Those Beautiful Eyes

This lushly beautiful novel glides smoothly between ancient and modern realities, from temple gardens to San Francisco bedrooms, Greek Islands and African riverboats, giving a far-reaching perspective on human desire and compassion. In a farming village between Mesopotamia and Mohenjo-Daro, 2700 B.C., a young mother is about to become a medicine woman. Anarisha lies ill with fever that takes her into other identities. She lives out an alternative present, as priestess/courtesan of the goddess Inanna, and visits the lives of her own descendants-married multiracial filmmaker Michael Dagan; Michael's obsession, the beautiful Maria; and his "player" businessman father, Davidglobal-villagers of the 20/21st century. Within interconnected worlds, each a netherworld of self-delusion, Anarisha faces her greatest challenge. She must transcend the power of earthly attachment to reach the farther shore, as the Buddha named it, of all-seeing compassion. With exquisite voice, Lutzky provides a spellbinding experience of Anarisha's journey to serene awareness. Current intriguing knowledge of ancient archetypes, rituals, mythology and culture is interwoven with abundant insights into our last five decades-especially concerning nature and male/female relationship. Like beautiful eyes, this mesmerizing saga of the human family is both erotic and spiritual as it contemplates passion, impermanence, and transformation.