Cathedrals of the Flesh: In Search of the Perfect Bath

by Alexia Brue

Book Overview

People journey to Greece for the ruins, Turkey for the Aya Sophia, and Russia for St. Basil's, but Alexia Brue travels with a different itinerary: to visit the baths. At once deeply personal and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1582341168
• ISBN13: 9781582341163
• Release Date: January 2003
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

FABULOUS!!!

I thought this was a fantastic book. I bought this book thinking that I'd get a relatively straightforward discussion of the history of bathing, but this is actually much more. The author, a young woman with a taste for adventure, writes about her own experiences as she tackles the problem of how to open a bathhouse, crossing the globe and visiting baths in many countries. But instead of taking a highly authoritative tone from the start, she begins with a naive, befuddled tone, describing how she practically stumbles into the bathing scene, seduced not only by the baths, but by the cultures and places she visits. As a reader, I can see the transformation of the author from a novice to an expert over the course of the book, which to me is reminiscent of some of the best travel writing (consider Bill Bryson's self-deprecatory writing, the feeling that on starting his journey, he is no more informed than you or me). I think this book is only partially about bathing, and equally about getting your imagination captured by something different and exciting. I found it really inspirational, it really gives a sense that there is nothing stopping the average reader from deciding to get on a plane and travel the world to learn about something completely different, even if you don't speak the language or don't have any technical experience. So much bad travel writing condescends to the reader, makes me feel that unless I've lived 25 years in Provence or have climbed Mt. Everest, I couldn't possibly appreciate the world. This book made me feel like, with a little bit of courage and a lot of excitement, even I could explore strange places and meet different people!

A Bather's Baedeker

This is a thoroughly delightful, often amusing, account of Alexia's search for the perfect bath. Once started, the book is difficult to put down; by the end, you not only know a bit more about her 'on hold' relationship with Charles, and want to know even more about her fascinating putative business partner Marina, but you have painlessly absorbed as much information as you could want to know about the differing characteristics of a variety of national public baths. Along the way, you will also have met a number of characters who are not easy to forget, and you will have a guide to which baths to use and which to avoid-of not inconsiderable benefit to one visiting Turkey who, like Alexia, is warned to avoid the 'unhygienic' baths in Istanbul. The evocative line drawings by Lynda Reeves McIntyre which appear at the head of each chapter fittingly complement the book. 

Even Better Than a Bath

This book's even better than a bath. Brue is a wonderful writer, but far beyond that, she's a wonderful story-teller. The quest for the perfect bath forms the plot line, but the quest makes a far richer tale than any particular bath. Even for those of us in quest of nothing more than a daily shower, this makes for wonderful reading, as Brue is witty, insightful, and above all humorous. While she acts humble as a stranger in strange lands pursuing a strange interest, she shouldn't be humble as a story-teller. She's gifted in taking a specialized field and making it lively, even delightful, to anyone who loves human nature and passions. I'd recommend it strongly -- and have to loads of people.

An approach to travel and an approach to life

I haven't read much travel writing so I wasn't really sure what to expect. I was drawn in from the very first page to a world of public bathing that I really had no idea existed. By the end of this book I feel that I desperately need to see the baths of Turkey, Russia, Finland and Japan. But what I also discovered is that I want to have Ms. Brue's intrepid sense of daring, her willingness to following the road as it unfolds before her, and her innate ability to have respect and reverence for the various cultures she visits(without sentamentalizing them or making them precious). Brue's question "was it an approach to travel or an approach to life?" stuck with me throughout. The delightful surprise was that the book is highly personal(funny and poignant) but also historical and informative.

Wonderful witty writing by an author who shows great promise

This book about a young woman's travels around the world to find the perfect spa is just the right thing to curl up with on a snowy weekend afternoon. The author serves up a delicious mix of eccentric characters, quirky encounters and fascinating history. The pages turn and you learn a lot without even knowing it! That's the perfect kind of nonfiction book, in my opinion. It's also inspired me to go visit a bath at the first possible opportunity.