Includes bibliographical references (p. [332]-334).

I. Somewhere -- II. Tedium -- III. From Eight Bad Thoughts to Seven Sins -- IV. Psyche, Soul, and Muse -- V. Up and Down -- VI. Give Me a Word -- VII. Acedia's Progress -- VIII. Acedia's Decline -- IX. A Silent Despair -- X. The Quotidian Mysteries -- XI. The "Noon" of Midlife -- XII. Day By Day -- XIII. And to the End Arriving -- XIV. A Widow's Uneasy Afterword -- XV. Acedia: A Commonplace Book.

"In Acedia & me, the acclaimed author Kathleen Norris explicates and demystifies the forgotten but utterly relevant concept of acedia, a term that has often been understood as spiritual sloth, but really signifies the serious malady of being unable to care." "With great insight and candor, Norris explores acedia through the geography of her life as a writer; her marriage and the challenges of commitment in the midst of grave illness; and her keen interest in the monastic tradition." "An examination of acedia in the light of theology, psychology, monastic spirituality, the healing powers of religious practice, and Norris's own experience, Acedia & me is both intimate and historically sweeping, brimming with exasperation as well as reverence, sometimes funny, often provocative, and always important."--BOOK JACKET.