Losses and Gains: Reflections on a Life

Lya Luft draws on her own experiences of loss and gain in marriage and family to address the universal themes of childhood, love, and maturity. As children, the unconditional love we receive from our parents determines our expectations for all the other forms of love we experience later. And as adults, she argues, the complex task of loving another depends, initially, on self-love and self-esteem. Luft’s ardent reflections on existence and the human spirit are a powerful reminder to us all—we have lost everything only when we believe we deserve less than everything still to be gained.

Lya Luft began her career as a literary translator from German and English, translating such names as Virginia Woolf, Gunter Grass, and Thomas Mann; and subsequently became an author, publishing more than 15 books. Paulo Coelho is the author of such books as The Alchemist, and has sold?more than?100 million books in more than 150 countries worldwide.