by Malidoma Patrice Some'

"Where ritual is absent, the young oens are restless or violent, there are no real elders, and the grown-ups are bewildered. The future is dim." In the book the author explores the essential role ritual plays in maintaining community and examines the structure common to all ritual. By telling stories of the rituals of his native West African Dagara culture, and of his own experiences in the tribal community, he makes a convincing case that the lack of ritual in the Western world is a fundamental reason that the fabric of society is unravelling.