The Great Oom: The Improbable Birth Of Yoga In America (2010) - Plot & Excerpts
Very interesting story of the man who turned yoga into a viable pastime in the USA. At first reviled, later revered, finally dying in obscurity. Teacher to most of the generation of yoga instructors who rose in the 1950s and later and friend to the wealthiest of families - Vanderbilts, Rutherfords, etc. - he amassed a small fortune and an extensive estate that slowly fell apart during the end of the Great Depression. The town where the "Great Oom" (Perry Baker, aka Pierre Bernard) lived his remarkable life is the town where I grew up and went to school. In fact, my middle school is built in the former location of Bernard's 'elephant barn." I heard the school referred to as "the elephant barn" when I was a student, but I never knew why it was called that. This book explains all that and a lot more. The book isn't really about the "birth of yoga" in America - I mean, it has to do with that - and it's not even really about The Great Oom - it's really about America between about 1900 and 1950. American fads, interests, prejudices, curiosity, and epic events form the steady backdrop that makes this book relevant to those who don't know the town of Nyack and can't picture the places referred to in Love's book. It is mind-boggling to me that my family lived in and around the locus of all the events related here from just before Bernard died, and that I grew up there without ever having heard a word about this guy or his incredible antics and endeavors. It's worth reading as a 3-star diversion if you're just curious about eccentric personalities. But if you have spent any time at all in Nyack, New York, you will be astonished to discover what an influence Oom had over the town for 4 decades, and how rapidly his name and influence faded as he aged and passed on.
What do You think about The Great Oom: The Improbable Birth Of Yoga In America (2010)?
a great book for a yogi living in the rockland county, ny area!
—banomusa
Chalaten? Genius? Raging charismatic leader? You decide.
—meyahshanel
