Bodhi Tree Book Review

The Bodhi Tree Book Review is a publication of the Bodhi Tree, possibly the most well-known bookstore in the United States specializing in New Age and alternative spirituality literature. The Bodhi Tree, named for the tree under which the Buddha found enlightenment, opened in 1970 in Los Angeles, California. Through the 1980s it became known for its extensive inventory as the place to locate obscure publications, especially those from small publishing houses and the many spiritual and New Age organizations.

At the beginning of the 1990s, the store launched its book review magazine as a service to its patrons to assist them in locating new books that were being published in their area of interest. At the same time it has served as a marketing tool through which publishers can reach a large and highly selected audience of book readers.

The Bodhi Tree Book Review is issued biannually in an over-sized format. It includes several feature articles and/or inter-views with prominent authors. The bulk of each 50-page issue, however, has numerous brief notices of new books, the notices being largely descriptive rather than critical material, much of the content being largely drawn from dust jackets and publicity material produced by the publishers. Each issue also carries a list of the best-selling books and the best-selling CDs from the month prior to the appearance of the new issue. The materials are divided under more than 40 headings reflective of the variety of topics and the diverse spiritual perspectives represented in the bookstore. Books by some of the more prominent authors of multiple titles are grouped in their own section.

The Bodhi Tree Book Review is published by the Bodhi Tree at 8585 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90069-5199. The store has a large website that includes its complete inventory online at http://www.bodhitree.com/.

Sources:

Bodhi Tree Book Review. Los Angeles, n.d. Bodhi Tree. http://www.bodhitree.com/. February 28,2000.