into maturity. Whether she's learning to love her mother, her president, or her own thighs, Lamott never takes herself too seriously, and never lets her audience escape from the honesty of her lens. Whether this book challenges you or resonates in your spirit, it is not one that can be easily dismissed.

After reading most of the negative reviews of this book, I just have to laugh. Most come from those "upset" with Ms. Lamott's criticism of Mr. Bush and/or her interpretation of religious dogma.

Get over yourself people. First, there is nothing wrong with one critizing your government and or president! Ever since our government was formed, people have bashed the government. Those who challenged government tenets during the 18th century, for example, were not told to cease the criticism or face jail time. Our fore fathers saw debate about issues that effect all of us as paramount to a successful democracy. (It would be nice if all those who do not understand this basic fact, read up on it and become more informed before choosing to voice their opinions on this issue).

Second, there is nothing wrong with one person's interpretation of religious dogma. I found Ms. Lamott's writing to be poignant and funny and her descriptions of Jesus as being a rebellious teenager real and refreshing. What would Jesus do? He would not chastize Ms. Lamott for her humor but probably have a good laugh along with her!

Third, Ms. Lamott is someone who has had alot of pain in her life and is working it out. She is far from perfect. I know many people who exhibit some of her qualities but with alot less reflection on their parts. She yells at her kid, she swears, she has a drinking problem, ... does that make her less of a human being? What is the old saying about judging not?

Join Ms. Lamott for one's person faith journey and leave your judgements at home. You'll be pleasantly surprised!

Anne Lamott is back.Thank God! Her occasional musings in Salon.com have been gathered here for all to enjoy. her frustration and contempt for the Bushies,her forgiving accepting Chrstianity[which reminds me of annie Dillard in so many ways]her alcoholism,trying attempting to survive her teenager,the death of her Mom and a close friend, and not least of all, her beloved dog. Some of the reviews written here are people who have certainly not read this book,or this self-deprecating womans writings.This is life affirming stuff. the reviewers who are so offended by this have obviously not read through scripture,filled with lovable scoundrels.Read this enjoy it,savor this good womans words.And for the fundys, you need to relax.You need a hug. and an enema.

My remembered favorite essay by Anne Lamott is an address to a graduating class titled "B+ is Just Fine", and it is still somewhere on this hard drive. In it, Lamott decries the attempt to attain perfection and focuses instead on inspiring young people to accept their best efforts in life, even if the paradigm shifts from the ideal.

Plan B as choice of a title intrigues me, and the connection to the essay is evident. Plan B and Plan C are what humans resort to when plan A doesn't work out. And it rarely does.

Anybody out here living plan B? I am.

Lamott's narratives in this context justify that whatever works for individuals, with a semblance of grace, spirituality, and humanity, even if the process is not perfect, is good enough to lead a worthwhile life and find joy. Most of the book is about love and gritty awareness-of children, problems, family, friends, our earth, and self. The intelligent, good-humored and incisive prose coats our personal wounds like a balm. The allusions are multiple. The reader's pleasure lies in recognition and empathy, and forces one to reexamine the ordinary with renewed vigor and yes, confidence and acceptance. Lamott skews the standards to add inclusivity to all means, ways, and approaches.
I love her words.

A good read. You will nod with agreement, wince with pain, laugh, and shrug when you think she's off her rocker, but you will be engaged! I totally agree with another reviewer who said that she is a roll your shirtsleeves up Christian. I think she gives a good name to religion in a day and age where there seem to be Those Who Do and Those Who Don't- Anne shows up and is One Who Tries. Her religion isn't about pontification with false pride, it's about gritty introspection and action and change and love...and meanwhile, finding something to laugh about.

Here's something to laugh about.

Anne Lamott is, well, many of us. Theology just always comes down to "How did you treat the least of these?" If you feel it's inappropriate to admit nastiness, mind clutter, personal hypocrisies.....(sin!) and still call yourself a Christian, then you shouldn't even try to read this book. If you're certain, totally certain, about anything, you may be put off by Anne Lamott. If you're sure that none of us left-wingers might sashay through Heaven's pearly gates, you might not have room for Anne's irreverence, or her calling out contradictions between her faith and the current political climate. For me, Plan B calls me to be, and to acknowledge, what I am: a sinner redeemed by the inexpressible Love of God, Himself. Alternately grateful and indignant, full of praise or uncertainty, loving and accepting or consumingly selfish, in the end I know "whose" I am. I'm grateful to Anne Lamott for bringing Christ-ness into the bright, examining light of daily life; you might come to remember that that is where Christ hangs out.

I love Anne Lamott's writing and her neurotic confessional style. Traveling Mercies was probably one of the most important spiritual books of the last 10 years. Plan B, however is not a worthy successor. For one, it isn't a BOOK, it is a collection of uncollectable pieces. They all stand out well but have no unifying strand. She tends to repeat herself a lot too because of this; by the time you get to page 100 you will get sick of hearing about George W.

On the other hand, if you are a Christian leftist, frustrated with the Religious Right's hijacking of Chistendom, it might be therapeutic - the redundancy that makes me want to stab myself in the eye with a pencil might bring some inner healing to the right person. I hate politics on all levels, so it's hard for me to empathize with someone as politically minded as Anne Lamott.

The writing itself seems strained in some places, as Lamott refers to her "thinky thoughts" and her "bodily body" and other bizarre word-usages that will have you scratching your head wondering where her editor was when that page was approved. When she wants to explain to you, her audience, why she thinks someone is a great person, she merely says that they are "totally leftist" and leaves it at that. What disappoints me is that this is a deep as it gets. Why not explain why you believe in leftist principles and go in depth into whatever right-wing policies you are railing against, Ms. Lamott? Why not give us some real thoughts, if you are so bent on getting political?

Instead she keeps things mainly on a knee-jerk emotional level, with no real substance to offer. She agonizes over a picture of the president, with his "Yertle the Turtle mouth" and struggles to find anything to like about him. She knows he is a Christian like her, but condescendingly struggles to see his humanity. In so doing, she becomes what she hates. A political hack. A black-and-white moralist. A dull, dull writer, compared to the writer who wrote Traveling Mercies.

Still, even at her worst, she's still pretty damn good. There are some beautiful patches here and there, between her juvenile descriptions of George W's evil features and her spoiled son's annoying tomfoolery. Wait for it on paperback. Look to it for light reading, because unfortunately that's all it is.

Traveling Mercies ranks as one of my favorites. Though my political viewpoint is quite different from the authors, her insights that illustrate how you could work around your own bias and experience the holy in your own human failings was totally up my alley.

I was sorely disappointed by the venom that whacks you upside the head shortly after opening the book. I guess loving your neighbor as yourself only applies to those folks whose politics are not too far off from your own.

I had to get it returned before it tainted my love of her other books. If it were not for those other writings I would have rated this book NO stars! I pray that her next offering will be more about faith than hate.

Refreshing, honest, and a lyric writer, Anne Lamott is a wonderful discovery. These three books, "Traveling Mercies," "Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith", and "Grace (Eventually) Thoughts On Faith" are the best books I've read all year! I don't think it matters if you are Christian or not, because her books are about her journey from alcoholism and drug addiction, to a discovery of a God of unconditional Love that speaks to everyone.

Wonderful, exhilarating stories and writing!

The book is well written; Lamott certainly knows how to write. It is honest, but mere honesty doesn't make a good book. Her hysterical and irrational reactions to, and descriptions of, George Bush are strikingly weird. It isn't that she just doesn't like him; she has a clear hatred of him, personalized in a way that is creepy; she's never met him. It is odd given that in the rest of the book she tries to assert her Christianity. Where is her own grace?

There is no humor in this book to offset the sadness, anger, bitterness, and pain she emotes. After reading, I'm surprised that Lamott hasn't yet killed herself for all pain she feels, and all the horrors in the world she is surrounded by. She sees little joy in the world, and shares none of it with others. The emotions aren't interesting, but repetitive. I kept reading because it was an easy read, and I thought and hoped -- because it was Anne Lamott -- that it would somehow mean something. Unfortunately, this was just a bad, whining, self-indulgent book.

If it weren't written by Anne Lamott, it never would have been published. And after this, I doubt I'll read another book by her again. She seems to have succumbed to her fear of white male conservative republicans, and her bitterness obscures any positive attributes she may have had.

If you MUST read this book -- wait, and it will be on the bargain shelf soon.

I love Anne LaMott for the same reason holier-than-thou reviewers like B.C. despise her. They are addicted to some judgmental, doctrinaire version of Christianity that spells God "EGO." Anne LaMott has made room for Jesus in her heart and learned about love, compassion, fairness and humor, and many other virtues that Jesus tried to teach us before he was over-interpreted and manipulated by people who use him as a commodity they can sell. Money changers in the temple!

LaMott reflects the thinking of people who know God is still speaking, directly, to them - and calling upon them to do what is most difficult, act with love and responsibility in the midst of a world that makes it easy to hate and hurt others. For those of you who feel demoralized by the injustice that perpetrators insist on defending as "faith-based," you will find here a simple, brilliant person who listens to the whispers of God, and "gets it." What a blessing!

I really enjoyed Anne's previous books, but this one is hit and miss. There is no real cohesive message outside of her ranting against President Bush, pro-life conservatives, etc. She presents herself as a deeply committed Christian, and I honestly believe that she is, but then she says so many thoughtless, careless, and even arrogant things.

Arrogance is perhaps the one characteristic that makes this book so rough on the windpipe. I believe that Anne Lamott has a big heart, but she also has a big mouth which often discounts her core message (but then again, one is never really sure if she actually has a 'core message'). I wish she would mature a little through her writing rather than regressing with every book.

I have almost nothing in common with the Anne Lamott.

George Bush, to me, does not represent the end of civilization as we know it. My three children, my wife and I survived their adolescence. Time passes. With help, I survive, occasionally, even thrive.

Yet, I drew comfort from her book. Reading her well-written, brutally honest narrations of life's daily struggles, I gathered spiritual hope.

Not everyone comes to faith by the high road. The gift of grace is available for each of us regardless of our backgrounds. Anne Lamott's communicates the essence of Christian faith. It is not found in dogma, but rather, grace. By opening our hearts in the midst of confusion and hopelessness, the world becomes a safer and more loving place.

I don't understand why some readers are upset with the author for "complaining about the government" and for "bashing Bush." This is a book by a woman who is a Christian. Jesus preached LOVE, not bombing. He preached poverty and service to others, not no-bid contracts for Haliburtan. Do the people upset with the Bush-bashing really believe they can be Christians and support a man who bombs people? I don't get it. Read the Bible.

As for Lamott's book---she has great writing flow going through a lot of Plan B as she chronicles her life as a modern Christian in the Bay area. Lots of good laughs, tender moments, and a good, quick read.

That said, I had a hard time grasping exactly what Lamott hated about her mother in spite of a profusion of words about her. It's completely unclear to me.

Lamott has always struck me as someone with a mood disorder. She seems to go over the edge a lot emotionally. For example, Lamott goes to great lengths to justify requiring her teenage son to go to church, letting us know that other people support her decision. The disharmony this causes "every other week" as Lamott struggles to get Sam to comply against his will is whacko to me. It's frustrating to read about the drama this creates in both of their lives. If Lamott would just let the young man set his own boundaries regarding faith, the conflict would go away. I mean, like, have some faith! The kid can find his own way without her attempts at control and without her emotional freak-outs over this.

Unfortunately, I find myself appraising Lamott no matter which of her books I'm reading. Lamott is very opinionated. If we are, too, than her narcissistic writings inviting us to be voyeurs are necessarily going to give rise to our own opinions.

This was no more apparent to me than when reading Lamott's description of a ski trip with a dying friend, and of a nearly free jaunt on a cruise ship with other friends. What comfortable places to be a Christian in angst from.

Despite nursing a few dying friends (who hasn't at her stage of life?)---I prefer to grapple with the issues of faith from a less comfortable position than on ski trips, cruises, or when gushing over a $150 necklace my kid buys me for a gift. If that's what Sam's learning in church, why force him to go?

Give the money to the poor and make a necklace.

You gotta give the author credit for laying her life bare for the world to see, and critique. We are all sinners in the eyes of ...

If you want a good and imperfect read about an imperfect person of faith, one that leads you to question your own beliefs and reality, Lamott has produced it.

I am a patriotic American and member of an Evangelical Christian Church who is opposed to the war and disheartened by the ineptitude (and fundamental dishonesty) of the Bush administration. As such, I appreciate Lamott's insight into the internal struggle many of us are waging. While my Church family and many of my non-Churched friends unconditionally support the ever-shifting rationale and objectives for the war and a pre-emptive foreign policy, Lamott posits that it is OK, even Christian, to question and speak out on what is happening. At the same time, this shouldn't be used as an excuse for losing faith.

If I could sum up what I got from the book in a single passage, it would be this: "...the opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty. Certainty is missing the point entirely. Faith includes noticing the mess, the emptiness and discomfort, and letting it be until some light returns."

God bless Anne Lamott for sharing her gifts of wit, wisdom, service and integrity.

Wow, when I typed my review here several weeks ago I had no idea how much of a lightning rod this book would be for Christians. So, in order for full disclosure I feel the need to amend my review to note that I am a Christian. I've read the Bible, yet I don't recall anywhere that Jesus asks us to renounce our sense of humor if we choose to follow him. Given all that Anne Lamott has gone through in her life, from drug addiction, to single parenting, to the deaths of so many loved ones, I have to believe that Jesus counts her as one of his success stories. Rather than rejecting faith, Lamott is an example of someone who embraces faith in her darkest times. Perhaps it's not the "traditional" way that others ascribe to, but in the end that's not for any of us to judge. We all have the choice of whether to read this book or not, and I acknowledge that it is appropriate to "warn" people that this book isn't standard Christian fare. However, I find myself appalled by the diatribes disguised as reviews for this book. If you are going to argue from a Christian position, at least get your facts right, especially about one of the main tenants of our faith-why Christ died.

All that said, I stand by my original review, "Plan B Further Thoughts on Faith" is an enjoyable read, filled with crazy but real experiences that I found easy to relate to, especially when she totally pegs the crazy out of control feelings that every parent has at one time or another. Rather than being shocked at how she's cobbled together her religious and liberal beliefs, I find it a refreshing antithesis to what we often see as portrayed as "Christian" today. At its heart, what I enjoyed most about this book was how in one chapter she could make me weep as she writes about her dog, Sadie and in another chapter she could make me laugh at her story of starting a Sunday school at her church. As another reviewer said, Lamott is an acquired taste, but for those of you who have enjoyed her other writing, I'd encourage you to give this book a chance as well.

Anne Lamott finds God in the ordinariness of her day. She writes with intimacy and honesty about the challenges of just being alive, of being mother, daughter, friend, and committed liberal in these conservative times. In "Plan B" she shares her continuing faith journey in mid-life, struggling to enjoy her success and her family, and coming to terms with the loss that greets everyone who has lived long enough to watch a parent die. She can be laugh-out-loud funny: she names her saddle-bag thighs "the aunties" and vows to treat them with love and respect. I looked forward to every chapter and, when I put the book down,I felt as if I'd had been with a very funny and deeply insightful friend.

Anne Lemott's books of essays are so effective because it is impossible not to recognize that she speaks the truth. She tells about her relationships with her community, church, son, ex lovers, and most importantly, her relationship with, and growing appreciation of, herself. Ms. Lemott looks at real life and finds the little skein of joy to accentuate. I recommend this book without reservation.

I love Anne Lamott and this book is no exception. As always, she writes with honesty and humor about her everyday experiences. She helps me see the lighter and darker side of Christianity and life in general. I can relate to her foibles and rejoice with her in her human triumphs. I'm glad for Christian writers who I can relate to-not holier than thou, never make a mistake writers. I won't mention names. This book was a blessing.

I so enjoyed Traveling Mercies and Bird By Bird that I couldn't wait to read Plan B. Ann Lamott's descriptiveness, honesty and depth becon. I appreciated her efforts but couldn't get away from the feeling I was just reading a series of magazine articles that were connected by a thin thread.

Intelligent, thoughtful Christians who take their spiritual journey seriously - with a sense of wonder and discovery, pain and joy, humor and sadness - will appreciate Lamott sharing her own journey with us.

She doesn't purport to speak for all Christians. She doesn't claim to have all the answers. She is human, fabulously so, and like all humans is flawed, imperfect. Her Christ is the Jesus who befriended the outcasts, the downtrodden, the sinful. The Christ who forgave, the Christ who struggled, the Christ given to us in human form because His Father so loved the world.

On the other hand, sanctimonious "christians" who can't stand anyone or anything that challenges their self-satisfied narrow world view should not read this book. Put down the mouse, step away from the computer and stop your silly abuse of the the store helpful voting system. Go give five stars to the Left Behind series instead.

But those of us who celebrate diversity, who believe God made each and every one of us and He revels in His creations even though He knows how flawed we are - we enjoy being intellectually and emotionally challenged, stimulated, and amused by Lamott's essays.

"Plan B" is an excellent companion book for anyone who is examining their spiritual life. I would recommend it to anyone who has the intellectual capacity to appreciate that a relationship with Jesus, like all relationships, is personal and individual. Lamott's walk with Christ is uniquely her own, but it serves as inspiration for readers hoping to establish or deepen their own connection to God.

Lamott is a very talented writer with a well-honed eye and a witty turn of phrase, and her prose is among the best of current American writing.

Discerning readers will enjoy this thought-provoking, entertaining and illuminating collection of essays.

Being a Bush-loving conservative, I was nervous to read this book after reading various other reviews. I've been reading Lamott for years now, since I was in a writing program in college, and I've loved every book of hers I'd ever read.

With Plan B, I waited to buy the paperback version.

I devoured it within the last few days. Lamott is wonderful, and if you are hesitant about reading this book, I advise you to put your differences with Lamott aside and just read. My goodness, her son Sam is a TEENAGER now ...

I like Anne Lamott's writings but she continuously bashes the President in this book. I think this is uncalled for. Seriously. She hates the President instead of praying for him (and as another reviewer noted she should "love thy neighbor") it totally turned me off in this book. Thank goodness I got this one at the library and did not waste my money on this book. Very disappointing.

If you have warm feelings of sweetness when you witness what Christianity in our country has become, you will not like this book. If you feel hopeful, like a child whose birthday is just a day or so away because you see our country returning to good old Christian values and making right--at long last right--the mistake of separating church and state, you will not like this book. If your heart quickens with thrill to have a born-again national administration and you bask in the quiet joy of the prospect of having our country returned to a Christianity of a glory not seen since days of Cromwell, you will not like this book. If, by your actions, you daily demonstrate that your object of worship is the Bible, you will not like this book. If yours is the Christianity of Revelations; of God's power, might, and unwavering, righteous judgment--you will not like this book.

If yours is a Christianity where, for maybe the first time it history, what is divine was revealed to be more like a baby in a manger or a man unjustly executed on a cross than like the power, might and glory of an ancient despot, you will like this book. If yours is a Christianity where it was revealed that love and compassion are more important and more vital than power and judgment, you will like this book. If God is more important to you than the Bible, you will like this book. If Jesus has touched your life in such a way that you are heartsick--soulsick--at the hatred, fear and contempt that today masquerades as Christian piety, you will like this book. And if you are sick to your very soul to see this masquerade parading in the highest halls of political power and rendering unto God the things at are Caesar's, you will like this book.

I, for one, would no more touch popular American Christianity today than I would Afghan Taliban Islam. I am grieved to behold the sack and ruin of a perfectly good religion by a primitive piety of fear, exclusivity and fierce judgment. I am grieved almost to the point of despair when I behold the conservative eclipse of the wonder of the incarnation of Christ revealing that love is more important than power and revealing it in such a way that, for a time, the world into which Jesus was born caught fire with the power of this truth. And I am grieved because when I look at this truth against the backdrop of the history of our kind, it is as if God indeed revealed this truth to us for our salvation for it seems that only this truth--the truth that love and compassion are more vital and important than power and might--only this truth can save us now.

I am less surprised that Anne Lamott richly includes her despair and outrage at contemporary politics in her reflections on faith than I am that she has managed to maintain her Christian faith while living in an America that slouches unrelentingly toward the holy state of Christian theocracy, in which auto de fe is replaced by inquisition de fag. I am amused that there are those who find her new book offensive because of her expressions of outrage and despair at the willful destruction of the U.S. Constitution in favor of a presidential monarchy. Apparently, one is allowed to mingle politics and faith only if one's religio-political orientation is that of popular American Christianity, i.e., if you share the prevailing belief that the "Reagan Revolution" should find its natural conclusion in an American theocracy ruled by fiat by a born again appointee of the godhead, the chosen instrument of God's righteous judgment.

Whatever the pain she must feel as a minority Christian of the Beatitudes living in the new American Christian theocracy of Revelations, Anne is still able to help us see and marvel at the love that can hold and keep us through our frailties, a love that mystics of every age--Buddha, Jesus, Rumi--have known to infuse the heart of all there is, a love that inspires, in T.S. Eliot's phrase, the laughter at the heart of things. And, as Anne reminds us, "laughter is carbonated holiness."

A series of thoughtful, truthful, funny and poignant musings on the framework of life from her perspective - what it's like for her in the aftermath of Bush's re-election, what it's like to be raising a teenage son without his father, how she reaffirms her faith and her religious practice from day to day, written with humor, empathy, compassion and her customary sharp wit and intelligence. I think it is excellent, and am very happy to have it on the shelf - I think I will return to it often; it contains many illuminations and insights I found very valuable on many aspects of living day-to-day.

Anne LaMott never ceases to amaze me with her honest vulnerability and complete faith in God. Her writing is so open, so willing to admit her own weaknesses, as she said at the Politics and Spirituality conference in Washington, DC this past weekend (January 14-16, 2006) "If you want healing, pull out your secrets." And in sharing hers with us, readers are reminded of the spiritual freedom of surrendering our own insecurities. A truly inspiring writer and speaker.

Anne Lamott's certainly an engaging and witty writer. However, it was the substance of the book that caught my attention - and got me thinking. Allow me to express my questions below.

Regarding Lamott's faith maybe hers is best be described as general spirituality. Some have described her as, "A Presbyterian in dreadlocks who wears a red cotton cord blessed by the Dalai Lama and a Virgin Mary medallion... She believes in karma, and swears. A lot." However, she also claims to be a 'born-again Christian'. I wonder what that means, (born-again Christian?) and wish she would have revealed more about that.

She's been applauded for her easily trusted essays as they don't try to 'convince the reader of anything'. Is there anything she's garnered through her years worthy of promoting to others? If so, wouldn't convincing 'the reader of anything' be a virtue?

Lamott's spirituality comes into clearer focus when she writes, "God has extremely low standards." I was thinking, would Jesus have suggested the same or the opposite? She goes on to say, "Pray, take care of people, be actively grateful for your blessings, give away your money -- you're cool. You're in." I wondered how the Christian doctrine of salvation through faith in Jesus fits with her suggestion of salvation through being a good person? Are they the same - because they appear to be different?

Of course her trademark quirky sense of humor helps smooth over many of the rough spots. In fact, she uses it with incredible precision. However, I wanted her to explain her terms and ideas in greater detail.

Anne LaMott never ceases to amaze me with her honest vulnerability and complete faith in God. Her writing is so open, so willing to admit her own weaknesses, as she said at the Politics and Spirituality conference in Washington, DC this past weekend (January 14-16, 2006) "If you want healing, pull out your secrets." And in sharing hers with us, readers are reminded of the spiritual freedom of surrendering our own insecurities. A truly inspiring writer and speaker.

Anne Lamott's certainly an engaging and witty writer. However, it was the substance of the book that caught my attention - and got me thinking. Allow me to express my questions below.

Regarding Lamott's faith maybe hers is best be described as general spirituality. Some have described her as, "A Presbyterian in dreadlocks who wears a red cotton cord blessed by the Dalai Lama and a Virgin Mary medallion... She believes in karma, and swears. A lot." However, she also claims to be a 'born-again Christian'. I wonder what that means, (born-again Christian?) and wish she would have revealed more about that.

She's been applauded for her easily trusted essays as they don't try to 'convince the reader of anything'. Is there anything she's garnered through her years worthy of promoting to others? If so, wouldn't convincing 'the reader of anything' be a virtue?

Lamott's spirituality comes into clearer focus when she writes, "God has extremely low standards." I was thinking, would Jesus have suggested the same or the opposite? She goes on to say, "Pray, take care of people, be actively grateful for your blessings, give away your money -- you're cool. You're in." I wondered how the Christian doctrine of salvation through faith in Jesus fits with her suggestion of salvation through being a good person? Are they the same - because they appear to be different?

Of course her trademark quirky sense of humor helps smooth over many of the rough spots. In fact, she uses it with incredible precision. However, I wanted her to explain her terms and ideas in greater detail.

First, let me say, that I absolutely ADORE "Bird by Bird" and "Traveling Mercies." Anne Lamott is unlike any writer I've ever read. She is honest, sincere and tremendously funny.

Second, I must admit that I am not fully eligible to write a review for this book; I have not yet read it. But, what I must say is that I did read the first chapter, and on that I will base my review.

The first paragraph of the book begins by bashing George W. Bush. I have figured out that Lamott is a liberal from her other books, and I still love and respect them, but this book starts off on a whole different note from her others.

I respect Anne Lamott, and in time, I will read the entire book, and I will write another review if my opinions have changed. But for now, I will wait until it comes out in soft cover. (A bit less expensive, as I feel that purchasing the hardcover is a little too much: I don't agree with a word she said in the first chapter.)

Happy reading if you choose to do so!

This book seemed more somber to me than Traveling Mercies, but once you stopped looking for the laughs it was easy to become enthralled with the writing. There should be another phrase to describe Lamott besides "down to earth," as she is that and more. Another book to buy and read again and again for the first time.

...I got so weary of the incessant complaining about the current government administration. I would've rather she filled those pages with more stuff about her family, her mom, her son. But every time she turned around she was complaining about the government. It was the same kind of thing that really hurt Tony Hendra's "Father Joe" in my opinion, but here it's much more damaging to the flow of the book. Once I "kinda" got past that it was a great read, but not nearly as memorable as her previous memoir, "Traveling Mercies." Worth a read if you love Annie's writing, and I do, but probably to be missed otherwise.

The humor and insights into spiritual and messy real life will simply make you feel better about yourself. Anne is a gifted writer and I have enjoyed reading this as well as listening to her read it as a recording. Great to listen to on a road trip!

Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith contains a series of essays by Lamott from her salon.com column that she wrote during the beginning of the Iraq War. As a left wing Christian, Lamott understandably has trouble with the war and George W. Bush. As if that weren't enough, she is also turning 50 and her son is becoming a teenager. Lamott writes of all these things with great candor and humor. She is breathtakingly honest, but not in a way that makes me cringe or think "too much information." She also writes of friends and loved ones with great affection and compassion that manages to avoid sentimentality. Lamott has the ability to be very funny and very wise at the same time, which is always a pleasure. As a person who more and more searches for straight forward honesty, I find Anne Lamott a welcome breath of fresh air. I highly recommend this book.

I thought this book was fabulous. I totally dug the journal, storytelling feel of her writing style. Regardless of whether or not you appreciate her more liberal political views, she still brings an honest and refreshing look into what it takes to truly be a follower of God and the scriptures. She is the first to admit that she has problems with always following the "rules" but approaches them in a way that keeps you engaged in the story... like you are sitting next to her in a coffee shop.

Lamott has obviously run out of gas. She should have stopped writing long ago. She seems to have lost her joy and her muse. This book drones on and on, and it's a downer. It's also preachy. It's like a boring letter that goes on and on, but it's not a good book to read. I'm sorry I got it.

Anne Lamott is not for the faint-hearted. A bookseller and I agreed last week that Lamott is an acquired taste and more enjoyable if you've read a lot of theology and still find your heart is broken. Lamott reminds us that sanitized piety should not be confused with real faith; that Jesus Himself had radical ideas and didn't sit around worrying about whether our kids are watching PG movies.

Lamott's personal relationship with Jesus is one she's forged on her own, against all odds, reminding us that faith doesn't always come in an apple-pie/right-wing/Miss-America package. She is a roll-up-your-sleeves-and-get-to-work Christian -- a Christian who knows that it isn't enough to sit around quoting the Bible to be a good human being. Admitting her broken-ness and allowing us to laugh with her, we open our hearts to our own humanity. What a relief.

I found this book funny, quirky, amusing, and even thought provoking. Some people may not like the way Anne Lamott talks about God and religion but then you can't please everyone. This book is a quick read - like a patchwork quilt of short stories woven together by the thread that is Anne Lamott's life.

Bad thoughts about George W. Bush, or maybe all the Hershey Bars I ate, kept me awake again last night so I prayed for the grace to endure another miserable day in Marin County. My son Sam interrupted my morning meditation over a cup of free trade coffee by saying my dreads were more Farina of the Little Rascals than Rasta, but I could feel the Holy Spirit in the kitchen telling me it's not too late to sell the kid to the gypsies. Then I prayed please Jesus send some good news, because I like to think of Jesus doing that. And when I went to the post office there was an invitation to participate in a week long Conference on Spiritual Something or Other this February in Maui, with airfare, room, surfing lessons and lei included. Jesus would have driven a hybrid woody. As a Buddhist monk said to me, "A rolling Bodhisatva doesn't smoke moss." Later a friendly, fuzzy, handsome man from my church I used to have sex with and broke up with because that's how I am with men (but he's still better than the best guy you ever had) took me out to lunch and I prayed that the sushi would be fresh and tasty.

I am a longtime Anne Lamott fan from Tiburon California, and a left-leaning democrat of eclectic but genuine faith. So you'd think this would be right up my street. I think of Anne as part of home, but I fear she's lost her mind. I loved Traveling Mercies: it didn't preach, it was funny, it was full of mercy and joy and wonder. Plan B is strident, arrogant, ignorant, and narrow-minded. I can't imagine who would like it. Annie! Quick, call your friends and get your joy of spirit back! And send Sam to a relative until you recover your sense of humor and proportion, for goodness sake!

Full of herself, full of ignorance, full of hatred, full of superiority.

I liked "Bird by Bird" but this book is just a continuous rant. And I don't really like rants that go on and on. A good short rant, to the point, that can be interesting, but she says this book is thoughts on faith. It's really not. It's just her blabbing on and on and on and on.

She seems so proud when she writes of how she screams at her son and then apologizes! Wow. What a good parent! Why doesn't she just control herself in the first place? It's all about HER.

I really tried to like this book but it is offensive.

A friend loaned me the book. I gave it a good try. I began each essay and finished about half, got 1/2 way thru the rest.

Her irrational hatred of Pres. Bush is strange, really on the edge. I wonder if Lamott is still sober. There isn't a lot of humility here.

Her nobility almost overwhelms her, she is so wonderful.

She "slips" when talking to a black friend and makes an insensitive, somewhat racist remark. What she said was what she really means, even though she says she didn't mean it like it sounded. It's obvious she's the superior person. Her true character shows in this book.

One essay "this dog's life" is sickening. Her dog is sick, dying, but she has a vet (a jerk in my opinion) who doesn't believe in putting animals down unless they are in pain -- even if the animal is dying -- and he gives Anne syringes of sedative for when the time comes that dog is almost dead. The labored breathing of the dog concerns Lamott but her vet assures her the dog doesn't feel any pain. As someone who has had many dogs, I wonder how that vet could tell by listening to the dog's breathing over the phone that the dog was not in pain! (I couldn't help but think of Terri Schiavo.) This is a quote of what the vet says: "She's not really in distress," he assured me [Lamott]. "This is hard work, like labor. And she has you, Jesus, and narcotics. We should all by so lucky."

Excuse me, I think I'll go throw up now.

Lamott is fun to read. She's poetic, intelligent, articulate, and sincere. In contrast, many of her reviewers here on the store demonstrate what is repugnant about so many self-proclaimed Believers: their self-righteous intolerance in the name of the Lord. In the Good Book which the Spirit writes on true hearts, Lamott's pious detractors will Burn in Hell for all Eternity: they didn't love their neighbors as themselves, nor did they love God first: They loved their own misguided and pompous interpretations of God first. In contrast, Lamott is humble and a true seeker. More power to her! (Actually, I believe the pious detractors will be forgiven, too: but perhaps not for a while!)

Plan B contains what you expect from Lamott, both good and bad. The good include her reflections on faith and growing older. I especially appreciated her thoughts on her son's adolescence. However, for the bad, her liberal political views wear less well after 9/11. Worth the read, but....

I love books and reading. I read Traveling Mercies and enjoyed it and learned and was touched by it. I tried to read this book but couldn't get past the Bush bashing. Comparing him to Osama bin Laden was the last straw. I wouldn't recommend this book to anybody, except maybe Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid.

I liked Blue Shoes and Traveling Mercies. Fortunately I perused enough at the bookshop to know to get this from the Library (Sorry, the store). But even then I wasted too much on gasoline for what this book was worth!!

Aimless meandering, mindless ranting would have been a better title than Plan B. The anger and one-sidedness of her political views became too much to bear. I put the book down in disgust and will not finish it.

Anne Lamott is absolutely wonderful at showing the reader where God's grace has entered her life and thus helping us, the readers, to be more awake to grace in our own lives. But, her constant references to her dislike of George Bush (either one) detract from her message and serve no useful purpose (except perhaps catharsis on her part). If I hadn't already read Traveling Mercies I might have put this one down after the first page. I chose to read on because I know what truth and life can be found in her writings.

I was incredibly disappointed with this book. I've greatly loved everything else I've read by Ms Lamott (Bird by Bird, Operating Instructions and Traveling Mercies were all phenomenally funny, real,and wise), but this book seemed to be a mish-mash of nothingness. I was hoping for a further exploration of her faith, much in the same vein as Traveling Mercies, however, Plan B was less of a treatise on "the journey" and more of a vehicle to bash the Bush administration.

What a disappointment.

The difference between a bad movie and a bad book is both will be a waste of time and money -- but only the book will leave you emotionally spent. The bad movie does -- and often will -- allow one to close weary and heavy lids with perchance to dream. There's no chance of slumbering with Anne Lamott's dry-drunk rage against the evils of the GOP, the evil George Bush, his far too proper and prim wife Laura Bush, the bad daddy patriarch and also heinously evil George Herbert Walker Bush, and let's -- for convenience sake -- apply the aforementioned traits to the only superficially kind Barbara Bush, and, at last, in what you'll discover is only a rare and occasional lapse of fevered hatred in Lamott's faith meditation, a milder rant or two heaped upon former attorney general John Ashcroft and defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Somehow I feel I've missed someone. But perhaps you're concerned with the possible harshness of the term dry-drunk? Yes, I know that categorizing the saintly Lamott as a dry-drunk may seem so, but when St. Anne gives no quarter to a Bush DUI transgression of thirty years ago what choice is there? You only get what you give is the law of reciprocity -- another Christian principle.

So the assessment stands: Anne Lamott is a dry-drunk. She's funny, but she's also mean and angry, and yet to her credit admits as much. I hope she can unravel her own personal bitter knots while being a bit lenient on elected officials, and those within Christ's Church who happen to be outside her immediate circle of enlightened bay-area adherents. It's big world outside of that tiny, provincial burg of San Francisco. Find the Joy, Anne, and by all means share it, but please leave the liberal angst aside. The Sixties are so over, baby.

I found this book so disappointing. One might expect more growth and love and tolerance from someone who embraced a spiritual path - how many years has it been? The narcissism and whining and self-indulgence is wearing pretty thin. Like another reader, I will definitely take a closer look before investing in another book by Ms. Lamott, hoping to see some growth and transcendence.