Story telling and poetry are two of the most effective methods that Ted uses in his teaching and counseling. See below for details about books that Ted has written.
United States residents, a printable order form (PDF) is available for all books
Ambiguous Parables: Poems and Prose of Loss and Renewal
The collected prose and poetic pages herein are the voice of a man seeking greater comfort with ambiguity. What seems to be is not always what is. A life-long quest has been to find words – the words of others through conversations, poetry, song lyrics, fiction, non-fiction, scriptures – and/or my own words – to acknowledge and address ambiguous experiences. To find, years ago, these lines in James Baldwin’ s Another Country, resonated and affirmed my quest. “…one is never what one seems — never — and yet, what one seems to be is probably, in some sense, almost exactly what one is”
Crossroads is a book about living and dying, sickness and health, youth and aging, caregiver to care receiver and other crossroads in one’s life. Using poems, stories and reflective pages, Ted invites readers to explore life’s crossroads.
The book can be used as a reflection resource for individuals, for family and group discussions or as a retreat/teaching resource for congregations and other settings.
Read reviews of Crossroads (PDF)
Loss of Dreams: A Special Kind of Grief
This book seeks to have a written conversation with the reader, identifying kinds of loss, and
embracing grief as part of the healing process.
Finding Hope When Dreams Have Shattered
Here are stories about how people have found hope in the face of tragedy and loss. I have added a commentary or reflection to many of them.
The Wind Blows, the Ice Breaks
Poems of Loss and Renewal by Minnesota Poets
edited by Ted Bowman and Elizabeth Bourque Johnson
This anthology contains a wide array of poems by Minnesota poets dealing with the experience of personal loss, grief, and recovery. Among the specific themes are divorce, the death of a child, the loss of innocence, giving up a child for adoption, and domestic violence. But although the focus is on loss and grief, the poems also carry moving descriptions of healing and the return of high spirits. It will appeal to those who have suffered loss and are experiencing grief, to those who are helping a loved one through dark times, and also to a wider audience of readers who simply appreciate good poetry.
You can read more about this book (PDF), and read a review by Geri Chavis (PDF)
It Starts With Hope
The Center for Victims of Torture (CVT) is a global nongovernmental organization based in St. Paul, Minnesota, with locations around the world, including Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya, Uganda, and the United States. At CVT we extend multidisciplinary rehabilitative care to torture survivors every day. And we are inspired by the hope that torture survivors who come to our doors in search of healing share with us as they rebuild their lives. We see hope every day.
In honor of our 30th anniversary, CVT asked individuals to share with us what hope means to them. From around the world, people sent original photos, poems, essays, and messages of hope, which we published on Tumblr: https://itstartswithhope.tumblr.com/
We are very grateful to our many contributors for their beautiful work and their engaging spirit. We invite you to look through this collection and share a moment of hope.
Find out more about the book at: https://www.cvt.org/itstartswithhope
The Center for Victims of Torture, St. Paul, Minnesota
Ted Bowman 