** spoiler alert ** Even though Anne Rice details her Catholic upbringing, I could identify closely with her experiences as a child born into a committed and faithful church family. That was my first surprise!

She abandoned her childhood belief as she hit the college years. That was me!

She went back to Jesus, and was married in the Church in obedience.
I understand that!

Interestingly enough, I have just finished another autobiography of a woman who finds her way back to her Lord after doing life "without him" (that's in quotes because we all know that our Lord is always present whether or not we acknowledge Him or not.) So comparisons and contrasts are inevitable.

Anne Rice writes with a descriptive power that cannot help but move one into her world and experience, even when she was a child under school age. For a writer to whom books were behind a barrier, she focused in on being fully in the moment, and her processing comes across as a conversation with a good friend (you, the reader.) I really like that intimate style of writing.

I worried that the first half of the book wasn't going to get to her
life change given all that she wants us to understand about her foundational beliefs that color her world from early on. That world includes her prolific writing about Vampires in the 1980's. I haven't read any of those books, and was never interested enough to even peruse one. But, as Anne began to be aware of the crying need in her life for a strength greater than herself, a love greater than her own, a purpose greater than her imagination...she describes how the characters and plots of her stories indicate those longings and needs.

She has found her purpose (we are to LOVE...), her biggest challenge (we are to LOVE our neighbors which include our enemies), and her biggest satisfaction...(we are to LOVE our Lord, as He loves us.)
She is far more articulate and convincing than I in communicating this.

I have found an exhilaration about God and his working in our lives with the concluding chapters in Anne Rice's book. This exhilaration simply was not present at the end of the other autobiography which immediately preceeded this read for me.

I am so thankful for the redeeming work of a Lord who is committed to us with all of our warts, self interests and unfortunate detours in our life. His way is the only way for true happiness and joy in every circumstance.