Mutant Message Down Under

I recently read a book called Mutant Message Down Under: A Woman's Journey into Dreamtime Australia by Marlo Morgan and have been skeptical about writing a blog post about it because of the controversy I feel about it. I couldn't even start another book for a week because I couldn't stop thinking about it (does that every happen to you? It happens to me all the time!). On one hand it is an incredible story about an Aboriginal walkabout one American woman is somewhat tricked into, full of words to live by and inspiration to sell everything you own and live as simply as possible. On the other, it is a complete lie.

The author of this book claims to be inspired by actual experience and for years this book was in the nonfiction section. After many Aboriginal leaders had voiced many fallacies written within this book and many people had questioned certain aspects of it, Marlo Morgan finally admitted that she never participated in an Aboriginal walkabout for three months.  I didn't know this when I was reading it, otherwise I most likely wouldn't have even begun. I managed to get past the less than average writing because I was so moved by the content, even though as the book progressed things started to seem a little unbelievable. This woman promoted her lie in lectures and even sold the rights to Hollywood to make a film for $1.8 million all the while offending the Aboriginals she wrote about. She found a way to make a quick buck in the 90's when all the rage was "new age" everything. 

After days of struggling with how to feel about this book, I have come to look at it as a purely fictional story, a fantastic story even if poorly written. Many of the messages in this story are universal and thought-provoking so I will share my favourites with you. If you have read this book in the past or are reading it now, I'm interested to hear what your thoughts are about it.

Also, I found this pretty interesting: A timeline of the events surrounding Marlo Morgan's Mutant Message Down Under
http://www.creativespirits.info/resources/books/marlo-morgan-mutant-message-down-under-timeline

"I now know we each have two lives: the one we learn by and the one after that...I have learned the difference between observing what is taking place and judging it."

"I came to the understanding that there would be some storms in my life, that people and things I had invested a lot of time and energy into were going to be laid aside, but now I knew what it felt like to be a centered, peaceful being, and I had that emotion to draw upon anytime I needed or wanted it. I learned I could live more than one life in a lifetime and that I had already experienced the closing of a door. I learned that a time had come where I could no longer stay with the people, the location, the values and beliefs I held. For my own soul growth I had gently closed a door and entered a new place, a new life that was equal to a step up a spiritual rung on a ladder."

"Most die never knowing what it feels like to have stood naked in the rain."