English Lessons

   BOOK REVIEW: Could she come to love the questions themselves?   The church wasn't just part of Andrea Lucado's childhood. It was her childhood. It provided more than happy moments. It provided an invitations to know Jesus.
   When Andrea arrived in Oxford the year after she graduated from college, she expected to meet God there. What she didn't expect was that God would be so much bigger than she'd believed.
   In this engaging memoir, Andrea speaks to all of us who wrestle with doubt and identity. "So many nights in Oxford", Andrea writes, "I felt like the details of my faith were getting fuzzier. Nights turned restless with questions. I questioned God's existence, and the doubt was getting into my bones."
   In ENGLISH LESSONS, Andrea takes us through the roads of England and, more important, the paths of the soul. Here she explores the journey of a changing faith and an unchanging God--and why growing up starts with realizing just how small we are.



   MY REVIEW:  I have never read Max Lucado's books, but I have heard of them. When I saw that his daughter had written a book, I wanted to read it. And now that I have, I want to read some of Max's. I really liked English Lessons. It is worthwhile, interesting, and fun to read. Some memoirs can tend to be dry, but this one wasn't.
   I really liked the descriptions of Oxford that were included. I like big historic buildings and rivers as much as the next person, and as I read I wished there were pictures, or better yet--that I could actually be there! :)
   One of the many things I liked from the book is this paragraph:     "A friend from Nashville once told me that when he hears conflicting and confusing voices in his head, he knows those voices are not from God. God is not a God of confusion, he explained to me. God is clear. When I regret, wonder, and question my past, I feel anxious, guilty, and foggy. But when I release those moments of opportunity offered by various rivers over the years, and I focus on what's in front of me and all around me, the fog clears, the guilt fades, the anxiety subsides. That's when I hear God's voice because I've finally quieted the others. That's when I can see His face. Through the clearing of the fog, he comes into view, and His eyes are kind."   How true--when we stop wishing for yesterday, we can have today and hope for tomorrow. And if we stop agonizing, we can hear God.
   One more plus--this is a beautiful, hardcover book. :)

        I received a copy of this book from BLOGGING FOR BOOKS in exchange for my honest review.