Skip to content

At Hell's Gate: A Soldier's Journey (signed)
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

At Hell's Gate: A Soldier's Journey (signed) Hardcover - 2004

by Thomas, Claude Anshin (signed)

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • Signed
  • first

Description

Boston & London: Shambhala, 2004. INSCRIBED / SIGNED by the AUTHOR directly on the half title page. Fine condition in a bright and shiny Very Good+ dust jacket (only light shelfwear). NO chips, tears or fading. NOT price clipped ($19.95). Sharp corners. NOT a library discard. NOT a remainder. Pages are crisp, clean and unmarked. Illustrated with 8 pages of photos. Contents: Preface, Appendix, Further Reading, Acknowledgments, The Zaltho Foundation, and 6 chapters" The Seeds of War; The Light at the Tip of the Candle; The Bell of Mindfulness; If You Blow Up a Bridge, Build a Bridge; Walking to Walk; and Finding Peace. Bound in the orginal gilt-stamped green boards. From the dust jacket: "In this raw and moving memoir, Claude Thomas tells the dramatic story of his service in Vietnam, his subsequent emotional collapse, and how he was ultimately able to find healing and peace. Thomas went to Vietnam at the age of eighteen, where he served as a crew chief on assault helicopters. By the end of his tour, he had been awarded numerous medals, including the Purple Heart. He had also killed many people, witnessed horrifying cruelty, and narrowly escaped death on a number of occasions. When Thomas returned home he found that he continued to live in a state of war. He was overwhelmed by feelings of guilt, fear, anger, and despair, all of which were intensified by the rejection he experienced as a Vietnam veteran. For years, Thomas struggled with post-traumatic stress, drug and alcohol addiction, isolation, and even homelessness. A turning point came when he attended a meditation retreat for Vietnam veterans led by the renowned Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh. Here he encountered the Buddhist teachings on meditation and mindfulness, which helped him to stop running from his past and instead confront the pain of his war experiences directly and compassionately. Thomas was eventually ordained as a Zen monk and teacher, and he began making pilgrimages to promote peace and nonviolence in war-scarred places around the world including Bosnia, Auschwitz, Afghanistan, Vietnam, and the Middle East. AT HELL'S GATE is Thomas's dramatic coming-of-age story and a spiritual travelogue from the horrors of combat to discovering a spiritual approach to healing violence and ending war from the inside out. In simple and direct language, Thomas shares timeless teachings on healing emotional suffering and offers us practical guidance in using mindfulness and compassion to transform our lives.". INSCRIBED / SIGNED by the AUTHOR. First Printing of the First Edition. Hardcover. Fine condition/Very Good+ dust jacket. Illus. by NOT a library discard. xii, 168pp. Great Packaging, Fast Shipping.
Used - Fine condition
NZ$55.66
NZ$10.80 Shipping to USA
Standard delivery: 7 to 14 days
More Shipping Options
Ships from About Books (Nevada, United States)

About About Books Nevada, United States

Biblio member since 2008
Seller rating: This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.

About Books (Genny and Michael Winne, proprietors, formerly of Parsippany, New Jersey) has been selling rare and OP books since 1985. Besides book fairs and mail-order catalogues, long-time collectors and dealers will remember our lengthy For Sale ads in the Antiquarian Bookman and similar magazines. Our inventory of over 40,000 volumes is especially strong in the specialties listed, but contains fine books in a variety of other fields as well. Because most of our books are stored in protective boxes, rather than on shelves, they cannot be viewed as a whole. If you wish to visit us to examine specific titles, please provide 24 hours notice and we will make them available for your inspection. Phone calls to (702) 750-2722 are welcome, but please, only between the hours of 8am and 10pm (west coast time).

Terms of Sale:

Please add 8.375% sales tax for any order sent to a Nevada address (unless you have provided an official resale or tax exemption certificate). All items are guaranteed as described. We take pride in our book descriptions. Every item is meticulously examined so that condition and edition are listed as accurately as possible. We strive to provide pertinent bibliographical details. In addition, our listings frequently include content summaries, details on provenance, and/or biographical notes on the author. Our descriptions are protected by copyright, and unauthorized use is strictly prohibited. Violators will be prosecuted. We always take the time necessary to carefully package your order so that it arrives safely and securely. Shipping cost estimates are based on an average size book and are intended to cover only our actual expenses. If your order includes multiple volumes, oversize, heavy, or valuable items, we may contact you to request authorization for additional postage. RETURNS: If not as described, your order is returnable within 10 days of receipt. Prior notice is requested and appreciated. Returns must be securely packaged and arrive here safely. A full refund will be issued if the return is attributable to a mistake on our part; otherwise shipping costs are not refundable.

Browse books from About Books

Details

  • Title At Hell's Gate: A Soldier's Journey (signed)
  • Author Thomas, Claude Anshin (signed)
  • Illustrator NOT a library discard
  • Binding Hardcover
  • Edition First Printing of the First Edition
  • Condition Used - Fine condition
  • Pages 144
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Shambhala, Boston & London
  • Date 2004
  • Illustrated Yes
  • Bookseller's Inventory # 030019
  • ISBN 9781590301340 / 159030134X
  • Weight 0.85 lbs (0.39 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.88 x 6.32 x 0.81 in (22.56 x 16.05 x 2.06 cm)
  • Library of Congress subjects Vietnam War, 1961-1975 - Veterans - United, Buddhist converts - United States
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 2004002765
  • Dewey Decimal Code B

From the publisher

Claude Anshin Thomas went to Vietnam at the age of eighteen, where he received numerous awards and decorations, including twenty-seven Air Medals, a Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Purple Heart. Today he is a monk in the Soto Zen tradition and an active speaker and Zen teacher in the United States and Europe. He is also the founder of the Zaltho Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes peace and nonviolence (www.zaltho.org). This is his first book.

Categories

Media reviews

"Written with relentless courage and utter compassion, this account of violence and transformation is one of the most amazing and wonderful stories I've ever read."—Michael Herr, author of Dispatches

"This is a book of great power. Thomas's pilgrimage to find living peace in a world full of terror and war gives us a wonderfully practical lesson in how to lift ourselves out of the insanity of fear, hatred, violence, and trauma. His singularly courageous story has the power to heal, to inspire, to teach."—John Laurence, former CBS News correspondent and author of The Cat from Hue: A Vietnam War Story

"A powerful, wise, and genuinely profound spiritual odyssey from the insanity of violence (in the world, within ourselves, and in the assumptions of American culture) to the peace and compassion of mindfulness practice. Thomas beautifully models Zen teachings in his daily life, and by doing so he enlightens and liberates us all."—Charles Johnson, winner of the National Book Award for Middle Passage

"Claude Anshin Thomas has been an inspiration to me. Our world urgently needs to listen to him tell of his life in war and then in peace."—Maxine Hong Kingston, author of The Woman Warrior

"Thomas's journey from the killing fields of Vietnam to the path of peace and pilgrimage testifies to his—and our—powerful urge to awaken. At the same time, this is not a pretty story. Anshin Thomas has lived in hell, knows its smell and taste, and continues to confront it every day of his life. Yet he remains undeterred in his work to make peace in himself and the world at large."—Bernie Glassman, author of Instructions to the Cook and Bearing Witness

About the author

Claude Anshin Thomas went to Vietnam at the age of eighteen, where he received numerous awards and decorations, including twenty-seven Air Medals, a Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Purple Heart. Today he is a monk in the Soto Zen tradition and an active speaker and Zen teacher in the United States and Europe. He is also the founder of the Zaltho Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes peace and nonviolence (www.zaltho.org). This is his first book.