"Heroic... fascinating." –
New York Times "Inspirational... exuberant." –
Los Angeles Times "Revelatory...
Where the Heart Beats may not just be
the best book written yet about John Cage; it's probably also one of the most substantive-yet-readable entryways into the nexus of 20th-century American art and the immortal qualities of Eastern thought...
one of the most profound, not to mention unexpected, gifts imaginable."–
Slate "Absorbing... no future commentator on Cage's work or influence will be able to ignore Larson's contribution...
a milestone in contemporary cultural criticism." –San Francisco Chronicle "
Remarkable... without a doubt the richest, most stimulating, most absorbing book I've read in the past year, if not decade – remarkably researched, exquisitely written, weaving together a great many threads of cultural history into a holistic understanding of both Cage as an artist and Zen as a lens on existence... Not unlike Cage's music,
Where the Heart Beats: John Cage, Zen Buddhism, and the Inner Life of Artists is impossible to distill, to synthesize, to relay. Rather, its goodness is best experienced in full, with complete surrender. "–
Brain Pickings "Strange and wonderful...
a gloriously rich reading experience, studded with layers upon layers of deeply inspiring and endlessly fascinating paths.
One of the best books of the year in any category." –NPR.org (
A Favorie Music Book of the Year)
