I read (or listened to) four books in November and they were all really good!
In short:
2 non-fiction, 2 fiction
3 audiobooks, 1 hardcover
I highly recommend 3 of the 4
Keep reading for more detailed reviews of each one!
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus is an autobiography about one man's conversion from Islam to Christianity. This book was very eye-opening to me as someone who didn't know much about the Muslim faith. His upbringing had many parallels with my own as far as his close knit family and their devout faith. I admire the way he and his Christian friend, David, could have deep, theological debates while still maintaining their friendship, in fact growing closer as friends. Those kinds of relationships are rare in our culture today where we are easily offended and cancel those we disagree with. I can't help but think our society would fare better if we had more discussion and less arguing.
I Must Betray You is a beautiful, historical fiction story that takes place in Romania in 1989. Ruta Sepetys is an amazing storyteller and brings to life the horrific struggles of life under a Communist regime. I was a teenager in America during this time and was completely oblivious to the hardship faced by Romanian people. I think it's important to bring these stories to light and learn the hard lessons of history. Corruption and tyranny have found a home in all corners of the globe throughout history and still today. It is only when brave men and women stand up for truth and freedom that change is possible. Sometimes the seemingly smallest voices are the ones that when joined together create a sound that cannot be ignored.
The Dutch House is a fictional account of a family torn apart by greed, jealously, and the hurt caused by words left unspoken. Maeve and Danny are siblings whose lives have been marked by loss and pain. They struggle throughout the novel to make sense of their broken relationships with the adults in their lives who failed to care for them in the ways they needed it most. Relationships are messy and broken and this book highlights that in some dramatic ways. I didn't love this book, but I appreciated the honest reality that we all bring baggage into relationships and sometimes our own issues get in the way of loving people that way that we should.
The Benedict Option is a non-fiction book that discusses the reality of what living in a Post-Christian nation really means for those who hold to a Biblical Worldview and are convicted to live set apart lives. St. Benedict of Nursia was a sixth-century monk who courageously led others in living a life drastically different that the lifestyle of the Roman Empire. In this book, the author calls Christians to live like St. Benedict, not literally hidden away in a monastery, but living a lifestyle of faithful community that goes against the grain in order to reflect Christ. It's a call to live in the world but not of the world. I found this book to be encouraging and thought provoking to consider what it means to truly be a Christian in the 21st century.
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