Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
The Rock That Is Higher: Story as Truth
We are all strangers in a strange land, longing for home, but not quite knowing what or where home is. We glimpse it sometimes in our dreams, or as we turn a corner, and suddenly there is a strange, sweet familiarity that vanishes almost as soon as it comes… –Madeleine L’Engle, from The Rock That Is Higher
Story captures our hearts and feeds our imaginations. It reminds us...more
Story captures our hearts and feeds our imaginations. It reminds us...more
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published
March 19th 2002
by Shaw Books
(first published 1993)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
589)
This is a fantastic book, full of much of the same ideas about story and myth and faith that J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis speak of. And while it's similar in thought and premise, it is still fresh and interesting; a delving into the different faucets of what story can be to us rather than a reiteration of things that have been said before. The simplest lesson I draw from this book is about Christian myth. That sometimes the stories we tell are not in Scripture, may not be factual, but like othe...more
The Rock that is Higher contains L'Engle's reflections from about 5 years after her husband's death. On the way to a lecture, a truck hit the car L'Engle was riding in and nearly killed her. She wrote this book as she dealt with a long, frustrating, painful recovery. In this book, L'Engle explores the nature of story and truth. Story conveys truth, and the truth conveyed by story goes beyond that of mere facts.
L'Engle's main source of inspiration in these reflections is the Bible. This puts her...more
L'Engle's main source of inspiration in these reflections is the Bible. This puts her...more
A lovely reflection on Story, and how crucial it is to our growth, our formation, and inspiration for our lives. The main "inspiration" that L'Engle gave me here was a further prod to return to Scripture and deepen my knowledge of it.
Madeleine L'Engle loves telling stories! And story, fittingly enough, is one of the chief ways through which she experiences the divine, as she explains in this book. Christian Biblical exegesis, personal history, explanations of her writing process, and amusing anecdotes she collects are woven together as she attempts to show how insistence on scripture as literal fact can actually weaken its impact and ability to change lives. A very personal book, with a few moments of grouchiness, a few mome...more
Writing about books, I try to talk about what I loved as well as the parts that I haven’t liked as much. But it’s one of those things where the squeaky wheel gets the grease: it’s the ways in which a book annoyed me, or disappointed me, that tend to stick in my head, especially when I start out with very high expectations for a book – as I didn’t with The Rock that is Higher. A dear friend recommended it to me, so I expected to love it. I think I expected it to be written just for me – to unfold...more
view 1 comment
I can't recommend this book too highly. The idea that the words we use to describe an experience are almost more important than whatever it is that is being described is very useful in dealing with events in one's own life and relating to other people.
The only reason I gave this book three stars is because it seemed to lack a certain fundamental organizational quality. However, L'Engle incorporates some profound insights into life through this somewhat autobiographical piece.
Oh, love, love, love Madeleine L'Engle! She writes about how God gives authors inspiration, structure and abilities...so intelligent AND faithful. My favorite writer, by far!
I started this, but got distracted, which is hard to believe since I love L'Engle so much. It's a beautiful book, but it's hard to top Walking on Water and Bright Evening Star.
Not much different from L'Engle's other non-fiction works on writing/literature (such as "Walking on Water"). But I love her passion for truth being told through story!
L'Engle discusses "story as truth" again in this one, mainly writing about the Christian story, but eventually moving beyond the Bible. She discusses grief, pain, joy, redemption, scripture, love, and home, all illustrated in story. The cool part for me, the last time I read it, was that the story she dwelt on most was that of King David -- and I was reading the books of Samuel at the same time. Lovely coincidence.
She discusses all this throughout her own healing process after a terrible car acc...more
She discusses all this throughout her own healing process after a terrible car acc...more
Essential for writers (or anyone in the arts) of faith.
She doesn't so much "write" as "have a conversation"
words of wisdom from a great author
i usually read l'engle books in less than 2 weeks. however, despite my daily reading, it took me two months to finish this one. it was hard for me and i'm not sure why, though i did end up with a more underlined/noted book than usual. maybe it was just heavy with truth. but i loved it. :)
Sort of a sequel to Walking on Water. Some more lovely reflections on faith and art. I don't always agree with her, but I love her passion and transparency.
A non-fiction book about story and faith. I found it very lovely and refreshing, even if I don’t agree with L’Engle’s theology 100%. [March 2010]
Though I do not agree with all of L'Engle's theology, her expression of poetry and thoughts on writing inspire and prompt my own reflection.
as usual, l'engle expresses the tensions & paradoxes that exist in christianity with tender thought and beautiful language.
This is an amazing book. I know it is one I will re-read many times.
3.5 - 4 stars
One of L' Engle's finest. Highly recommended!
One of L' Engle's finest. Highly recommended!
May 22, 2013
Raeesa
marked it as to-read
May 22, 2013
Addie
marked it as to-read
May 20, 2013
Melissa
marked it as to-read
May 17, 2013
Tarrah Hicks
marked it as to-read
May 17, 2013
Andrew
marked it as to-read
May 16, 2013
Caroline English
marked it as to-read
May 16, 2013
Margaret
marked it as to-read
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Madeleine L'Engle was an American writer best known for her Young Adult fiction, particularly the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, and Many Waters. Her works reflect her strong interest in modern science: tesseracts, for example, are featured prominently in A Wrinkle in Time, mitochondrial DNA in A Wind in the Door, organ regener...more
More about Madeleine L'Engle...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
“One of the hardest lessons I have to learn is how not to be judgmental about people who are judgmental. When I see ow wrong somebody is—how shallow it is to look at the Resurrection as a mere, explainable fact—when I see only the mistakenness of others, then I am blinded to their being children of God, who are just as valued and treasured as are those who more nearly agree with me.”
—
3 people liked it
More quotes…
