If Jesus took time away from the demands of life for stillness, rest, and prayer, shouldn’t His followers do the same?
Yet living in a whirlwind of constant motion is all too familiar. Our many responsibilities and relationships are important: we want to go to our child’s game and say yes to that assignment at work and help lead that group at church. But when we go, go, go at the world’s pace, the anxiety and burnout start to weigh on our souls.
Laura Smith invites you to pause, exhale, and explore what the Bible says about slowing down. With scriptural insights and relatable personal stories, Laura offers practical habits for resisting the hectic and holding on to the slow. Packed with different ways Christians over the centuries have tapped into the abundant life of Jesus, 24 short chapters lay out spiritual and physical practices such as prayer, Sabbath, saying no, gratitude, decluttering, celebration, and worship.
If you’re tired of the crazy pace of your life but don’t know how to get off the merry-go-round, The Urgency of Slowing Down is for you. Take a few minutes each day to read a chapter so you can learn to slow down right where you are to look for God, listen for His voice, and fill your heart and mind with His presence.
My Review
One of the things I love about Laura L. Smith’s books is how practical and nonjudgmental they are. Her advice is very much in the lane of “do what works for you” rather than placing value on a particular scripted way of life.
For example, she talks about the spiritual practice of fasting but reminds readers to talk to a doctor or consider the needs of their body and mental health as well. She acknowledges that a food fast can be dangerous for some of us and encourages readers to be safe and well. She offers suggestions for other ways to fast, including giving up a non-food activity or habit, such as social media or electronics.
A lot of the tips are simple and practical, which is exactly what I need. A lot of them are things you could do in ten minutes, which is excellent.
Each chapter of the book focuses on a particular aspect of life, such as setting boundaries, practicing gratitude, and spending time in prayer. She’ll share a personal story about lessons she’s learned about each topic and a scripture that relates. Then the chapter closes with some thoughtful questions that really helped me dig deeper with these ideas.
I think this would be a great book to work through with a journal in January as a “New Year” project. It’s set up to do one individual chapter at a time, and I think that’s the most effective way to use it. I read through the whole thing and bookmarked chapters that resonated with me so I can revisit them later.
If you’re looking for a gentle book to guide you into a more restful Christian faith practice, this is a good one.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 14 up.
Representation The author is a white Christian woman. She talks a lot about her family and friends.
Profanity/Crude Language Content None.
Romance/Sexual Content References to the author’s marriage to a man named Brett. Just relationship stuff.
Spiritual Content Lots of Jesus. Lots of Bible verses. Pretty much as advertised from the cover copy.
Violent Content None.
Drug Content None.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
A hilarious and eye-opening account of leaving Christian Nationalism behind to follow Jesus better.
April Ajoy wouldn’t have called herself a Christian Nationalist when she performed her original song “America Say Jesus” on the Jim Bakker show, or when she participated in Jesus Marches across America, or when she posted cringe-worthy videos on YouTube to campaign for Mitt Romney. April just considered herself a good faithful, Republican, and determined to make America a Christian nation once again.
But as her view of the world widened, Ajoy began to see cracks in her steadfast beliefs and recognized the ways her conservative politics and religion were intertwined in her mind. Did God really bless America? Is it actually by His red, white, and blue stripes that we are healed?
Ajoy, TikTok influencer and co-host of the Evangelicalish podcast, shares funny stories from her time deep within Christian nationalism, exploring how aspects of evangelical culture such as purity pledges, product boycotts, Satanic panic, and end-times theology have all been exploited to advance the Christian Nationalist narrative. She also illuminates the ways nationalist thinking has infiltrated our churches and political arenas, shaping not only modern evangelical culture but also American public policy and international relations.
Part memoir, part guidebook, part call to action, Star-Spangled Jesus explores how the fight to make America a “Christian nation” has damaged us all and shows how one woman left Christian Nationalism and why America should too.
My Review
Well, this was a cathartic read. Whew. Yeah, I did not know that I needed the validation of reading someone else experiencing some of the weird stuff that you grow up with in the Evangelical movement. The book is also pretty hilarious.
I’m close to the author’s age, so we had some similar experiences growing up in the Evangelical church. Some of the stories she tells—even the cringey ones—resonated with me a lot more than I’m comfortable admitting. Wowza.
I cackled through Ajoy’s stories about her fears about the rapture and heaven. It’s weird how deeply those ideas can get into your head and how they play out when you suddenly find yourself entirely alone at home.
It was also validating to read about the questions Ajoy asked herself on her journey. She encountered information or situations that went differently than her upbringing in the church led her to expect. Instead of ignoring those signposts, she began asking herself hard questions about what those things meant in the context of her faith.
I am encouraged to see people like April Ajoy boldly sharing the experience of taking a hard look at faith and carving a path forward through deconstructing harmful ideology. We need voices like these.
If you were raised in the Evangelical movement or a church that uplifts Christian Nationalism but have walked away from those ideas, I think you’d enjoy this book. I also think people who have never had this experience for themselves but are curious about what it’s like and want to read about it in a funny, that-was-then kind of way will find a lot to love about Star-Spangled Jesus.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 14 up.
Representation April is a white Christian woman married to a nonbinary person.
Profanity/Crude Language Content None.
Romance/Sexual Content Brief, vague references to sex. (April relates once worrying about the world ending soon and thinking that she wants to have sex before she dies.)
Spiritual Content Lots of discussion about Christian faith, beliefs, and practices.
Violent Content Brief references to the 9-11 attack. References to some homophobic ideas that April was taught and believed as a teen and young adult.
Drug Content None.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. All opinions are my own.
About Through the Wormhole: Humor, Hope, and Help from One Family with Autism to Another
The call for help seemed to come from the wall, and I knew there wasn’t a secret room there. That’s when I spied two bare feet sticking out of a hole in the wall. Holes in the wall. Setting fires in the house. Secret rooms and monsters in the closets. My wife and I never thought we’d have adventures like these raising our kids. After dealing with ADHD and its issues, we didn’t think autism would be anything we couldn’t handle. Boy were we wrong.
From our family to yours, here are humorous stories from our crazy past, mixed with ideas for handling some of the issues facing a family raising kids with autism. Inside you will find ideas for stimming aids, dietary help, and even links to companies who hire adults with autism. Humor, Hope, and Help for families like yours traveling Through the Wormhole.
My Review
This is the second nonfiction parenting support book that I’ve read by this author. One of the things I really appreciate about his books is his frank humility. It would be so easy to only report the parenting successes and goofball behavior that the kids get into, and instead, he often apologetically shares experiences where he wishes he’d responded differently. There’s something genuinely comforting about someone keeping it real like that– because we’ve all been the parent who lost their temper or said something sarcastic or overlooked something that turned out to be a safety issue.
The book alternates between sharing adventures in parenting a kid on the Autism spectrum and sharing tips and helpful resources, often with hyperlinks. He also shares things about his experience in the Christian church and community that may help parents navigate what isn’t always a neurodiverse kid-friendly atmosphere. Which, again, is the kind of gentle frankness that I really appreciate.
His parenting adventures are also really well-told. I got teary as he talked about saying goodbye to the family dog and laughed aloud at some of the unexpected conclusions his son drew about different situations.
The author’s hard-won parenting wisdom and encouragement to readers to pursue faith, self-education, and compassion for themselves and their kids make this a nice resource for Christian parents with a child on the Autism spectrum or anyone who wants to be better informed about supporting a family with neurodiverse kids.
I hope that parents who read this find it to be a welcoming, compassionate, and encouraging resource. I’ve also reviewed his other parenting book, which discusses his experiences discovering that he has ADHD and how he navigated parenting a child with the diagnosis.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 16 up.
Representation The author describes himself as having ADHD with a touch of OCD. At least one of his children has Autism Spectrum Disorder. The author uses the term Aspergers or “Aspy” several times in the text, which may bother some readers. I’m not experienced enough to evaluate the representation in the book.
Profanity/Crude Language Content None.
Romance/Sexual Content None.
Spiritual Content References to prayer, attending church, and other Christian spiritual practices and beliefs.
Violent Content Some descriptions of mildly dangerous things, such as getting stuck on a roof or cleaning out the garage to get rid of spiders.
Drug Content None.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.
A magical realistic middle grade debut about the origin story of the Iñupiaq Messenger Feast, a Native Alaskan tradition.
As his family prepares for winter, a young, skilled hunter must travel up the mountain to collect obsidian for knapping―the same mountain where his two older brothers died.
When he reaches the mountaintop, he is immediately confronted by a terrifying eagle god named Savik. Savik gives the boy a follow me or die like your brothers.
What comes next is a harrowing journey to the home of the eagle gods and unexpected lessons on the natural world, the past that shapes us, and the community that binds us.
Eagle Drums by Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson is part cultural folklore, part origin myth about the Messenger’s Feast – which is still celebrated in times of bounty among the Iñupiaq. It’s the story of how Iñupiaq people were given the gift of music, song, dance, community, and everlasting tradition.
My Review
I loved the writing style of this book. It reads like a folk tale, with straightforward descriptions and a focus on Piŋa’s family’s traditions and ways of life, and a lyrical feel to it, too. The story follows a boy named Piŋa whose family has lost two sons, both while they were away hunting for the family. He and his parents grieve for that loss, and it still feels very fresh.
When Piŋa goes with the eagle god, he worries his parents will assume he has met the same fate as his brothers, and the drive to get home to them helps keep him going as he faces tasks and challenges set out by his host. Piŋa is an easy character to root for. He does his best to be a good son, and he gets frustrated when he can’t master a new task as quickly as he wants to. Super relatable.
I can definitely see this book appealing to modern audiences and readers who enjoy folktales or historical fiction as well. I think the narrative balances the expectations of young readers and the preservation of folk-style storytelling really well.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.
Representation Major characters are Native Alaskan, Iñupiaq.
Profanity/Crude Language Content None.
Romance/Sexual Content None.
Spiritual Content The main character, Piŋa, meets an eagle god and the god’s family.
Violent Content Piŋa learns that the eagle god killed both his brothers.
Drug Content None.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of EAGLE DRUMS in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.
From the author of THE SOUND OF STARS and THE KINDRED comes a YA space opera about a reincarnated god and a grumpy pilot on a mission to save a beloved space DJ and stop an intergalactic war.
Zaira Citlali is supposed to die. After all, she’s the god Indigo reborn. Indigo, whose song created the universe and unified people across galaxies to banish Ozvios, the god of destruction. Although Zaira has never been able to harness Indigo’s powers, the Ilori Emperor wants to sacrifice her in Ozvios’s honor. Unless she escapes and finds Wesley, the boy prophesized to help her defeat Ozvios and the Ilori, once and for all.
Wesley Daniels didn’t ask for this. He just wants to work as a smuggler so he can save enough money to explore the stars. Once he completes his biggest job yet—bringing wanted celebrity Rubin Rima to a strange planet called Earth—he’ll be set for life. But when his path crosses with Zaira, he soon finds himself in the middle of an intergalactic war with more responsibility than he bargained for.
Together, Zaira, Wesley, and Rubin must find their way to Earth and unlock Zaira’s powers if they’re going to have any hope of saving the universe from total destruction.
My Review
I’ve read both THE KINDRED and THE SOUND OF STARS before and enjoyed them, so I knew I wanted to give this book a try. It’s got the same deep characters and vivid descriptions that made Dow’s other books so great, along with a found family vibe. The story also involves themes about colonization and the spirituality of creativity versus destruction.
One of the things I haven’t seen in the marketing for the book (via a peek at Amazon, Goodreads, and the top Google search results) is that these are maybe companion novels? They exist in the same story world. And they have cameos of characters from both of Alechia Dow’s other YA books. I’m not sure if I’m mixed up or if maybe they aren’t being marketed as companion novels on purpose for some reason?
In any case, you can easily enjoy this book as a standalone. It’s got a bit of romance and social commentary as well as some humor. Rubin and Blobby are my favorite characters. I love that Zaira could communicate with Blobby, and Rubin’s upbeat, always-prepared manner made him such a fun character.
On the whole, I had a great time reading this book. I think fans of Claudia Gray should check out all of Alechia Dow’s books.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 12 up.
Representation Major characters are Black and Brown.
Profanity/Crude Language Content Contains made-up swear words.
Romance/Sexual Content Kissing between two boys. Kissing between a boy and girl.
Spiritual Content Zaira is a reincarnated god of creation, Indigo, and has supernatural abilities. Ozvios, the god of chaos and destruction is the oppositional spiritual force in the universe. Fish-like creatures called Jadu bestow the ability to see the future to those they bite. Some people have the ability to sense others’ emotions.
Violent Content Situations of peril. One scene describes a cage fight and a main character participating in one. Fish surround and bite someone. Battle sequences with fatalities. No graphic descriptions.
Drug Content When people aboard a ship experience fear or anxiety, the ship offers a chemicallent, a substance which calms them when it’s pumped into the air.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of A SONG OF SALVATION in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.
She Deserves Better: Raising Girls to Resist Toxic Teachings on Sex, Self, and Speaking Up Sheila Wray Gregoire, Rebecca Gregoire Lindenback, and Joanna Sawatsky Baker Published April 18, 2023
You want your daughter to thrive–to be strong, confident, and equipped to step into the life God has for her.
But what if the church is setting your daughter up to be small?
Armed with data from an all-new survey of over 7,000 women, the authors of THE GREAT SEX RESCUE reveal how experiences in church as teens affect women’s self-esteem and relationships today. They expose common evangelical teachings that can backfire–the purity emphasis that can cause shame rather than good choices, the dating rules that can prime your daughter for abuse, and the one overarching belief that can keep her from setting healthy boundaries.
Instead, the authors advocate biblically grounded, freeing messages that are more about the dos and less about the don’ts. By reframing (and sometimes replacing) common evangelical messages to teen girls, this book will equip you to raise a daughter who can navigate the tumultuous teenage years while still clinging tightly to Jesus.
You can raise your daughter with the discernment to resist toxic teachings. Because she deserves better than a faith that keeps her small.
“Sheila, Rebecca, and Joanna are an all-star team, confronting the harm done to our daughters in both the church and the world. The title says it all. Full stop. Our daughters deserve better! This book is full of thorough research, refreshingly commonsense biblical wisdom, and practical help on how to talk with our daughters and prepare them for confidence and maturity.”–Aimee Byrd, author of The Sexual Reformation –This text refers to the paperback edition.
Why I’m Reviewing She Deserves Better
I’m finding writing up my review to be a bit overwhelming, so I’m going to break it down into sections to help me focus my thoughts. First, let’s talk about why I decided to review this book.
I was raised in what would now probably be identified as a fundamentalist/evangelical church. To be honest, I had some good and bad experiences there. That complexity sometimes makes it hard for me to sort out my feelings about certain faith-based things. Though I am still myself a Christian, I am not part of the evangelical community. I once heard someone describe her family as Liberal Christians, and I would say that’s a label that’s closer to accurate for me.
Periodically, I dip my toes into the Christian literary market to try to find books and resources that resonate with me and are things I can confidently promote. Sometimes I regret it. But other times I find books that deeply energize me and encourage me in my faith journey.
I first heard about SHE DESERVES BETTER on one of the authors’ Twitter pages during some discourse about church scandals and the treatment of women in the church. As I read more of the posts on the author’s page, I found I agreed with several of her statements. When I noticed she was part of a team of three women who had a book for moms and daughters coming out, I decided to try to get a copy for review.
Rejecting Purity Culture But Replacing It with… What?
My home growing up didn’t adhere to some fundamentalist ideas, (my mom has always been an assertive person who expresses her views, for example) but we were part of a church community that absolutely preached the values and ideas of purity culture.
While I’ve rejected… most? all? I’m not thoroughly sure here… of those ideas, I’ve struggled to find healthier/more reasonable ways to express what I do believe about some of these issues. For example, I recently had a conversation with a family member about the way my daughter dresses. I don’t have a problem with the way she dresses, but this family member had some concerns and related those concerns in the language of purity culture. “She needs to remember there are boys in the house while she’s wearing those things,” etc.
I defended my daughter (the problem seemed to be that she’s young and curvy) and pretty plainly said that I would not make the burden of someone else’s possible thoughts her responsibility. But I struggled to explain my parental boundaries for her clothing choices. I do have them. But they’re about how she feels about herself and what she thinks about her body, not what someone else thinks. Still, I found myself wishing for a resource to help me quantify this and help me reassure my daughter. I also handle wanted better tools to handle people coming at me with purity culture complaints so I can respond in a way I find satisfying.
My Review of She Deserves Better
Lemme give you the nutshell version first. While I didn’t agree 100% with everything the authors said and how they said it, I came pretty close. I loved the premise of the book. I loved the consistent calls to do what is healthy and loving. The authors also state multiple times the importance of being in a church community that is itself healthy and supportive of young women. They go so far as to counsel families to leave churches with toxic teaching because of the potential damage it can cause. I recommend this book to anyone raised in purity culture and/or anyone raising girls in the church today.
Essentially, they studied the effects of the purity culture movement and other teachings that young women in evangelical churches are often still being taught today. A bible verse warns us to look at the outcomes of behavior using the metaphor of trees producing fruit. If a tree produces bad fruit, the tree should be cut down and tossed in the fire. So the authors break down different teachings and looks at the outcomes. For example, they look at the effects of teaching a girl that her outfit choice can cause a man to sin. Does this make her more likely to end up in an abusive marriage? Does it make her more likely to have low self-esteem? To report problems in her sexual relationship? (Yes to all these.) Things like that.
Tools to Process My Own Experiences and Teach My Daughter a Healthier Way
There were certain chapters that read like pages out of my own life. It was honestly pretty eerie. I’ve known for a long time that some things I believed in high school and shortly afterward were wrong and dangerous, but those beliefs absolutely cost me. They left me vulnerable to situations in which bad stuff happened. They left me feeling as though I didn’t have choices in things that happened, and that I didn’t have any allies to whom I could turn for support.
So. Yeah. I don’t want to pass any of that on to my daughter. We’ve done a lot of learning about consent and a lot of teaching about personal boundaries and expectations. All of the things I’ve learned about those topics lined up with what the authors were saying here in SHE DESERVES BETTER.
I loved that again and again the book comes back to asking the question, “what happens to girls who were raised with these teachings?” That’s so important. We know that some of these things are really harmful, and it’s time to stop teaching them, and to push back in spaces where they are still being taught.
Topics Explored in She Deserves Better
Here’s a list of some of the topics/teachings explored in the book:
How teachings regarding feelings, especially anxiety and depression, can impact a girl’s health and life.
How teachings on boundaries impact girls and the importance of teaching girls they can set personal boundaries and expect them to be respected.
How dating and dating rules impact a girl’s lifelong relationships.
Learning to and teaching girls to identify red flags for toxic or dangerous people.
How a comprehensive sex education empowers girls to be safer and happier longterm.
How teachings about consent impact girls (and boys).
How teachings about modesty or clothing choices impacts how girls see themselves and others.
How teachings about leadership and submission impact girls.
Each chapter gives examples from the authors’ research supporting their assertions. They also offer conversations topics and exercises that moms and daughters could work through together.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 16 up.
Representation Doesn’t specify race details in any of the text or example stories. The intended audience is evangelical Christians.
Profanity/Crude Language Content The authors use a metaphor about a candy that tasted delicious but caused explosive diarrhea to describe the harmfulness of teaching that looks or seems biblical at first but is not and causes harm.
Romance/Sexual Content A fair amount of the book focuses on the way parents and church leaders teach girls about sex and relationships. It discusses how those teachings impact the likelihood of good or bad outcomes (happy marriages versus abusive relationships, etc).
The authors talk about the damage caused by rejecting a child or their feelings if they come to you to reveal their gender or sexual identity. Essentially the authors point out that being a part of a faith community generally lowers a child’s chance of experiencing suicidal thoughts or attempting suicide unless they are LGBTQIA+. Then, participation in a church community actually increases the likelihood they’ll have those thoughts or attempts.
Later on, the authors refer to an LGBTQIA+ identity as an “unwanted identity”. I’m not sure from the context if they’re intending to speak globally or referring to the feelings of homophobic parents.
The authors very plainly ask parents to choose to validate and love their kids no matter the feelings they have. They emphasize the importance of support from within their faith community.
Spiritual Content The core premise of the book is to approach teachings about sex and modesty in the church and look at their effect on specifically women’s lives. Do those teachings bear good fruit, as described in Matthew 7:17-18?
Violent Content Brief mentions of domestic violence, assault and abusive relationships.
Drug Content Mentions of teens drinking alcohol and using drugs (as a negative behavior).
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of SHE DESERVES BETTER in exchange for my honest review.
