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Somehow another month has come and gone and it’s time for yet another reading roundup post! This month I only read three books, but not because I was hooked on a show like last month, but because the Fall busy season hit me full force this month and I have been insanely busy. But despite having very limited free time, I still got to read three books (which is at least slightly better than last month). I read “Gap Creek” by Robert Morgan, “No Man is an Island” by Thomas Merton, and “Captivating” by John & Stasi Eldredge.

Gap Creek

I honestly don’t remember when I got this book, but I believe I picked it up at a book sale at a library several years ago. It’s been sitting on my shelf ever since and when I organized my books at the beginning of the month, I decided to give this one a shot. It’s set in the Appalachian mountains and follows Julie Harmon whose life has been wrought with tragedy and hard work. Shortly into the book she marries Hank and moves down from the mountains into the valley. Her marriage is difficult, to say the least, and her first few years as Hank’s wife are filled with natural disasters, more tragedy, and even harder work. The book ends on a hopeful note and to be honest that’s really it’s only redeeming quality in my opinion. It’s not that it’s a bad book, it’s just one of those books that is depressing for most of the book and doesn’t seem to have much more of a point besides describing the suffering and hardships of its characters.

No Man is an Island

I’ve been told to read this by a couple of people and I’m so glad I finally did, because it is SO GOOD. This was the first book I’ve read by Thomas Merton and now I’m going to have to go order more of his books. His writing is absolutely beautiful and I love how he manages to talk about complex spiritual truths while keeping things so incredibly simple and down to earth. This book is a collection of sixteen essays devoted to various aspects of human spirituality. Some of my favorite sections were those covering true charity, the will of God, sincerity, and mercy. This book could be read by anyone, you don’t need to be a theology or philosophy person to understand Thomas Merton, which is another reason I love it. I highly recommend it!

Captivating

I have had this book on my shelf to read for several years as well, and to be completely honest with y’all, one of the main reasons I have avoided reading it up until now is the fact that the cover (and title) led me to have a rather negative judgmental opinion of this book. It’s a classic case of “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” and yet I totally did. For years. I think the cover and title led me to believe it was going to be a rather “fluffy” (for lack of a better word) book written for Christian women but I could not have been more wrong. Written by husband & wife, John and Stasi Eldredge, this book dives deep into what makes up the heart of women and uncovers so many deep and beautiful truths of femininity and masculinity. Being a huge lover of JPII’s Theology of the Body, I am always a fan of anything that speaks truth on the unique differences and essential complementary of men and women which this book is full of. What I particularly loved and appreciated was how practical and down-to-earth this book is. Sometimes TOB can be hard to see how it practically applies and plays out in my day-to-day life, but John and Stasi Eldredge brought those truths straight into my daily life. Another book that I highly, highly recommend!!

Xoxo,

Mary Kate