The Forgotten Map - by Paula Huston (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

How can a spiritual journey of the past inform the quest for hope and meaning amid today's challenges and struggles?

Gen Z, the teens and young adults born between 1997 and 2012, are a record-setting generation. The first cohort of "digital natives," they master cutting edge technology with ease. Told to pursue what makes them happy, they freely explore a myriad of lifestyle options. And if they run into problems, they seek counseling without fear of being stigmatized. Yet, Gen Z suffers from depression, anxiety, and suicide at rates far higher than the already alarming levels suffered by generations before them. In The Forgotten Map, award-winning writer Paula Huston builds a bridge across the generational divide to offer questers of all ages a way toward hope and meaning.

Part trail guide, part cultural critique, and part spiritual autobiography, The Forgotten Map describes Huston's own search for meaning and the profoundly rich and psychologically powerful monastic view of life that came to shape her journey. The book is divided into nine parts, with each chapter devoted to a classic phase of Huston's personal pilgrimage and concluded by a note meant especially for Gen Z questers, perfect for use in an intergenerational conversation or reading group. In The Forgotten Map, Huston's lively and honest storytelling invites readers to embark on an individual quest for self-knowledge and a transformative search for the lost wisdom of ancient Christianity.

Review Quotes

"I found it hard to turn out the lights and put down this bold, challenging, and insightful book. Though aimed at Gen Z seekers, it is truly for all of us who have ever felt uncertain and alone and yearned for a deeper connection with others and with the sacred and transcendent. There is truly a map we can follow for coping with our hyper-competitive, confusing, and often disturbing world. Thanks to Paula Huston, it is forgotten no more."
Judith Valente, author of The Art of Pausing and The Italian Soul: How to Savor the Full Joys of Life

"A millennium and a half ago, Augustine identified something that is constant from generation to generation. It is the restless heart of seekers longing for God--whether or not they know it's God they desire. In a book deeply personal and vulnerable, Paula Huston sketches the restless heart of Gen Z and shows us how to speak to it. Recommended."
Mike Aquilina, Contributing Editor, Angelus News

"Paula Huston's The Forgotten Map is a resourceful spiritual and psychological map not only for our Gen Zers, but for all of us searching for our true North Star, where our restless hearts can find the peace we long for. With her vibrant style and wit, she takes us on a spiritual journey across the continents and shows us that, having done the hard work of leaving behind the empty call of modern technology and other idols, and trusting instead to the three-thousand year history of spiritual meditation, Huston is that rare guide we can trust."
Paul Mariani, poet, biographer, teacher, and author of Sing Me a Song, She Said

About the Author

National Endowment of the Arts Fellow Paula Huston is a longtime oblate of New Camaldoli Hermitage. She is the author of two novels and eight works of spiritual nonfiction, including The Hermits of Big Sur, and One Ordinary Sunday: A Meditation on the Mystery of the Mass, published by Liturgical Press. She lives with her husband Mike on four acres eighty miles south of Big Sur, where they grow olives, keep bees, and raise vegetables. Endlessly inspired by two devoted dogs and five fascinating grandchildren, she spends her days in the garden, the kitchen, and her writing studio. She is a contributor to Give Us This Day, published by Liturgical Press.