4 Memoirs that Celebrate Resilience
Kate Bowler, Beth Moore, Tara Westover, & Philip Yancey occupy our full attention in this end of summer BOOKBAG (+ the monthly literary time capsule)
I’m down in Annapolis, sprawled on the sofa on my daughter’s screened in porch. The wind is blowing, the birds are chirping, a plane flies over head. Two days after my beautiful granddaughter’s incredibly glorious wedding, all is right with the world and I’m turning my attention to our monthly BOOKBAG. Listen in …
‘This memoir has been pieced together with the help of interviews, notes, essays, syllabi, social media posts, emails, documents, direct messages, and my ever-faithful day planner. Some names and identifying characteristics have been changed. Time and some events have been compressed. Dialogue has been approximated. Great care has been taken to tell my truths. This is my story and how I remember it.’
- Stephanie Land
Hey all my persevering, book-loving companions ~
Our conversation on resilience earlier this summer prompted a hefty dialogue so I think you’ll fully appreciate these four memorable stories of incredibly courageous people. They are powerfully gifted authors who model for us what fortitude and bravery under the most challenging circumstances look like.
These compelling bestselling titles are well worth the investment of your valued time, a stellar way to begin wrapping up your own personal summer reading season. Join me in entering the world of those who have much to teach us, courtesy of their own suffering, vulnerability, and faith.
Settle on in and ready your eyes and ears, mind and heart. We've got a whole lot to explore and talk through.
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Everything Happens For a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved
Kate Bowler
Stunning, tragic, with wisps of humor and wisdom that refuse to be quenched, author Kate Bowler gently extends her hand to the reader as she walks through the valley of the shadow of the diagnosis of Stage IV cancer at the age of 35 ... in the midst of caring for those she adores, forging ahead with the beloved work she's been called to do, and wrestling with broken-hearted faith.
Bonus points for this Duke Divinity School professor's Absolutely Never Say This To People Experiencing Terrible Times: A Short List and Give This A Go at the end of the book.
Five years after publishing this New York Times Bestseller, Kate is still going strong with a powerful outreach and a much-needed empathetic influence. Her 2021 follow-up book is outstanding as well - No Cure for Being Human: (And Other Truths I Need to Hear) ($4.99!!). Her kind, perceptive, hard-won wisdom is priceless.
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All My Knotted-Up Life: A Memoir
Beth Moore
‘From where I sit, where I stand, where I walk, where I run, where I rest, where I pray, play, and weep, my story looks like a shirt too long left in the bottom of a clothes hamper. Were I to bleach and launder it, starch and iron it to stand up properly, crisp and straight, it would look a whole lot better, but I am certain of this - it would no longer fit.'
- page 118
In this New York Times Bestseller, ministry leader, teacher, and author Beth Moore peels back the layers of her life and exposes them to the light ... the healing kind that comes when secrets are revealed in ways that are needful and appropriate.
This is a no-holds barred memoir told with 'surprising candor' that will draw you right into her traumatic childhood, the immense challenges of marriage, and wrenching decisions in recent years that have won her both heartfelt admiration ... and sadly, incredible distain.
I promise that Beth's story will impact you. Raw and tender, tragic, humorous, and redemptive in its telling.
Kindle
Hardcover
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Educated: A Memoir
Tara Westover
This New York Times Bestseller is an absolutely raw, devastating, yet hope-filled work. This brilliant author's riveting, unbelievable storyline is never the less true, her writing style completely captivating. You'll be rooting for her every step of the way, you'll marvel at the choices she makes and the obstacles she overcomes as an isolated child of survivalists, kept out of school, and a victim of violence. Her slow and steady rise to the top makes for top-notch reading.
More than once I simply closed the book to catch my breath and process the reality of her life in those fragile, formative years. Talk about resilience.
Four years after publication, this interview was a welcome update.
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Where the Light Fell: A Memoir
Philip Yancey
This book was one of my three favorites read in 2021. If you ever read Philip Yancey, this unsettling powerhouse of a saga will enlarge and enrich everything you've gleaned from his work over the decades. There are no words to fully describe this heart-wrenching memoir which the author says took many years to write. As you read, you'll understand why.
'Yancey dives into his family origins, taking us on an evocative journey from the backwoods of the Bible Belt to the bustling streets of Philadelphia; from trailer parks to church sanctuaries; from family oddballs to fire-and-brimstone preachers and childhood awakenings through nature, music, and literature. In time, the weight of religious and family pressure sent both sons on opposite paths—one toward healing from the impact of what he calls a “toxic faith,” the other into a self-destructive spiral.'
This season finds the author living with Parkinson's Disease. I'm delighted to see him engaging with the media with his signature warmth and quiet wisdom as he brings salt and light into a volatile world.
Meanwhile, I love this little clip of conversation with Kate Bowler.
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ AUGUST TIME CAPSULE
1 year ago
The Light Between Oceans: A Novel
M.L. Stedman
5 years ago
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, & Our Lives Revealed
Lori Gottlieb
10 years ago
The Rainmaker: A Novel
John Grisham
15 years ago
The Forgotten Garden: A Novel
Kate Morton
20 years ago
The Walk Out Woman: When Your Heart is Empty & Your Dreams Are Lost
Steve Stephens & Alice Gray
25 years ago
The Lies We Believe: Renew Your Mind & Transform Your Life
Chris Thurman
30 years ago
Renewed Day by Day: A Daily Devotional
A.W. Tozer
Whose story will you read first? And what old-time title transports you back right down memory lane?
Linda 🍒
🛒 I appreciate all of you who are supporting my work when you click on any Amazon link here & then shop 'til you drop. That's it! A few cents go into my pocket at no extra cost to you ever. You’re happy, I’m happy, it’s a win-win.
I loved Educated but I definitely had to take breaks now and then and kept thinking THIS is why we have so many homeschooling laws/how homeschooling gets a bad name and how frustrating that is for the rest of us. My heart broke for everything she and her siblings went through. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls was another one much like that but oh so hard to read too.
I have read all these except Phillip Yancey. It’s been in my list and in my shopping cart I have read a few of his others and have enormous respect for him. Beth Moore, Teri Conklin and Kate Bowler were all great!! However my husband did say he thought Kate’s book was very depressing but good. We actually listened to the audio version on a trip. Her story is definitely one of triumph but struggle with the medical diagnosis and getting g treatment. Now I must go get where the light fell and complete this list! 😊. Thanks for these