LOZOFF, Bo 1947-

PERSONAL:

Born January 10, 1947, in Miami, FL; son of Eli Saul and Molly (in real estate; maiden name, Rubitzky) Lozoff; married; wife's name Sita (a nonprofit manager); children: Joshua Elias. Politics: "Radical simplicity." Religion: "Yes!" Hobbies and other interests: Singer and songwriter.

ADDRESSES:

Office—Human Kindness Foundation, P.O. Box 61619, Durham, NC 27715. Agent—Robin Dellabough, Lark Productions, 145 Palisade St., No. 244, Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Hanuman Foundation, Santa Fe, NM, prison-ashram project director, 1973-87; Human Kindness Foundation, Mebane, NC, founder and director, 1987—.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Temple Award for creative altruism; honorary doctorate, Chicago Theological Seminary; Partner of God Award, One Spirit Interfaith Seminary.

WRITINGS:

We're All Doing Time, Human Kindness Foundation (Durham, NC), 1984.

Lineage and Other Stories, Human Kindness Foundation (Durham, NC), 1989.

Just Another Spiritual Book, Human Kindness Foundation (Durham, NC), 1990.

Deep and Simple, Human Kindness Foundation (Durham, NC), 1999.

It's a Meaningful Life, It Just Takes Practice, Viking (New York, NY), 2000.

(With Michael Braswell and John Fuller) Corrections, Peacemaking, and Restorative Justice: Transforming Individuals and Institutions, Anderson Publishing (Cincinnati, OH), 2001.

The Wonderful Life of a Fly Who Couldn't Fly, Hampton Roads (Charlottesville, VA), 2002.

Also author of Inside Corrections: Finding Peace and Peace Making. Contributor to periodicals, including Whole Earth Review.

SIDELIGHTS:

Bo Lozoff is the founder of the Human Kindness Foundation and one of the Utne Reader's One Hundred Spiritual Visionaries. He is also the author of books on self-help topics, including It's a Meaningful Life, It Just Takes Practice and The Wonderful Life of a Fly Who Couldn't Fly.

In It's a Meaningful Life, It Just Takes Practice, Lozoff presents a number of techniques for making everyday life simpler and less stressful. Each chapter begins with typical questions concerning such topics as cooking or child raising and ends with practical suggestions for making these activities more meaningful. His suggestions range from the use of traditional meditative practices of both the East and West to getting your family out of debt. Along the way, he criticizes the spiritual damage done by the modern consumerist society and stresses the importance of reconnecting with family and friends. "Lozoff's thoroughgoing and trenchant criticism of contemporary society helps his cry for simplicity stand out in the crowd," according to a critic for Publishers Weekly. Leroy Hommerding of Library Journal described the book as "a sharing of nearly thirty-five years of study, practice, and hands-on experimentation with interfaith spiritual teachings."

Lozoff addresses himself to a younger audience with his book The Wonderful Life of a Fly Who Couldn't Fly. A picture-book story told in rhyme, the tale tells of a little girl fly who cannot grow wings like the other flies. Her mother assures her that the lack of wings does not make her worthless. "Love each precious moment of life's sweet song," the mother explains. Sally R. Dow, in a review of The Wonderful Life of a Fly Who Couldn't Fly for School Library Journal, called Lozoff's story "upbeat" despite its "moralistic tone and message."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Journal of Criminal Law, winter, 1989, review of Inside Corrections: Finding Peace and Peace Making, p. 278.

Human Rights, spring, 1990, David Weinberg, review of Inside Corrections, p. 11.

International Social Science Review, fall-winter, 2001, Louis Gesualdi, review of Corrections, Peacemaking, and Restorative Justice, p. 141.

Library Journal, February 15, 2000, Leroy Hommerding, review of It's a Meaningful Life, It Just Takes Practice, p. 170.

Publishers Weekly, March 27, 2000, review of It's a Meaningful Life, It Just Takes Practice, p. 77.

School Library Journal, February, 2003, Sally R. Dow, review of The Wonderful Life of a Fly Who Couldn't Fly, p. 115.

Utne Reader, September-October, 1995, "Habitat for Inhumanity: America's Rush to Punish Is Backfiring," p. 82; "What the World Needs Now: 1996 Visionaries," p. 63.