Boomeritis - (Novel That Will Set You Free) by Ken Wilber (Paperback)

About the Book

A brilliant and thought-provoking parody of the baby-boomer generation and postmodern culture from a leading philosopher.

Book Synopsis

Ken Wilber's latest book is a daring departure from his previous writings--a highly original work of fiction that combines brilliant scholarship with tongue-in-cheek storytelling to present the integral approach to human development that he expounded in more conventional terms in his recent A Theory of Everything.

The story of a naïve young grad student in computer science and his quest for meaning in a fragmented world provides the setting in which Wilber contrasts the alienated "flatland" of scientific materialism with the integral vision, which embraces body, mind, soul, and spirit in self, culture, and nature. The book especially targets one of the most stubborn obstacles to realizing the integral vision: a disease of egocentrism and narcissism that Wilber calls "boomeritis" because it seems to plague the baby-boomer generation most of all.

Through a series of sparkling seminar-lectures skillfully interwoven with the hero's misadventures in the realms of sex, drugs, and popular culture, all of the major tenets of extreme postmodernism are criticized--and exemplified--including the author's having a bad case of boomeritis himself. Parody, intellectual slapstick, and a mind-twisting surprise ending unite to produce a highly entertaining summary of the work of cutting-edge theorists in human development from around the world.

Review Quotes

"A highly entertaining postmodernist novel . . . destined to be a cult classic."--Library Journal

"Wilber, a hip and loquacious philosopher-guru, turns to fiction to flesh out, as it were, his provocative theories about humanity and the Boomers, the generation everyone, including themselves, loves to hate. His erudition is matched by a parodic sense of humor."--Booklist

"Boomeritis is brilliant."--Denver Post

"Wilber, a brilliant and prolific philosopher, serves up some hilarious and cutting commentary in Boomeritis. He hits the mark."--San Francisco Chronicle

"Ken Wilber, America's bad-ass bodhisattva, is the best philosopher-sage alive--and now this! The great postmodern novel. Characters that are so alive, so outrageous, and most of all, so damn lovable! I had a dozen satoris reading this novel, and so will you. It's a manual for falling awake."--Stuart Davis, Singer/songwriter

About the Author

Ken Wilber is the author of over twenty books. He is the founder of Integral Institute, a think-tank for studying integral theory and practice, with outreach through local and online communities such as Integral Education Network, Integral Training, and Integral Spiritual Center.