Still: Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis

Still: Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis
Lauren Winner

Lauren Winner's Girl Meets God is probably one of my top ten favorite books. Something about the book and the time period I read it resonated with me. The book also began my curiosity and fascination with Judaism which continued with her follow-up book, so it has a special place on my shelf.  

When I saw that Winner had written a new book I was excited to get my hands on it and read it, even though I was a little worried about the topic and subject matter- not about having a crisis of faith, but on writing about so soon. Ms. Winner is a few years older than me and while I've had my own crises of faith, I also realize that life for me is still young and so it was a little hard for me to take this book seriously. Are we going to get a book after every crisis of faith? Also there wasn’t much spiritual meat in the book, it honestly felt like whining and complaining about life, the end of the marriage and such. Its perfect material for a blog, but as a memoir on faith it fell short for me and I reluctantly abandoned it.

The chapters were very short and seemed somewhat choppy and it felt like I was just rambling along in Lauren’s head. This type of writing isn’t uncommon, but for what a deeper subject was it just seemed too much.  Perhaps I will give this one another go at another time. I found that a lot of time spiritual memoirs resonate differently depending on when they are read.

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I realized that I never got around to writing a review for Girl Meets God. Again, I’m aware that part of the reason that book had such a profound impact on me, was because of where I was in my own spiritual journey at the time. I did find my amazon.com review of her book Mudhouse Sabbath which I enjoyed immensely. I also found a post where I mentioned my love of Ms. Winner’s book.

Composing Amelia

Composing Amelia
Allison Strobel
3.5/5

Another repeat author for me, I really enjoyed her previous novel Heart of Memory which was a nook freebie some time ago and I was really look forward to this novel.

Composing Amelia is the story of a young, broke married couple- Amelia and Marcus who begin the novel living check to check in a cramped L.A. apartment, working three jobs as they each focus on building their dream careers. For Marcus, this career is a as pastor and Amelia hopes to become a renowned pianist. Both have agreed to look for jobs that will offer them both something but all that changes when Marcus gets the opportunity to interview for a coveted senior pastor position in…. Nebraska. Not just Nebraska, but a small town in the middle of nowhere. To complicate matters, Amelia has just accepted a position as a pianist in a newly formed theater group and finally feels as though she is on her way.

Both Marcus and Amelia balk at the turn of events and when Marcus gets the position they decide on an un-easy compromise that turns out to be much harder than it sounds- Marcus goes to Nebraska and Amelia moves in with friends to continue her new gig. They will re-evaluate in 3 months after the opening of Amelia’s first show. What happens next begins Amelia’s downward spiral and struggle with depression and anxiety. Even a reprieve of moving to Nebraska with  Marcus can help Amelia and as she continues on a downward spiral, Marcus caught up in his own spiritual struggle must step aside and help his wife with her own.

This book had several plot twists that I didn’t particularly care for and in my opinion didn’t really fit in with the storyline. I did enjoy the struggle that was portrayed as Amelia and Marcus struggled to find their callings and battle the demons and ghosts that haunted them. I found that struggle really unique and accurate in the way it was portrayed.

Overall, I give this one 3.5 stars. Good overall story, but I feels as though there were some “holes” in the story ( which I explain after the spoiler alert).

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By one main issue with this book, and it was pretty big for me was the way in which Amelia suicide attempt was handled my Marcus. IF he felt strong enough to go hide all potential items but not enough to say anything just seems so phony, especially considering Amelia was pregnant with their child. Without the pregnancy, that would seem somewhat more plausible but to me it didn’t ring true. Also, the fact that there were no repercussions for Amelia's suicide attempt while pregnant seemed suspect.  Even with the mental illness, I suspect that there would be something more than just medication.

That brings me to the 2^nd point, the pregnancy plot twist seemed out place. It was almost like an afterthought to the entire story- I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more without it.

The Mindset Lists of American History
Tom McBride & Ron Nief

Every August I eagerly await the release of the Beloit College Mindset List. Working in Student Affairs, it's always nice to get a glimpse into the mindset of the incoming freshman class. When I heard that the list had turned into a book, I was excited to see the list expanded.

The book takes generations who would have graduated HS in 1898, 1918, 1931, 1944, 1957, 1970, 1983, 1996, 2009,and looks at the events that have shaped their generation both before they were born as they grew up. We always joke with students and our younger relatives about "how easy" they current generation has it and this book are an interesting historical perspective on that idea. For the average reader, it traces back to their Grand/great grandparents generation to the future and offers insights on the cultural norms experiences.

As expected, this book offers a very broad generalization. Some of the items on list ( those that have always been dead for example) won't change, but some of the generalizations depend on class, socioeconomic status and location. For me, reading about my parents’ generation ( graduated around 1970) was not as realistic as what they experienced in their very small, segregated town( or at least what I've been told and seen). My only other complaint is rather personal and trivial but I felt like I personally didn't have a place in the book- 80's babies ( of which I am) were  ignored; too young for the class of 96 and too old for the class of 2009. Anyway- that my personal comment that didn't really effect my enjoyment of this book and the historical perspective it offered. While certainly not as in-depth as Generations by Strauss and Howe, this book offers a quick informative and entertaining overview of the history of the mindset of people today.

Now I just have to wait until August to learn about the mindset of the class of 2016.

The Song Remains the Same
Allison Winn Scotch
****~4.5/5

I have to give it to Ms. Scotch, all of her books that I have read have this awesome plots that could become clichéd with another writer, but she manages to keep them fresh and interesting.

The Song Remains the Same follows Nell Slattery, one of only two survivors of a plane crash, who wakes up in a hospital remembering nothing of her former life. Instead she relies on her family- husband Peter, Mom Indira, Sister Rory and other friends and foes to help her piece together who she was in her former life. Much of her journey situates around her relationship or lack there off with her Father, a renowned artist who left the family when Nell was 16. Somehow, Nell feels that finding out more about her father will lead her to find more about herself. During all this she must cope with knowledge of the  baby she miscarried during the crash, and what her feelings about the baby were. To complicate matters even more, she learns upon waking up that just prior to her accident, her husband confessed to a one-night stand and they were separated.

Nell’s world is a lot to handle for a normal person on the day to day and we learn that she had created her own coping mechanisms ( her friends referred to her as “Ice Queen”). Waking up to all this drama/discord provides an interesting opportunity for Nell to reclaim and change her reality. Unfortunately the road to finding herself is rocky and full of the clichéd cliffs and valleys we all find. Although it would be nice to have a “true clean slate” and to start over without everyone else’s hassles. Sometimes that the hardest part of reinventing ourselves.

Now I enjoyed this book, but I wasn’t really in love with it. I was all in for Nell’s journey of self-discovery  but for some reason I just wasn’t completely into it. I got a little bored with her obsession with her dad and wanted to know more about the marriage, the baby and though it all came together perfectly, I just wanted more substances about her past current life.

With that said, this book is still a page-turner. I finished it one glorious Sunday afternoon and couldn't put it down. I wanted to know about the old Nell just as much as she did and that is what makes this a great read. 

The Baker’s Daughter
4/5- ****
Sarah McCoy

So it’s no secret based on my GR read list that I books involving WWII and the Holocaust is a Genre that I enjoy reading. I think its goes back to my childhood and growing up In Germany.

Anyway, that background leads me to The Baker’s Daughter by Sarah McCoy. Another book I learned about while on GR, and by an author whose previous work- The Time it Snowed in Puerto Rico,  I enjoyed.

Once I learn that a book is about the Holocaust, I tend to not read the descriptions because I’ve found that it makes me compare books to others and I like reading with a fresh slate.

The Baker’s Daughter is written in the same tone as others such as Sarah’s Key and Those Who Save Us, in that it parallel’s two story lines- one present day and one in Europe during the 1940’s. This particular story focuses on Elise, a young teenaged girl goring up during the last months of the war. The daughter of a Baker, her family struggles under a crippling war and rations that threaten what’s left of their livelihood. Elsie’s older sister is away in the Nazi’s Lebensborn Program ( which I never heard about until reading this book) and it interesting to see a factious Pro-Nazi account ( even if it was only briefly).

The current day story involves Elsie as and the elderly co-owner of a German Bakery in Texas with her daughter when journalist Reeba walks in to write an article on her. Reba’s story follows her love-affair with an Immigration and Customs official and her struggle to understand her family.

I was much more interested in Elsie’s story than Reba’s but found Reba an enjoyable character. I just struggled to place her within the context of the story and felt that Riki’s full story would probably be a better tie-in with the overall story in terms of Riki’s struggle with his job. I was a little worried that when his job was instructed there would be a parallel  between that and what was happening in Elsie’s story, but there wasn’t.

I really enjoyed this story, again Elsie’s much more than Reba’s and I think this book is a great addition to my shelves. I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys this “genre” as well as to those who enjoyed Sarah’s Key and Those Who Save Us.

Perfect Fifths

Perfect Fifths
Megan McCafferty
After finishing this book I took a while to formulate a review because Initially I didn't like it. I was disappointed. After thinking about it for a few days my opinion landed somewhere in the middle. I didn't like it, but I didn't hate it either. Jessica's negativity which I enjoyed 16-25 got a little old for me. In addition the haiku's in the book got on my last nerve to the point I had to make myself read them. I felt they were unnecessary. Another unnecessary component was the hold Sunny theme, I just couldn't place the reason for it.

When I look back over the Jessica Darling series, I think Fourth Comings was my favorite and while I enjoyed the overall ending the Jessica Darling, I can't help but feel a little annoyed at the final book.

***(3/5)

I'm Back!

Almost exactly two years later and am returning to my original project.

So much as happened in the past two years,which is to say that I've been busy.

My last post stopped around Fall of 07. During that time I got a promotion, had a severe asthma attack and spent a few days in the hospital and then I got engaged.

I spent the first half of 2008 planning a beautiful wedding to my wonderful husband.

We got married in June ( 6/7/8) and then in August I quit my job, moved 500 miles away to Baton Rouge, La and begin graduate school in Higher Education.

I told you I was busy.

In between being sick, getting engaged, planning a wedding, getting married, moving and returning to school, I haven't been reading too much.That changed this year when some of the girls and I started a book challenge. I participated in a winter book challenge, but was unable to complete due to school and work. My overall challenge for 2009 was to read 100 books. Based on the past, it wasn't a huge task, but still a challenge nonetheless.

As I write this, I am a little over 60 books- over half-way there. Which is good, because come Fall( a.k.a. Football season), I doubt I'll get much reading done.

All that reading had me rethinking by book reviews. Around the same time I started a blog for a class I am taking this summer and voila - rebirth!

I hope you enjoy my new and and improved book reviews!