This book is not written as a series of basic instructions on how to become a shaman. Instead, it is a personal, anecdotal account of a shaman/healer’s journey. As such, it is part autobiography and only part instruction in the path of the shaman as healer.
     It is of particular interest to Westerners as most of the book takes place in landscapes both urban and rural in familiar countries. That casual statement is not meant to minimise the wild ride that author Leclere undertook. Her journey had no signposts and yet she produces a roadmap for those who would follow.
     Alexandra Leclere was a busy married mother and president of her own television production and multimedia firm for more than seventeen years before she discovered her extraordinary powers of clairaudience, clairsentience and clairvoyance. As you read her story, the inevitable path unfolds, but who would have thought?
     Like many New Dawn readers, Alexandra was interested in metaphysics and especially healing. She was actually making a TV series on healers and healing when many significant events and people started to move into her life’s orbit. Not all were helpful and some were downright difficult. This just kept on happening and I presume it continues to this day.
     She was suffering from a serious illness for which mainstream doctors advised an operation. A series of shamanic healings was able to erase the need for the surgery. Alexandra journeyed from being an interested bystander to one who was healed and ultimately to a healer herself. Today she practises at The Oaks Healing Centre in New York. I suppose that’s a logical sequence in life as few are born healers.
     The style of the book is warm, open and intense. It is also quite a courageous book about personal transformation written in a narrative style. The effect that Alexandra’s personal change had on her family is not ignored. It was not all positive and it was not all easy. Initiations rarely are.
     Many shamanic concepts are illustrated and explained through Alexandra’s own story. Although her way is the Native American path, including sweat lodges, vision quests and the like, the basic shamanistic values are almost invariably the same in most cultures.
     The concept of walking between worlds is a constant, as are shapeshifting, past lives, contacting spirit guides, and the use of dreams. Also common is the use of various objects and substances which serve as tools for transformation.
     It is spiritually transmitted wisdom and is not written down. It all has to be experienced and not learned from books. Some of the procedures for entering a meditative or trance state are explained and can be practised, but there is no substitute for a real mentor or teacher. It is when the path gets overwhelming or difficult that this is seen as an imperative.
     Alexandra herself is a powerful shaman/healer who is able to see and hear the spirits of the deceased and undertake readings for others. She is also able to read the signs and omens in everyday life to an acute state. Her activities are carried out in her own Western culture, an aspect which is often neglected in earlier works on shamanism.
     Of course, having a peaceful and natural place to practise is always going to enhance the experience, but shamans from other cultures are quick to use substitutes in their rituals when necessary. It is a pragmatic as well as a mystic path.
     Some fascinating aspects of this very personal story are the descriptions of lectures, workshops, seminars and sweat lodges that Alexandra has attended. Some were facilitated by well-known names in the shamanistic community. John Perkins is one such, who also writes a useful Foreword to this book (his book Shape Shifting was previously reviewed in New Dawn).
     I found this to be a fascinating autobiography that was gripping, moving and informative in every way. I appreciate Alexandra’s honesty and willingness to move along her chosen path.
     It will satisfy on a number of levels. Firstly, it informs those who are curious about shamanism, especially how to practise in your own culture. Secondly, it is a remarkable first rate and accessible autobiography. Thirdly, it shows that no matter who you are, you have special gifts and powers.
     Alexandra asserts that we can all develop healing and shamanistic skills. It is a matter of right attitude, intent, belief and love for the self and others.
     Recommended for budding as well as practising shamans.