Leaving My Father's House

We can't think about fathers without thinking about how our relationships with the men in our lives are shaped by the patriarchal culture in which we live. Leaving My Father's House offers the personal journeys of three wise women, mapping for us the process of understanding and turning away from the constraints that we must transcend if we are to become individuals, both strong and feminine at the same time. Each woman takes a different journey toward her own truth, each defines herself in different ways as she creates her own house, her own space, her own personal time. Working with dreams, journals, spaces, art, and music, the three women show us how to see our lives and our surroundings as metaphors for the process of interior growth, and teach us to understand how important it is to leave our Father's house in order to build and furnish the home of our own spirits. This isn't an easy book--the narratives are dense and interwoven and the language is influenced by Woodman's Jungian perspective. But for women who want to explore the archetype of the Father's House and its crucial importance in our lives, this is a classic must-read book. by Susan Wittig Albert for Story Circle Book Reviews www.storycirclebookreviews.org reviewing books by, for, and about women

Buy this book if 1. You're looking to go there. 2. You're tired of pretending. 3. You want to read something your body likes as well as your head. 4. The book falls off the shelf and hits you on the head.

In middle age,life can seem to drag to a halt. Marion Woodman and her coauthors demonstrate that the richest part of inner work is possible when we no longer are focusing most of our energy on the outer world of our families,or our careers. the stories these women tell of their own dream journeys are almost beyond belief, and inspired me to resume dream work i abandoned years ago. the journey never ends, and Leaving My Father's House begins a whole new ring on the spiral to wholeness. my only complaint is that at times the book felt too wordy.

If life had a reading list, this book would certainly be on it. Woodman does a supreme job of linking the women's narratives -- clarifying and filling in their experiences in archtypical and Jungian terms -- without dimming the spotlight on their individual experiences. How long will we live our lives unwhole and blaming others (or even ourselves!) for our unhappiness? Until we all read this book and others like it, I'd guess.

With this book, Marion Woodman guides us through a complex and difficult journey. Her work with women through the often painful and lonely process of coming into their own life is shared with wisdom, compassion and deep love. I have found this book to be fundamental to my growth and my process. The women who shared their stories have enriched my life and have helped guide me on my way. I've given this book as a gift to many women friends, and I feel it can be a helpful and useful tool for anyone embarking on the inner journey.