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Zen Ghosts - Audio (2012)

by Jon J. Muth(Favorite Author)

4.19 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0545434289 (ISBN13: 9780545434287)

languge

English

genre

Paranormal Fantasy

publisher

Scholastic Audio Books

review 1: From the same author who brought us Zen Shorts and Zen Ties, comes another story about dual nature of being human. After a fruitful night of trick-or-treating, siblings Addy, Michael, and Karl meet their friend, Stillwater, the Zen Buddhist panda, at his house for a ghost story. The story is to be told by a mystery storyteller. The storyteller (who looks an awful lot like Stillwater) tells of two friends, Ochu and Senjo, who fall in love. When Senjo’s family arranges for her to marry another man, she and Ochu run away together. After years away, they return to find that Senjo’s father believes without a doubt that Senjo never left, but, rather, had been with him the whole time. Senjo does not seem surprised by this spooky detail. The two Senjos meet and merge into one... more. The storyteller ends with at question. He asks, “Which Senjo is the true one? Are they one or are they two?” When the story is finished, only the storyteller Stillwater remains in the room, the other has vanished! An author note at the end explains that this type of story is a koan, a riddle that one must ask and contemplate for oneself. The author’s note goes on to explain the history of this koan, and the importance of asking questions without easy answers. Similar to the other Zen books by Muth, this hair-raising ghost story will leave readers with deep questions about perception—this time specifically about how people can sometimes be more than one thing at once.
review 2: I have been a fan of Jon Muth from his earlier comics days with his work on “Meltdown: Wolverine and Havoc” and the epic “Moonshadow” series. Fantasy writer Micheal Moorcock said of Moonshadow ”This is an outstanding graphic tale, told at a level of literary and visual sophistication which introduced new standards and aspirations to the genre” Recently his storybook fiction has been equally stirring and eminently life-changing for me as both a former after-school librarian and a massive fan of zen tales and watercolors. Rarely does the poignancy of a koan combine with an emotional exploration as well as it does in Muth’s books.His newest book, “Zen Ghosts” follows the haiku speaking panda Stillwater and his young friends through an American Halloween. In a fashion similar to his earlier books “Zen Shorts” and “Zen Ties”, Muth ties together Asian and Buddhist thought in a framework that is easily identifiable by children while engaging to adults with little or no interest in Asian philosophy or culture ( or like me, has a massive interest in both). A wicker basket to be enjoyed for its utility or for the surprises held inside.In “Zen Ghosts”, Halloween serves as the backdrop to the Wu-men koan “Senjo and her soul are separated. Which is the true soul?” which was based upon the T’ang period ghost tale where the young girl Senjo appears as sick and lifeless to her parents after they refuse her wedding to the man she loves. The spirit of Senjo manifests into another form and runs off with her lover while her former self remains sick and listless in the house of her parents. Eventually, Senjo is reunited with her other self as her familial ties draw her back to her father’s household. less

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