The Accidental Buddhist
by Dinty W. Moore
1997, 208p., First Main Street Books

I read this book shortly after it came out and enjoyed it then - I also met and sat with the author. I've now enjoyed it for a second time.

Moore got interested in Buddhism in America and set out to discover what exactly "American Buddhism" is. While he seems to think he failed in his attempt to discover an answer, he gave a very good (and often funny) introduction to the subject and became a happier man in the process. The book describes his Catholic upbringing (see my blog entry on Buddhism and Christianity that references this book), and his personal anger and frustration with life in general - and the slow turn-around as he finds some form of peace in the hybrid Buddhism that his research brings into his life.