Books 2021: Part II
Did a little book reorganizing a few months ago and it felt good.
11. His Testimonies, My Heritage: Women of Color on the Word of God edited by Kristie Anyabwile
I heard about this book through one of its authors, Dr. Elissa Weichbrodt. She was my Art History professor at Covenant, and while I found her class fascinating, her words, questions, insights on Instagram and in her Covenant’s chapel talks have inspired me more the past couple of years than that whole semester on the mountain. I guess I wasn’t ready for her awesomeness just yet. Anyway, she highlighted His Testimonies, My Heritage on her account, and I read through it this summer. I wish I had read it more slowly, drinking it in. These leaders in the faith each take a section of Psalm 119, studying it and unpacking its truths. Told through the lens of women of color, and all the complex layers of history, brokenness, and strength that come with that heritage, this book gave me a new pair of glasses through which to read this famous psalm. I’m grateful for these godly women and how they’ve sought the Lord and clung to His word, and in doing so, point us there.
The quote I’m taking with me (way too many to list here): “Because of His great love for me and for you, God wants us to experience that overwhelming sense of assurance that no earthquake can shake. By grace we have been saved to be alive as God’s chosen people during this specific corridor of time. Even though we may have few stories of our ethnic heritage, we have a faith that is full of testimonies of God’s goodness and faithfulness.” -Elicia Horton
12. The Rest of God by Mark Buchanan
This book feels like an old friend. This is the third (fourth?) time I’ve read through it, which is unusual for me, since I rarely reread books. Buchanan’s whole point in this one is that we don’t just find life and rest and joy in keeping a Sabbath day, but in keeping a Sabbath attitude. When we prioritize rest and the practice of remembering that we are not God, it trains us to not hurry to and fro in a pointless hustle, but to see the world at the Father’s world, and to reorient our hearts and minds even in busy or difficult seasons.
If I’m spending the weekend in Waco, you’ll often find me reading by the lake, or running through downtown, or enjoying brunch with friends, or writing for fun at our local bookshop. Those two days aren’t spent with my nose buried in textbooks or hunched over the keyboard like they were when I was in college, so I feel like I’ve improved in prioritizing Sabbath-like days in recent years. Because of this, I wondered if Buchanan’s words would still strike a chord this go-around. But what’s cool about rereading a book throughout different stages of your life is that certain principles or ideas or stories do hit differently each time. Some of my old underlines still hit home, but I’ve mostly been making fresh marks on untouched words. I carry a different weight now. Maybe my days aren’t quite as frantic as they used to be, but oftentimes, my mind is. Especially this year, I’ve seen how the real battle is waged in between my ears, and thus the fight for “the rest of God” may be even more important than before.
The quotes I’m taking with me: “[Jewish people] keeping [Sabbath] in their days of peace and abundance and freedom prepared them for keeping it in times of war and scarcity and captivity. Their keeping it nurtured something deep and hidden in them that came to light only on the day of testing.”
“Sabbath is turning over to God all those things—our money, our work, our status, our reputations, our plans, our projects—that we’re otherwise tempted to hold tight in our own closed fists, hold on to for dear life. It is allowing God to wound us in an intimate and vulnerable place, to scar us and mark us and make us his own. It is camping circumcised on the plains of Jericho, in striking distance of the enemy. It is letting go, for one day out of seven, all those parts of our identities and abilities in which we are constantly tempted to find our security and discovering afresh that we are his children and that he is our Father and shield and defender.”
13. The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country by Amanda Gorman
I was on my lunch break, cooking side by side with my roommate in the Spice Rack (what we affectionately call our apartment) when we watched the 2021 U.S. Presidential Inauguration. I remember a radiant, golden-coated Amanda Gorman stepping up to the mic, delivering her poem with so much authority and grace, we both stopped stirring on the stovetop. There are so many beautiful, hopeful lines in her poem, and one of my favorites is below. Over the past few years, I’ve found myself drawn to this idea of America being “unfinished.” I think of the line in Hamilton: “Oh America, you great unfinished symphony.” Our country has a wild complexity, full of triumph and tragedy, brokenness and beauty, light and darkness. As Langston Hughes writes in his poem, “O, let America be America again—The land that never has been yet.” Never been yet. I’m grateful for Gorman’s hope and honesty, and that what she says is true: “there is always light, if we’re only brave enough to see it.”
The quote I’m taking with me: “And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it. / Somehow we do it. / Somehow we weathered and witnessed a nation that isn’t broken, but simply unfinished.”
14. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
After I read Walking On Water, I had a feeling it was time to finally read the book I’d known about since a little kid, but never actually opened. I wasn’t totally sure what to expect, and was curious if the sci-fi element would be a little too much for me. But there’s a reason why this thing has won so many awards! Light battling darkness, good overcoming evil, an insecure but feisty teenage girl facing her fears and faults in the face in pursuit of saving others, the power of family, the way love conquers all things—this book is rich. (Not to mention Meg and Calvin’s budding friendship and love, which I think is adorable.) There are so many truths packed into this one, and while I wish I had read it growing up, I think now is the time I needed it the most.
The quote I’m taking with me: (From Mr. Murry) “Little Megaparsec. Don’t be afraid to be afraid. We will try to have courage for you. That is all we can do.”
15. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
Man oh man. Amy. What a gal. While there are many things in this book that did not stick (Poehler’s humor and life advice is a bit crude for my taste), there are a few things I enjoyed about the real Leslie Knope’s memoir: 1. The book itself: its design, her hilarious character portraits for each section, the silky pages, the large graphic type, the old photographs of her at prom, her family, Seth Myers, etc. The tangible experience of holding and flipping through this book was one-of-a-kind—which felt fitting considering the person who wrote it. 2. The chapter on Parks and Rec. As a show that comforted me and made me cry with laughter in my solo apartment when I first moved to Waco, P&R will always hold a special place in my heart. The behind-the-scenes stories were heartfelt, and I felt justified in my love and devotion to Ron Swanson. 3. Her honest thoughts on writing. Writing a book sounds romantic and idyllic, like you sit in a one-room, candlelit cottage that’s surrounded by a flourishing garden or an enchanting forest or overlooking the sea. But Amy brings you back to Earth and reminds you, no, there’s actually something very not glamorous about sitting down and writing. But stressing or dreaming about writing isn’t writing—it requires you to just do the thing.
The quote I’m taking with me: “I believe great people do things before they are ready.”
16. Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0 by Jim Collins and Bill Lazier
While I’m ashamed to say this book took me many months to finish, I am ultimately very glad I stuck with it. Business books aren’t my thing. (And Collins would probably roll his eyes at my saying that, because I’ve heard him say on a podcast that he doesn’t write business books, he just writes about people. and a clear path to understanding people is through business, blah blah. Whatever. This is a business book.) There were definitely a few chapters that went over my head or dodged my interests, there were lots of gold nuggets that woke me up to workplace realities. I typed the quote below long before I finished the book, and yet here I am, months later, rereading these words with a deep gratitude and satisfaction. This has been a year of leaders in my workplace “waking up” that spirit inside of me and essentially chanting in my ear, “We believe in you.” That bolstering and edifying helped me make strides this year, and this book inspired me to pass that same kind of empowerment along to whoever is beside or right behind me.
The quote I’m taking with me: “Like such a teacher, a leader idealizes people and has resolute conviction that people can rise to this ideal. A leader grabs the spirit in people, pulling it forward and waking it up. A leader changes people’s perceptions of themselves, getting them to see themselves in the idealized way that he sees them. The leader conveys the message: ‘We can accomplish our big, hairy goals. I know we can do it, because I believe in you.’”
17. Liturgy of the Ordinary by Tish Harrison Warren
Have you ever had a book or movie get continually brought up to the point you’re almost sick of hearing about it, so you just cave and read or watch it? This was one of those books for me. I’ve heard about this book many times over the past few years, and I often see Warren’s name on podcasts or mentioned by other authors. I’m grateful that it stayed top of mind, because I ate this book up. Warren’s essential point is that every moment of our lives is meaningful to God and presents an opportunity to fellowship with Him and His church—even brushing our teeth, making the bed, and eating leftovers. She echoed what God has already been reminding me this year, that faithfulness isn’t a flashy burst but a slow, steady race, and it’s forged in the quiet, consistent rituals of our lives.
The quotes I’m taking with me: “And yet in my brokenness and lostness, I also need to form the habit of letting God love me, trusting again in his mercy, and receiving again his words of forgiveness and absolution over me.” (emphasis mine)
“Our task is not to somehow inject God into our work but to join God in the work he is already doing in and through our vocational lives. Therefore, holiness itself is something like a craft—not an abstract state to which we ascend but an earthy wisdom and love that is part and parcel of how we spend our day.”
18. All Along You Were Blooming by Morgan Harper Nichols
There’s a long, meaningful story behind me receiving this book—full of details I won’t share here. But let’s just say that this book was given to me on a random Tuesday by a generous, thoughtful, and intentional boss. As I read through Nichols’ words, I felt like my boss had seen right through me and knew exactly what my heart was hungry for. I’ve admired for Nichols for years, and in these pages, I felt so understood. She has a knack for comforting you, reminding you that you’re not alone in navigating the nuanced waters of life and self and relationships. But she’s also great at giving you a gentle nudge to step into whatever you need to do. And that means I’ll probably be rereading this one for a long time, soaking up every word.
The quote I’m taking with me:
There will be days when you do not feel
fearless
and you choose to get up
and go out to sea anyway.
And my friend,
let me tell you,
that is what it means to be brave.
It is that gentle shove toward the water
that says “I will go,
and I will go afraid.”
It is not a feeling.
It is not a thought.
It is that inward wind that pulls you out of sleep
and says “I will go forth,
with all I have now:
a breath, a dozen steps,
and a pocket full of fears,
but no matter what tries to pull me back,
I will find the strength to be here.”
19. Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Annie Barrows & Mary Ann Shaffer
This will probably be my favorite fiction book of the year, hands down. A look at post-World War II life, a female author chasing a good story, falling in love with a community in the process, and an entire book purely written in letters. That is hard to top, especially when you add a thoughtful, caring, deep-waters-person-who-doesn’t-show-it-much pig farmer, a lot of sassy humor, and a character like Elizabeth McKenna—who breathes life onto the page even though (spoiler!) you never get the chance to meet her. While World War II tragedy is sprinkled throughout the book, those details only make the love and bravery in its characters that much more beautiful, as a group of people pick up the pieces of their war-torn countryside and learn to live in hope again. Not to mention this book is just fun—feel-good and so full of life. (FYI, the movie is different. Read the book first, trust me!)
The quote I’m taking with me: “That's what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you to another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It's geometrically progressive—all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment.”
20. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Wow. I’ve sat here several minutes and am not sure what else to say about this one. I mostly just want to commend Reid’s writing. She paints the most vivid pictures in such creative ways, I’m not quite sure how she does it. She’s descriptive but not in a flowery or boring way. She made me smile sometimes because, yes, I could see exactly what Alix Chamberlain’s Thanksgiving setup looked like at her house, and I have seen white, upper-class moms talk to their toddlers that way, and I wish I was dancing with Emira, Zara, and Briar in the ice cream section. Reid totally submerged me into the story and the complexity of these characters. It’s a story full of bad communication, friendship, drama, awkward interactions, and spice. Some of it is uncomfortable, because underneath this intricate plot surrounding two women, there are lots of questions about class and race. I will be chewing on this one for awhile.
The quote I’m taking with me: “Emira loved the ease in which she could lose herself in the rhythm of childcare. she didn’t have to worry about having interesting hobbies. the fact that she still slept on a twin bed meant nothing to Briar or any of their plans. Every day with Briar was a tiny victory that Emira didn’t want to give up. Seven o’clock was always a win. Here’s your kid. She’s happy and alive.”
Well, my Goodreads goal for this year was 35, but alas, it’s November and I’m only at 20. Oh well. But I won’t go down without a fight!
Any book recs? Favorites from the year? Let me know!
