
Phosphorescence
A Memoir of Finding Joy When Your World Goes Dark
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Narrated by:
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Julia Baird
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By:
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Julia Baird
“Both timeless and timely, this is a book of wisdom and wonder.” (Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of March)
A deeply personal exploration of what can sustain us through our darkest moments.
“What has fascinated and sustained me over these last few years has been the notion that we have the ability to find, nurture, and carry our own inner, living light - a light to ward off the darkness. This is not about burning brightly; it’s about yielding a more simple phosphorescence - being luminous, having stored light for later use. Staying alive, remaining upright, even when lashed by doubt.”
After surviving a difficult heartbreak and battle with cancer, acclaimed author and columnist Julia Baird began thinking deeply about how we, as people, persevere through the most challenging circumstances. She started to wonder, when we are overwhelmed by illness, loss or pain, or a tragedy outside our control: How can we keep putting one foot in front of the other? Baird went in search of the magic that fuels the light within - our own phosphorescence. In this stunning book, she reflects on the things that lit her way through the darkness, especially the surprising strength found in connecting with nature and not just experiencing awe and wonder about the world around her, but deliberately hunting it, daily.
Baird also writes about crossbeams of resilience: nurturing friendships and a quiet faith, pursuing silence, fighting for what she believes in, the importance of feeling small, learning from her mother's example of stoic grace. She also explores how others nurture their inner light, interviewing the founder of the modern forest therapy movement in Tokyo, a jellyfish scientist in Tasmania, and a tattooed priest from Colorado, among others.
Weaving together candid and moving memoir with deep research and reflections on nature and the world around her, Baird inspires listeners to embrace new habits and to adopt a phosphorescent outlook on life, to illuminate ourselves and our days - even in the darkest times.
©2021 Julia Baird (P)2021 Random House AudioListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
“Julia Baird is an alchemist, turning the dross of her life’s harshest blows into shimmering prose. Ravaged by a broken heart and debilitating cancer, she undertakes a careful examination of what might yet sustain her. Both timeless and timely, this is a book of wisdom and wonder.” (Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of March and Caleb’s Crossing)
“Julia Baird’s glorious and gorgeous memoir glows with wisdom and glitters with merriment. This beautiful book is a light in the darkness.” (Sy Montgomery, author of How to Be a Good Creature)
“This book is a love letter to the world by a brilliant writer who nearly left it. Julia Baird has gone into the depths of human experience - her own, and others’ - and come back with this luminous and profound celebration of people and the planet. Phosphorescence is a treasure to read and re-read your whole life.” (Anna Funder, author of All That I Am and Stasiland)
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Not for me
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Women, we need this.
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beautiful in it's simplicity
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Not what I was expecting
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Enchanting
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I felt the book told more than it showed, and I wanted a greater depth of feeling and insertion into the author's life than I received here. It seemed more surface level and a bit chaotic in organization.
There were moments of light and brightness, relatability and wisdom, but not enough, on the whole, for me to be able to recommend it to others.
I'd skip this particular one, in favor of Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown, Wintering by Katherine May, or, if you enjoy the more religious vein that Baird dives in and out of, Prayers in the Night by Tish Harrison Warren. Both provide a more grounded, real approach to these topics.
However, I must still applaud Ms. Baird for daring to tell her story-- all of our stories are unique, and telling them and sharing them is a brave act of solidarity. I will leave this book without much but this-- a new intrigue with the beauty of the Bay she loves so much.
Starts strong but doesn’t meet the mark
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the title is nice
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