Quick Look
A popular biography of one of the most creative and prolific figures of the early twentieth century.
Description
Rudolf Steiner -- educator, architect, artist, philosopher and agriculturalist -- ranks amongst the most creative and prolific figures of the early twentieth century. Yet he remains a mystery to most people. This is the first truly popular biography of the man behind the ideas, written by a sympathetic but critical outsider.
Steiner is widely known for what he left behind: a network of Waldorf schools, biodynamic farming, Camphill schools and villages and pioneering work in holistic health and environmental research. Although his achievements are felt all over the world, few people understand this unusual figure. Steiner’s own writings fill several bookcases, but are often dense and ‘insider’ in tone.
Gary Lachman tells Steiner’s story lucidly and with great insight. He presents Steiner’s key ideas in a readable, accessible way, tracing his beginning as a young intellectual in the ferment of fin de siècle culture to the founding of his own metaphysical teaching, called anthroposophy.
This book is a full-bodied portrait of one of the most original philosophical and spiritual luminaries of the last two centuries.
Reviews
'Lachman brings one of the twentieth century's most enigmatic figures to life. A solid introduction to Steiner's life and thought.'
-- Booklist
'Lachman's colourful decriptions of Steiner's student days are one of many small details that make this book not only a very enjoyable read but also help to bring Rudolf Steiner alive as a human being in a way that I have seldom come across … The book gives serious and thoughtful attention to Rudolf Steiner's inner life, his supersensible experiences, and the unfolding of his mission … What I also admired in this book is that despite the fact that Lachman is clearly coming from a position of great admiration and respect, he is not afraid to ask a few awkward questions, and in so doing to gently rock the anthroposophical boat.'
-- Jonathan Stedall, New View, Summer 2007
'A very accessible account of the life and work of a philosopher and spiritual teacher whose writings often seem more difficult of access … Lachman's sympathetic, but not uncritical, account of his life is to be recommended to anyone who wishes to be better informed about this gifted and remarkable man.'
-- Kevin Tingay, The Christian Parapsychologist, December 2007
'[Gary Lachman] has rendered a great service to Steiner and his movement, as only a critical outsider could do. He deftly weaves together life and thought, skilfully navigating through the more controversial aspects of his teaching while leaving the reader free to decide their significance. The result is a rounded and fair portrait which can be thoroughly recommended to the general reader.'
-- Scientific and Medical Network Review, Winter 2007
Author
Gary Lachman is the former bass player and composer for Blondie, the guitarist for Iggy Pop, and leader of his own groups The Know and Fire Escape. He has written for the Times Literary Supplement, Literary Review and Mojo. He is the author of Turn Off Your Mind: The Mystic Sixties and the Dark Side of the Age of Aquarius, New York Rocker, A Secret History of Consciousness and In Search of P. D. Ouspensky. He lives in London.
