What We've Been Reading Lately - January 2019

This month I've finished a nice assortment of non-fiction titles, one really enjoyable novel, and one not-so-enjoyable read-aloud! Looking forward to connect with the readers at Modern Mrs. Darcy to share what we've been reading lately.

We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Gender matters everywhere in the world. And I would like today to ask that we begin to dream about and plan for a different world. A fairer world. A world of happier men and happier women who are truer to themselves. And this is how to start: We must raise our daughters differently. We must also raise our sons differently.

Filled with personal anecdotes from the author's Nigerian growing-up years, Adichie is eloquent in unpacking the most common mischaracterizations of feminism and casting a compelling vision of what it means to promote gender equality in the twenty-first century. Perfect if you want a quick read that will give you plenty to chew on -  I started reading this little book when I turned on the bath water for my son and by the time he was out of the tub I had finished it!

The Life-Giving Parent: Giving Your Child a Life Worth Living for Christ by Clay Clarkson

 As a divine parent, God the Father is a model for our parenting. What God wants for us, His children, is simply to live well - to use all the days He gives us to please Him. And not coincidentally, that's also what we naturally desire for our own children - for them to enjoy their lives and live fully for God. That's why we need to number their days. We want to make sure we prepare our children to live wisely and well and for God's glory. A full and meaningful life will not happen by chance but by thoughtful planning and a heart tuned to follow God.

This is a powerful book that will inspire you to be more intentional in establishing a lifegiving culture in your home. If you find that it is easy to lose sight of the big picture of parenting and what you're actually trying to accomplish when you're bogged down by the stresses of daily life with children, this book will help you reorient yourself to the mission of God in the world and in your family. Each chapter includes exhortation from Scripture to root you in God's heart for your children, This powerful parenting book will inspire you to be more intentional in establishing a lifegiving culture in your home. Each chapter includes exhortation from Scripture to root you in God's heart for your children, authentic stories from the couple's own journey of raising four children to adulthood, and practical suggestions on how to open up room for God's love to impact you and your family. Highly recommended. Dead Man Walking: The Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty That Sparked a National Debate by Sister Helen Prejean  If we believe that murder is wrong and not admissible in our society, then it has to be wrong for everyone, not just individuals but governments as well. And I end by challenging people to ask themselves whether we can continue to allow the government, subject as it is to every imaginable form of inefficiency and corruption, to have such power to kill. Sister Helen Prejean is one of my favorite follows on Twitter ever since I heard Shane Claiborne speak about her work to eradicate the death penalty in connection with his book, Executing Grace (an informative primer on the history of the death penalty in America). As a spiritual advisor to death row inmates, Sister Prejean has a unique vantage point from which to challenge our country's administration of the death penalty.  Virgil Wander by Leif Enger   A person never knows what is next--I don't anyway. The surface of everything is thinner than we know. A person can fall right through, without any warning at all. A charming portrait of life in small town Minnesota, the story centers around Virgil Wander's near death experience and the quirky cast of characters who help him find his way again. If you liked A Man Called Ove, this book has some endearing similarities. White Picket Fences: Turning Toward Love in a World Divided by Privilege by Amy Julia Becker

Even if I wanted to, I could not rewrite the story of my life. I cannot unravel the threads of privilege and providence. With time, it has become all the more clear to me that affluence and the implicit benefits of whiteness do not come from my efforts, nor does my comfortable life come as a sign of God's favor resting on me. But if I acknowledge the mystery rather than assuming my privilege has come as a direct result of God's blessing, then I can entrust that same privilege to God and pray that it be used for good, as a way to share the abundant blessings of a loving Creator

 A thoughtful invitation to consider our privilege and how it has affected us, this is an important read for those of us in the Christian community who are prone to mistake our unmerited social and economic advantages for the blessing of God in our lives. This may be an uncomfortable read, but the discomfort is worth wrestling with.

Mary Poppins by P. L. Travers

“Why,” said Jane, “there’s nothing in it!” “What do you mean—nothing?” demanded Mary Poppins, drawing herself up and looking as though she had been insulted. “Nothing in it, did you say?” And with that she took out from the empty bag a starched white apron and tied it round her waist. Next she unpacked a large cake of Sunlight Soap, a toothbrush, a packet of hairpins, a bottle of scent, a small folding armchair and a box of throat lozenges.

This may be the only time I ever say that I liked the movie much, much better than the book. My kids seemed to enjoy listening to this one more than I enjoyed reading it. It's whimsical and funny at points, but as my son exclaimed, "Wow! Mary Poppins is just so mean!!" At any rate it has prompted plenty of jumping off furniture holding an umbrella aloft by my five-year-old who imagines she is the magical nanny, and it gave us a good excuse to see the new Mary Poppins Returns in the theater which we all absolutely adored.