The Sacred Sites Bible: The Definitive Guide to Spiritual Places

Some people just want to sit by a pool on vacation. For those who have more spiritual pursuits in mind for their free time, this fat little book delivers a wide array of destinations to explore. Rather than grouping the sites by area, the text is arranged by type: landforms, shrines and groves, sacred stones and mounds, places of retreat, sages and saints, places of pilgrimage, and temples, churches, and cathedrals. Two-page spreads with nice color photos, a thumb-size map, and a couple paragraphs of description are devoted to each entry. In tiny print, the location, spiritual tradition, date of construction, and best times to visit the site are listed. Crossing the globe, the book features A-list places like Glastonbury and Machu Picchu but also includes less-well-known spiritual sites, including Norway’s Alta rock-carving caves and the many Indian temples. A solid introduction ruminates on the diverse ways in which people have worshiped the divine throughout history. --Ilene Cooper