Books & Breath Book Club Review: Untie the Strong Woman by Clarissa Pinkola Estés
- Patti Chou
- May 18
- 4 min read
This post is for everyone who couldn't make it to our last gathering — so you don't miss the conversation, just the time zone. It's also for anyone who found their way here looking for an honest, thoughtful take on this book. You're welcome here too.
Before we dive into our recap, I have a little announcement about the future of our circle.
New Chapter for Books & Breath
Dear Books & Breath family,
June's book will be our last book to read together as a group. We'll still gather on the 3rd weekend of June to discuss it, and I'm looking forward to that conversation.
After June, we're taking a pause for the summer and resuming in August with a new format.
Instead of voting on and reading one book together, we're opening things up.
You'll read whatever interests you—whatever calls to you in that moment—and we'll use our time together to share what we've discovered. It's still a space for deep, meaningful, interesting conversations. We're just not all reading the same book anymore.
If you've had books on your list that never made it past the vote, this is your moment. If you want to explore something completely different from what the group might choose, go for it.
We're curious to see what each of us brings to the table when we follow our own threads.
We'll try this for a bit and see how it feels. As always, we'll adapt as we go.
With no further ado, here's the recap from our latest gathering...
Our latest Books & Breath gathering took us into sacred territory—a conversation about the Holy Blessed Mother, ancestral resilience, and the quiet knowing that lives beneath all our philosophies and practices.
We read (and listened to) Untie the Strong Woman: The Blessed Mother and the Hidden Feminine by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, and what unfolded was less of a book discussion and more of a sharing circle. Stories poured out. Tears came. We held space for each other in ways that felt ancient and sacred.
The Book
Clarissa Pinkola Estés—renowned storyteller, Jungian analyst, and author of Women Who Run With the Wolves—brings her signature voice to this exploration of the Holy Mother across cultures, traditions, and lived experiences. She writes (and speaks, because the audiobook is essential) about La Guadalupe, the Black Madonna, and the countless ways the Blessed Mother shows up in our everyday lives—not as doctrine, but as presence. As comfort. As knowing.
The book isn't asking you to believe anything. It's inviting you to remember what you already know.
What Moved Us
The conversation opened with someone sharing how they discovered Dr. Estés during a particularly low point in their life. What followed was a series of unexpected signs—small miracles that reminded them they weren't alone. These weren't coincidences. They were invitations.
Others in the group reflected on the women who embodied this Blessed Mother energy in their own lives—grandmothers who cooked with love, who survived unimaginable hardship, who showed up day after day with quiet strength and endless care. We talked about wanting to be that presence for others. For ourselves.
What We're Taking With Us
A deeper trust in signs, in prayer, in the direct connection to the divine that doesn't require intermediaries or institutions
A commitment to embody that warm, grounded, life-giving energy—the kind our grandmothers carried, the kind Dr. Estés speaks of
Permission to see the Blessed Mother in the women around us. In ourselves. In the moments when love shows up unexpectedly, arms open
If You're Curious
Listen to the audiobook. Estés's voice is medicine. Her storytelling is a portal. And if you're someone who's spent years in analytical practices, this book might offer you the softness and simplicity you didn't know you needed.
Next Up
Our next reading is When the Ancestors Weep by James A. Houck Jr.
After spending time with the Blessed Mother's compassionate presence, we're turning our attention to the healing work that calls many of us forward—understanding and transforming intergenerational trauma. Houck invites us to remember that we are all beautiful souls made in the image of the divine, full of inherent value, dignity, and worth. Yet we may struggle to accept this truth because our attention is often diverted to focus solely on outward appearances and behaviors.
June Meeting:
Saturday, 20 June 2026 at 9:00 AM Taiwan Time
In your time zone:
New Zealand (NZDT) — Saturday 2:00 PM
Australia (AEDT) — Saturday 12:00 PM
US Eastern — Friday, June 19 at 9:00 PM
US Central — Friday, June 19 at 8:00 PM
US Pacific — Friday, June 19 at 6:00 PM
There's more we didn't get to — there always is with a book this rich. If something is still sitting with you, a question you're turning over or a passage you keep returning to, bring it to the Reader's Lounge. That's exactly what it's there for.
Sign up here.
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