Dear Reader, 

Humans love stories. We always have. We write them and read them, tell them and show them, learn from them and live by them. Throughout history, most of humankind’s origin stories, hero’s journey tales, novels, and films have been created by men. Embedded in the stories are the values and priorities we live by, and what we believe about women and men, power and war, sex and love. 

But what if women had been the storytellers too? 

What story would Eve have told about picking the apple? What would Pandora have said about opening the box? And what about the other stories from around the world that cast women as fickle, sinful, and untrustworthy? 

I took the title of this book from the ancient Greek myth of Cassandra, another early woman who was not trusted. Cassandra was a Trojan princess given the gift of prophecy from the gods, but she was also cursed: no one would believe her predictions. Even as the war she had warned against raged, no one took her seriously. Most women can see themselves in Cassandra’s story—we know what our families need, our workplaces need, the world needs, and yet our voices have been denigrated and ignored.

I wrote this book because I believe when women’s voices are equally esteemed, the culture will change and a different kind of hero will emerge—one who values caretaking, champions compassion, and elevates communication over vengeance and violence. I wrote the book as a call for all people to redefine what it means to be fully human. 

I have walked two main paths in my life—the spiritual path and the feminist one—paths that sometimes cross but sometimes feel at cross-purposes. I wanted to blend these two worldviews and write an inclusive book—a book about women, yes, but also a book for everyone who believes in humanity's potential to rise to the challenges of our times. 

Throughout the book I give equal voice to the cool water of my introspective self and the fire of my feminist self. 

Part One explores the myths and stories that are in the DNA of our culture. Part Two looks at women and power and redefines what it means to be courageous, daring, and strong. And Part Three offers “A Toolbox for Inner Strength.” I offer introspective exercises to help us be both strong-willed and kind-hearted, to overcome the “imposter syndrome,” and to support each other as we navigate a collective rite of passage. And I include my own stories of failures and victories at work and at home, as a mother and a wife, as a leader in my organization. I do this because I know when one person digs deep and tells her most honest, vulnerable tales, it helps others claim their own stories and use them to grow into their most courageous and creative selves. And that is my greatest hope for Cassandra Speaks. 

With love, 

Elizabeth

Cassandra Speaks is available in bookstores and online from the following vendors:

PRAISE FOR Cassandra Speaks

”When did we as women start trying so desperately to tame our feelings, our bodies, our ambition? In this powerful and beautiful book, Elizabeth Lesser brings us back to the earliest stories that convinced us to silence our voices, and then forward to a place where we trust ourselves to lead our lives -- and the world.” —Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of UNTAMED, and founder of Together Rising   

“Here’s what I learned reading this blazingly wonderful book: All those stories and myths that I unconsciously absorbed? They were wrong.  They defined, limited and contained me. Now it’s time for women to know the truth and rewrite the tales. Every chapter of this book hit home. It gave me strength, comfort and hope. That’s what women do, and that’s what we need most in the world right now.” —Sally Field, Academy award winning actor and bestselling author of In Pieces

“In Cassandra Speaks, Elizabeth Lesser speaks to the value of finding your voice in the wilderness of these times. It’s about a new kind of hero’s journey, one that replaces violence and domination with deep feeling and courageous communication. It’s about the power of love instead of the love of power. What a blessing!” —Iyanla Vanzant, Author, Host, Iyanla Fix My Life (OWN)

“Blessed are the truthtellers, and Elizabeth Lesser is one of them. Cassandra Speaks is astute and witty, tender and soulful. It’s a tapestry of memoir, cultural commentary, and spiritual fuel that inspires women—and all people left out of history’s storytelling—to reclaim our lineage, to become prophetic alchemists in a world in grave need of healing.” —Jamia Wilson, Executive Director and Publisher of the Feminist Press

“Elizabeth Lesser is a wise and powerful storyteller.  Cassandra Speaks helps us understand the roots of women’s shame and guilt and offers a path forward—by changing our stories, we change our lives. “ —Eileen Fisher, founder, EILEEN FISHER, Inc.

"A book that will change women’s lives—and therefore, everyone’s lives—by calling out the stories that have held us back for millennia. Cassandra Speaks delivers an urgent message to women to listen within, follow their instincts, and do power differently." —Alyssa Milano, actor and activist 

“Cassandra Speaks is a nod to the power of storytelling in our journey to build a truly equitable society. It lays bare the relationship between gender and power and makes a compelling case for deepening our connections and embracing our collective humanity. “ —Tony Porter, CEO of A CALL TO MEN

“Elizabeth Lesser does something remarkable in this book. She puts words to something so obvious, that it has been entirely hidden from view. And she does it in a way that leaves us with no choice, but to effect change. Few things give me hope as of late. But this book does. —Jeff Brown, author of Grounded Spirituality and An Uncommon Bond

REVIEWS

Kirkusreviews.com -June 20, 2020     "Lesser, co-founder of the Omega Institute, an adult education and retreat center in Rhinebeck, New York, draws on her own life, research on gender, and cultural myths to explore challenges to women’s power. Cassandra seems to her emblematic of women’s subjugation: Cursed by Apollo after she rejected him, she would forever be disbelieved. Although her prophecies told the truth, “her words fell flat.” Cassandra, like Eve, Pandora, and many other mythical and fictional women that Lesser cites, represents men’s views. “So much of the sorry state of our world hangs on the excess of the so-called masculine virtues in our guiding storylines,” writes the author. “So much was lost with the disparaging of anything coded feminine and the erasure of women as protagonists and heroes.” Why, for example, are there no monuments to women’s achievements but countless statues of male warriors? Invisible and silenced because of nature, nurture, and “the wounds of patriarchy,” women, Lesser believes, share a tendency to feel self-doubt, shame, and reticence, internalizing expectations “to stay in a narrow lane: mother, caregiver, keeper of the hearth, mender of the hearts, cleaner-uppers of the mess.” These qualities—nurturing, emotional intelligence, and “relational nature”—shape women leaders who are likely “to be more collaborative” and “less prone to corruption, to instinctively move to fill the empathy deficit, to seek wiser solutions to conflict.” To encourage women who, like her, are “trying to excel and contribute within a system built by and for men,” Lesser offers exercises designed to promote both activism and what she calls innervism: “the part of me that seeks inner change, inner healing.” These include meditation, guided reflection, listing sources of inspiration, prompts to help talk to someone with differing views, and writing one’s own obituary. An encouraging guide to help women redefine their lives."

Publishers Weekly -July 6, 2020 “Omega Institute cofounder Lesser (Marrow) demonstrates how myth, religion, and history minimize women’s voices and values in this lucid and ultimately optimistic account. Criticizing traditional, male-dominated lists of great books and histories that glorify war, Lesser suggests alternative stories of women who “meet adversity with love,” such as Malala Yousafzai, Antoinette Tuff, and Tammy Duckworth. She advocates “innervism” as a corollary to feminist activism, encouraging women to focus on looking at “our blind spots, our projections, our hypocrisies,” and offers detailed meditation exercises to help women learn how to “Do No Harm and Take No Shit” and find the courage to “give clear voice to... healthy anger.” Citing her work helping 9/11 first responders to overcome their “strong and silent” conditioning and share their feelings, Lesser ties the cultural devaluing of women with the discrediting of feminine-coded values like empathy, sharing, and care, and argues that leaning into these values would improve the world for men and women alike. Emphasizing individual over community work, Lesser does not address whether it’s necessary to build spaces in which women can be heard, and her guidance on how women can tell their own stories is minimal. Still, readers will find this lucid and detailed presentation of feminist ideas motivating. “

To inquire about scheduling an appearance or book reading with Elizabeth, contact Melissa Eppard at lesserelizabeth@gmail.com