Paula Vince's Blog: The Vince Review, page 77

'Travels with my Aunt' by Graham Greene

 

2015 Reading Challenge Week 10 - A book that came out the year you were born.

I was actually expected in 1970, either January 2nd or 7th, I can't quite remember. Instead, I was born Christmas Eve, 1969. So I slipped into the 60s with one week to spare. This book was published in 1969 and not 1970, as Goodreads claims, but I consider myself a bit of a straddler anyway. I saw that this novel was published down the track as a Penguin Classic and the blurb sounded whimsical and amusing. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this is among the wooden spoons of the challenge. 
 
Described by Graham Greene as "the only book I have written just for the fun of it," Travels with My Aunt is the story of Henry Pulling, a retired and complacent bank manager who meets his septuagenarian Aunt Augusta for the first time at what he supposes to be his mother's funeral. She soon persuades Henry to abandon his dull suburban existence to travel her way—winding through Brighton, Paris, Istanbul, and Paraguay. Through Aunt Augusta, one of Greene's greatest comic creations, Henry joins a shiftless, twilight society; mixes with hippies, war criminals, and CIA men; smokes pot; and breaks all currency regulations.

MY THOUGHTS:

Henry Pulling is a middle-aged bachelor enjoying his early retirement and growing dahlias. He dislikes the unexpected and thrives on routine. It's clear that he's meant to come across as a bit stodgy and tame. (If the story was set now, Henry might turn out to be a computer game nerd, considered cool by many.) He meets his Aunt Augusta at his mother's funeral, for the first time since he was a little boy. Nudging 80, she likes to live the fast life and talks him into being her travel companion.

Aunt Augusta has always ignored moral codes and social norms. She has a string of illicit affairs behind her, and crimes which she's got away with. Her frequent stories of the past seem to annoyingly get in the way of the plot, until I realise they essentially are the plot, as the travel tales meander along very slowly at times. Several of her stories cross a line into the realm of too weird for me, such as the ex-circus lover who set up a church for dogs.

But crazy as these anecdotes are, they alone are not enough to make me cringe while reading a book. Trying to figure out what did it, I realise there's a sort of double standard at play all the way through. The novel is written in such a way to try to make us admire Aunt Augusta and deplore Henry. We were being prodded to applaud her unethical choices and freedom, and think of him as a poor, sorry fool. To use the book's own logic though, the lifestyle Henry was living at the start is arguably different but not better or worse. Augusta resents the staid folk who judge her choices, yet she blows up in a very judgmental manner at poor Henry several times. He does quite a bit of kowtowing and apologising for his attitude toward her, while she never apologises for her attitude toward him, which to me, is the exact same thing.

The major plot twist is enough to convince me that Aunt Augusta actually missed out badly on a lot of the good things in life, although she never seemed to regret it at all.

The 'change' in Henry as he lightens up and comes to see the light, I also found a bit cringeworthy. I think another line is crossed when a 55-year-old man gets engaged to marry a fifteen-year-old girl. I wonder whether this novel represents the general feeling going around in the late 60s/early 70s about doing whatever feels good, or whether readers back then had similar reactions to mine. Maybe it was good to have been an oblivious baby at the time.

1.5 stars

'All She Ever Wanted' by Lynn Austin

 

Thirty-five years ago Kathleen fled her home, desperate to cast off weights of poverty and shame. But an unexpected invitation from her sister unwittingly draws her back to that sleepy New York town, her own daughter in tow.

A trip meant to salvage her relationship with her daughter changes course as Kathleen reexamines her own childhood. But even more enlightening are the stories of Eleanor, her once-vibrant mother, and Fiona, the grandmother she barely knew.

The more Kathleen learns, the more answers she seeks concerning her family's mysterious past. Yet with the past exposed, Kathleen is torn between her need to forgive and the urge to forget. 

MY THOUGHTS:

This story focuses on four generations of women in a family line. Each deplored her mother and resolved to be completely different. The passage of time hid the fact that they were all most alike, especially in their decisions to sever all ties with their families. Kathleen, who is number three in the pattern, realises that her relationship with her teenage daughter, Joelle, seems to be heading the same way. She delves into their past and becomes aware of the trend, arming her with understanding and knowledge to end the process.

After a lot of thought, I realised the captivating quality of this story is because it is told backwards in time instead of chronologically. That's enough to add depth and mystery. We're already aware of the results of each woman's choices, and just need to find out how they got there. From Kathleen's own sad background we're drawn back to the pasts of her mother, Eleanor, and grandmother, Fiona, through the memories of others. Delving into several characters' lives at different stages can be as fascinating as time travel stories.

I love the massive bombshell twists. One major one got me wishing I could take back some of the tears I cried, and then made me wish I'd cried them for a different reason.

At first, my biggest gripe was being unable to perceive a male character as a clear role model to admire. Donald, Leonard, Rick, Howard, Rory, Arthur, Lorenzo. There is a long line of despicables. I was glad when a couple from that list grew on me as the story progressed, especially the one whose past was unraveled the same time as his sister's.

It's interesting to see how history is shown to have a major role in shaping characters, rather than rolling off like water from a duck's back. Kathleen was a product of the political uneasiness of the volatile '60s. Eleanor's story took place in the WW2 era, and Fiona's in the roaring '20s, with flappers and speakeasies.

I didn't always approve of characters' decisions to turn their backs. I can understand Fiona's position, but wished Eleanor and Kathleen could have shown a bit more grace. The fact that Kathleen never once wanted to find out what became of her brothers and sister didn't sit easy with me - like abandonment. She just decided she was better than they were, and took off! I thought her family were most magnanimous in opening their arms to accept her back in the fold after the way she treated them. Yet it reminds us we're all in need of grace and forgiveness at times, for a lot less. It's good to come across stories in which it is offered freely, helping us to offer it to ourselves.

4 stars

Help from a Human Angel

As a writer, I get occasional invitations to speak at venues. A couple of weeks ago was a great opportunity. The Year 12 students at a Christian College are studying my novel 'Best Forgotten' as one of their core texts. Their teacher asked me to come and speak to them about that book in particular, and also to the Year 10 and 11 students about fiction writing in general. I'd promised to arrive by 9am, which meant jumping out of bed before day break.

I knew three hours would be plenty of time to get as far as Balaklava and thought I had my route planned out. However, my sense of direction is poorly developed. It's the way I was born, and although I know some sort of GPS would be helpful, I haven't got one. It became clear that I must have taken a wrong turn in the city outskirts as I found myself in the thick of morning rush hour traffic. Pulling over to consult my street directory didn't help, as my eye was on the clock and I was beginning panic mode. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out where I was in relation to where I needed to be. Having to flip several pages to try to figure it out certainly didn't help.

My only option was stopping to ask for directions. I ran into the nearest business, which was a day care/baby-sitting facility for dogs. The girl behind the counter looked up Google Maps and tried to explain a possible route, but it was all around the place, and a male colleague of hers asked me to step out the front with him so he could take a look at the print-out.

'Don't worry about these directions she's given you. They're just confusing. Let me think a bit.' After a few moments, he drew me fresh directions on a piece of paper, explaining each step as he went. 'Basically, it's just a few turns.' A couple of other clients arrived with their dogs, and he waved to them, saying, 'Yeah, I'm good at this. I'm 27 years old and know Adelaide well enough to give directions to anywhere.' Then he told me, 'Good luck, I hope you find it.'

'So do I. Thanks.' I managed to find Port Wakefield Road when his directions were all I had to go on. What a relief to drive with a bit more lead in my foot when I got out into the country without speeding outright, and I arrived at the school just ten minutes too late, which was earlier than I'd dared hope. The teacher, who must have been waiting for me, hurried over as soon as I'd parked and said, 'I hope you're Paula.'

We dashed straight to a big auditorium, where all the Years 10 and 11 students burst into applause, presumably because I'd finally shown up.

In retrospect later, I couldn't help thinking about that young guy who worked at the doggy day care, and how he'd been the perfect person to have stumbled across. Giving me those directions was probably just a small gesture for him, but they really saved my day. I don't think I'd possibly be able to find the street of his workplace again to thank him, and he probably wouldn't even remember me if I did. But what a great stroke of providence that I randomly stopped at the place where the person who could give the best, clearest instructions happened to work. Several others were not let down, I managed to have an excellent day too, and it's reminded me that the same principle probably applies to all of us. For all I know, something I said at the school might have struck a chord with some of the students, and the good benefit may ripple further. We never know what our small, helpful gestures will mean in the grand scheme of things. Maybe when we go to bed at night thinking, I didn't achieve much this day, our input was really vital for somebody else.

Thanks heavens for human angels, but I wouldn't mind a GPS some day.

'Dauntless' by Dina L Sleiman

2015 Reading Challenge, Week 9 - A Book with a Love Triangle

This is one of the most intriguing type of love triangles, in which there is no clear favourite contender for the fair lady's hand. Both young men are worthy and admirable. We just have to wait it out.  

Though once a baron's daughter, Lady Merry Ellison is willing to go to any lengths to protect the orphaned children of her former village. Dubbed "The Ghosts of Farthingale Forest," her band of followers soon become enemies of the throne when they hijack ill-gotten gold meant for the king.

Timothy Grey, ninth child of the Baron of Greyham, longs to perform some feat so legendary that he will rise from obscurity and earn a title of his own. When the Ghosts of Farthingale Forest are spotted in Wyndeshire, where he serves as assistant to the local earl, he might have found his chance. But when he comes face-to-face with the leader of the thieves, will he choose fame or love?

MY THOUGHTS:

This novel is set almost exactly 800 years ago, in the year 1216. Teenager Merry Ellison leads a group of outlaw children whose families were slaughtered in a terrible political attack. Timothy Grey is the youngest son of a nobleman who longs to prove his worth by capturing the band of thieves for his employer.

It's a pleasant and entertaining story set in a grim stage of history which was just the opposite. People rarely bathed, methods of torture were barbaric, travel was long and difficult, and the age of legal culpability was seven, so that many of Merry's young followers would be hung, drawn and quartered if discovered along with their leaders.

It doesn't take long to figure out that this is going to a fairly lighthearted book. It's quite comical at times. Dina Sleiman wrote the story so lovingly, I couldn't help being confident, the further I read, that all would be well to the point of the macabre threats becoming a bit of a joke. For example, Lord Wyndemere scolding Timothy for not dealing with the thieves, saying, 'I was quite disappointed to find no rotting remains to greet me upon my return to the castle.' Yet I think she manages to pull it off okay without having it digress into a Medieval farce. We readers know that we're just getting a fun romp through the Middle Ages, but for Merry and her supporting characters, the ever-present threats of danger and sudden death are real.

Sometimes in books set so long ago, there's the danger of filling characters' heads with modern attitudes which would never have crossed their fixed mindsets. I wondered if this was happening with Merry, as some of her ideas about divine right order seem pretty up-to-date for a Medieval girl, but I think the author manages to get away with it here too. After all, some of Merry's fellow men set the precedent, such as Robin Hood (or Robyn of the Hode, as he's known by these characters).

The love triangle is fraught with some inevitable regret, as both contenders for Merry's heart are equally easy to support, to the point where we know we'll be sorry for the one who misses out. Even toward the end, she's not sure which it will be herself. Merry doesn't intend to play one off against the other, but she can't help doing so a bit. There's Timothy, trying to balance his Biblical respect for rulers with what he knows in his heart is right. And then there's Allen, who can plunder and steal one day, and approach God confident of help the next, because he knows God judges the heart (and after all, who can be innocent according to the twisted laws of King John?) During their sparring match, I honestly couldn't decide which of these two young men I hoped would win. I think the strength of childhood ties managed to push one of them over in the end.

I know my favourite aspect of this novel. Not the daring rescues, skilful exploits, tense love triangle, jealous foes, and backing out of what looks to be a perfectly set trap. Neither is it the touch of the angelic or the 'in the nick of time' reunions. Great as these things are, I loved the deep affection and camaraderie between the Farthingale Ghosts. This includes the way in which every member played on their strengths, carried each others weaknesses and were so distinct from each of their companions. I hope there will be another book because now I want to find out what happens to each of them, and most of all he who didn't win the heroine's hand.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for my review copy.

4 stars

How the Mighty Fall

This is a piece from the archives of my old blog. I wrote it back in 2012, and it was interesting to read it over and see how the main points have held true. Here it is, with just a few tweaks for 2015. 



I'd been sad in previous years because the main Christian bookshop chains in Australia didn't seem to support their compatriots the way we would like them to. The truth is they honestly believed they were. They thought that poking a few copies of our books on their shelves was really going all out for us. They declared, 'We support fellow Australians' but never gave our books the same exposure they would give American ones. When asked why, they'd reply, 'Australian books don't sell! But we're still supporting you because at least we have them on our shelves. Anybody who is looking for you will find you. Or if they can't, they only need to ask us.' It always gave the impression that even fellow-Aussies (the bookshops) thought we were producing second rate material without even bothering to read it. The fact is, many Australian authors write wonderful, thought-provoking, entertaining and compelling books.

  The last few years have revealed how shortsighted I'd been without knowing, for my dependent attitude on the book stores. For over a decade, I'd been regarding them as monoliths we need to scale, and getting featured in their catalogues was making it closer to the pinnacle. Well, the spread of ebooks has shown us that maybe we don't need to be Sir Edmund Hilary in the business of writing and selling books after all. Huge structures can actually crumble suddenly while we're still trying to scale them.

In 1989, the Berlin Wall, an apparently permanent and impregnable bastion, was dismantled seemingly overnight. After hundreds of years of supremacy, the Roman Empire ended in quite an unobtrusive way. The strength of its citizens was undermined by the lead pipes of their water system, of all things. Poor Henry V died of dysentery soon after winning the Battle of Agincourt, when he was on the pinnacle of having both England and France under his feet. Napoleon's topple from his pedastal has become a proverb, as he faced Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar and 'met his Waterloo.'  And King Belshazzar of Babylon was feasting and carousing when he and his company suddenly read 'the writing on the wall.' In the morning, his reign was over. And just last week, my son, Blake, and I learned during a history lesson that the mighty Attila the Hun died of a nosebleed! History reinforces the folly of relying on huge structures, but it's a hard lesson to believe when they appear so solid.


As for bookshops, I thought I could sense their foundations beginning to tremble back in 2012, and three years has reinforced it. At that time, I was browsing in Borders bookshop, near the iconic silver balls in Adelaide. After passing their Gloria Jean cafe, where many people were eating and drinking, I took the escalator to the top storey and sat in a plush armchair to look at books. Nothing could have seemed more opulent and substantial. But a few short weeks later, before I had time to make another trip down from the Hills into Adelaide, it was gone! Angus & Robertson followed on its heels. And Word bookstore, which had been in the heart of Adelaide for as long as I could remember, had been forced to shuffle out to some obscure suburb I never visit. At present, Dymocks still seems to be holding on, and I'm sure we all hope it will last.

It's fairly obvious what is shaking the foundations of bookshops. In January 2012, I was given a kindle. Now, my days of driving down to Adelaide especially to visit Koorong are over (or at least very rare). Electronic books are cheap, swift to download and don't have a shelf life. I'm pretty sure that if I have a recommendation for some good old book written years ago, I'll have more chance finding them on Amazon than in Koorong, Dymocks or any other shop. It seems that e-books may be the iceberg to the Titanic of the bookshops. Just twenty or even ten years ago, whoever would have imagined it?

Although there is sadness in this situation, there are a few positive thoughts for writers like myself. We no longer need to get downhearted because the big bookstores aren't interested in us. 'Big' seems to be shrinking daily. We need to keep our chins up, never stop writing or producing whatever we do best, and trust that more opportunities are opening up to spread our voices further than we might believe possible. As King Hezekiah was warned by God not to trust in the horses and chariots of Egypt, I believe He would say the same thing to authors regarding bookshops.

Ironically, straight after I originally wrote this post, they televised 'You've Got Mail' with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Do you remember loving that movie in the 90s as much as I did? Her quaint, family-owned bookshop was forced out of business by his mega-chain. Who would have believed that in such a short period of time, even his mighty business would be getting shaky? 

If you liked this post, you may also like my list comparing electronic and hard copy books.

'Still Life' by Christa Parrish

 

 A tragic plane crash. One woman who lost her husband. Another who gave up her seat for him.

Ada spent her first twenty-five years with her family as part of a fringe religious sect. Her only contact with the outside world was through customers at their farm store. Then she met Julian, a photojournalist who'd come to document their lifestyle. They eloped mere days later and Ada was thrust into a completely new life as a wife, city-dweller, and an individual allowed to make her own decisions. But she has no idea who she is.

On her twenty-sixth birthday, Julian plans to fly home from an assignment to give her her first-ever birthday present. He's thrilled when Katherine Cramer gives up her seat so he can make the flight. But the plane crashes and everyone on board is killed, including Julian.

MY THOUGHTS:

This story really drew me in. I didn't want to stop reading, and didn't take long to figure out that my overall impression would hinge on the final resolution of the plot. The question forming the main theme is something we've all tussled with and placed in the 'too hard' basket. Why do some people die prematurely, while others are spared, regardless of the apparent goodness of the person? It's such a biggie, I was intrigued to see what Christa Parrish would make of it.

The first part follows the lives of two female main characters in the aftermath of a fatal plane crash. The young widow, Ada, has to come to terms with the death of her husband, Julian, who was flying home to celebrate her birthday. Katherine is the woman who should have been on the plane, but offered him her seat, so she could spend time with her lover behind her husband's back. We later learn more about Julian himself, and also Katherine's teenage son, Evan, who had been born with a serious heart defect.

It's a perfect example of why I love reading and writing contemporary fiction. Apart from the crash itself, several characters had traumatic events in their pasts, but while not being glossed over, these were not the focal points. Ada's history in the cult headed by her extremist father, Katherine's decision to have an affair, Evan's heart problems. In spite of these, each of the characters come to a place where they are able to look forward to their futures with courage and hope. The book offers the hope that it can be the same for any of us.

It highlights the value of human life. How terrible that Ada lost Julian, but the alternative would have been that Katherine's teenage sons would have been left without a mother, and Will without a wife. I like the flashbacks to Julian's reflections about the value of his own life. Even though he was a famous, award-winning photographer, he sometimes felt inferior, believing that leaving a record of images on paper didn't help the world or save souls. However, what he came understand about the value of his work helped Evan, who had photography aspirations of his own.

What huge world news a commercial airline accident of that calibre would be, so I'm glad they are so rare. Although the story of how Ada and Julian came to be together may come across a little far-fetched, I've definitely read similar stories declared to be fact. The pilgrimage she undertakes after his death is rewarding to read about, and Ada possibly didn't even plumb all there was to know. Some of the habits she takes up, such as the personal photo blog, are simple things we can all do, and as several characters often remind us, we don't have to be Julian Goetz to appreciate the benefit.

I think the big question in the theme was addressed in the best way possible, and was glad to have read this novel.

Thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for my review copy.

5 stars

'The Fear Cure' by Dr Lissa Rankin

Not many people in the medical world are talking about how being afraid can make us sick—but the truth is that fear, left untreated, becomes a serious risk factor for conditions from heart disease to diabetes to cancer. Now Lissa Rankin, M.D., explains why we need to heal ourselves from the fear that puts our health at risk and robs our lives of joy—and shows us how fear can ultimately cure us by opening our eyes to all that needs healing in our lives.
     Drawing on peer-reviewed studies and powerful true stories, The Fear Cure presents a breakthrough understanding of fear’s effects and charts a path back to wellness and wholeness on every level. 

MY THOUGHTS:
I appreciate the chance to read how somebody trained as a traditional medical doctor probes into the spiritual, unseen roots of disease. Dr Rankin made it her project to stir around where science and spirituality intersect.

Part 1 emphasises the enormous toll fear takes on our physical bodies. False fear which makes it feel as if we're at the mercy of a dangerous world so often doesn't pan out in reality, but is still taken on by every cell in our bodies. Natural healing mechanisms are inhibited when fear is left to rage unchecked. She even looks into the modern subject of over-diagnosis - when routine screenings can cause more harm than good.

Part 2 deals with four courage cultivating truths we need to take on to begin the change.
1) Uncertainty is the gateway to possibility (as opposed to wanting to control everything).
2) Loss is natural and can lead to growth (and even drifting friendships may simply be running their natural course, rather than being anyone's 'fault').
3) It's a purposeful, friendly world (rather than a random and hostile one. She quotes Albert Einstein, who said the most important decision we make is whether we believe in a friendly or hostile universe).
4) We are all connected (as opposed to being lonely entities at the mercy of upsets).

Part 3 offers Dr Rankin's prescription for courage, based on the 4 truths of Part 2. She urges readers to be willing to entertain the idea that there's something we can trust under-girding our lives. As long as we trust nothing but our cognitive minds, we're bound to feel fear as our normal state.

The food for thought in this book is interesting and varied. It includes the theory that we give our cognitive minds, based on limited, 5-sensual 'certainty', far more clout than we should, because the underlying orderliness and protection operates far beyond what we can see. I like her discussion of how true, intuitive hunches tend to differ from the sort of paranoid panic thoughts I've had millions of over the years. I couldn't help smiling at her revelations that many of us need to behave more 'eggy' and less 'spermy.' This simply means to adopt a receptive, 'que sera sera' attitude rather than an active and busy one, but I love the analogy.

I belong to the Christian faith and like to read accordingly, but it's great to delve more widely into books based on science and philosophy, like this one, which I find end up strengthening my faith rather than shaking it.

Thanks to Net Galley and Hay House for my review copy.

4.5 stars

'The Settling Earth' by Rebecca Burns

2015 Reading Challenge Week 8 - A book set in a different country.
The country I've chosen is fairly close to me, just slightly to the east, but I still have never managed to visit yet. 

 Marriage transplants Sarah thousands of miles from home; a failed love affair forces Phoebe to make drastic choices in a new environment; a sudden, shocking discovery brings Mrs Ellis to reconsider her life as an emigrant — The Settling Earth is a collection of ten, interlinked stories, focusing on the British settler experience in colonial New Zealand, and the settlers’ attempts to make sense of life in a strange new land.

Sacrifices, conflict, a growing love for the landscape, a recognition of the succour offered by New Zealand to Maori and settler communities — these are themes explored in the book. The final story in the collection, written by Shelly Davies of the Ngātiwai tribe, adds a Maori perspective to the experience of British settlement in their land.

MY THOUGHTS:

This is a book of compelling short stories set in colonial New Zealand. They focus on a number of women who find themselves trying to eke out a living with their families.

At first, I thought the stories seem to follow on from each other like a set of dominoes. In each one, a reference is made to someone else, who then becomes the focal point of the next story. The domino arrangement is circular, as some of the characters we met at the start re-appear toward the end.

Though each of the stories can stand alone, having a book written in this unusual way of interlinked stories highlights something significant. There's a vicious circle which people don't even realise they are part of. In the harsh new southern land, settlers tend to build walls of detachment and aloofness to protect themselves by keeping despair at arm's length. Yet the detachment and aloofness keeps the cycle going. These women are living desperate and lonesome lives separately, yet right beside each other. I can easily imagine that I would have been just the same in their place.

The writing is vivid enough to draw us right into the picture and recreate these rough times as if we're watching them unfold. Even though the tone is fairly bleak and sober, some rays of hope are left in threads which aren't tied up (and I guess they don't have to be, since these are short stories). For me, they come through the younger characters. There's a robust little baby named Dottie, who is still too little to know about the hard world she's entered, and a creative teen named Laura, whose secret art helps her to retreat for a time, and be outside of things.

I wasn't impressed with the men who appear within these pages. It seemed that being male automatically meant being written as an inferior character; controlling, repugnant and nasty. It hardly seemed Miss Swainson, the local madam, needed to warn her girls to leave all their romantic notions at the door with a crowd like that. I'm glad there were passing references to a few good men, although they seemed to have either moved on or passed away. The men who were fixtures in this book all seemed to be the harsh, bestial type for the most part, who would take what they wanted with no compassion. Yet it seemed to be written this way for a purpose. In the last chapter, written by guest author Shelly Davies, the Maori character Haimona sums up the situation with his opinion about the problem with white settlers, of which this inequality between the genders is a feature. I'll leave you to get to that part.

Thanks to the author and Net Galley for providing me with a review copy.

4.5 stars

'Prayers for People who say they Can't Pray' by Donna Schaper

Sometimes the time you most need to pray is when you are least able to--these are the prayers you offer.

MY THOUGHTS:

This book was written to help people who struggle with the notion of prayer, for whatever reason. Some may feel thrown in the deep end. They may have recently become Christians and are told, 'Now you have to go and pray,' after never having done such a thing before. Others are what she calls 'Cradle Christians' with a solid grasp of basics and traditions from the very outset, along with a feeling of boredom and dryness.

Schaper aims to show that although prayer needn't be formulaic, if written guides appeal to something in our hearts, we might as well go for it. Some of the prayers in her books are crafted for individuals and others for groups. Some end with the traditional 'Amen' and others don't. Her chapters cover all sorts of situations in which we might find the need for a bit of prayer help. In other words, whether we prefer off-the-cuff spontaneity or some written form to refer to, it's all good, as it is not our methods but God's working which is responsible for the results of prayer.

The author introduces each chapter with a thought-provoking section detailing exactly what she's talking about, which I'm sure many readers will appreciate. It's good to have a book like this, reminding us that God doesn't treat prayers like exam conditions. Although I'm not sure I agree with every point made within the pages, it's good to have some sort of guide like this, rather than just shoving people off to their own devices with no experience or ideas.

In the last section, she puts forward some interesting ideas and tips about writing our own prayers, including where we focus our attention and how we may choose to go about editing. I like how she suggests that not everyone can pray briefly, and brevity is actually an art. I've had several brushes with people who seem to believe the opposite. And she's quite right when she gets us reflecting that prayer is a different sort of discipline than most others, since we're not even supposed to aim to become 'experts' or achieve a platform to show off. She finishes off by suggesting that if we have trouble praying, we may, in fact, be perfectionists, as prayer is a perfect practice for imperfectionists. Hmm, that's worth considering.

Thanks to Abingdon Press and Net Galley for my review copy.

3.5 stars

'Face to Face' by Monte Kline

 

 Meeting God in the Quiet Places
Has God Spoken to You Lately?
Imagine a whole new way of meeting with God that would transform your Christian life. What if you could create special times alone with God for illumination, direction on decisions, and just the sheer enjoyment of being in His presence like nothing you've ever experienced before? What if you could come face to face with God? Following the pattern of Abraham, Elijah, Paul, and other biblical characters, Face to Face shows the way to create those life-changing encounters. Today we must rediscover the secret and power of meeting God in the quiet places.
You will discover:
-A way to meet with God and hear his voice
-Keys to escaping the noise and busyness of life
-An alternative to Christmas list praying
-How to capture your spiritual transformation
-How to encounter God through Personal Retreats

MY THOUGHTS:

This is a very handy and easy-to-read guide for anybody who wants to plan a personal retreat with God. I'm happy to be able to recommend it to anybody who never knew there was such a book, but could benefit from the advice about tailor designing one to suit our needs.

In the first part, the author looks at histories of Biblical folk who took time to make personal retreats. There are many more than we may think. He suggests tips for us to get to know the real Person of God, instead of getting away and trying to worship someone we've made up in our own heads. He also gives tips at the outset about how we can increase our thirst for God, if we find it lacking. This includes the way we may prioritise 'urgent' demands and our true attitude toward mundane, routine tasks. There's also a good, comprehensive section about fasting, if we should choose to include this component in our retreats. As I've often found instructions about fasting a bit waffly and unclear in other books, I appreciated this one.

So that was all interesting, clear reading, but my favourite section is the one which sets out recommendations about setting up our own retreats. I love the idea that rather than regretting the fact that we can't take many long retreats in a year, it's possible to take several one day, closer to home ones for the same benefit. I like even more that this book stresses the value of doing just that, to take away the guilt some of us may feel for putting aside the time. (I'm imagining my family saying, 'Mum's taking one of her retreats' and being fine with it.)

Toward the end, Kline even includes an excerpt from a journal he kept on one of his own retreats, to give us a springboard to help plan our own. I'll definitely keep it on hand to refer to when I need it.

Thanks to the author for providing me with a review copy.

4.5 stars