My Review of "Love, Henri"

Love, Henri is a collection of Henri Nouwen's, the great spiritual writer, letters. It's particularly poignant these 20 years after Nouwen's death, because it gives us a glimpse into the Christian hope in a chaotic, uncertain world. In this collection, Nouwen reminds us that the world has always been a frightening place with upheaval, wars, and dissension. In 1981 Henri Nouwen was asked in a letter if he thought humanity would survive the century. Here is part of his answer.

"But important for me is not if our civilization will survive or not but if we can continue to live with hope, and I really think we can because our Lord has given us His promise that He will stay with us at all times. He is the God of the living, He has overcome evil and death and His love is stronger than any form of death and destruction. That is why I feel that we should continually avoid the temptation of despair and deepen our awareness that God is present in the midst of all the chaos that surrounds us and that that presence allows us to live joyfully and peacefully in a world so filled with sorrow and conflict."

That little reminder serves to place our Christian attention where it should be.

But Love, Henri is a collection that goes beyond the political and the Christian hope, to cover nearly every spiritual topic.

This is a book that I'll keep on my shelf for years to come.

I received a free copy of this book as part of the Blogging for Books program in exchange for my honest review here.

Comments

My Review of "Come as You Aren't"

Come as You Aren't: A Role-Playing Game for Adventurous Couples is a simple role-playing kit for couples who want to explore and experiment in ways to seduce one another that they simply wouldn't have imagined otherwise. The set is meant to offer one partner who draws a Who, a What, and a Where card at random and places them in an envelope for the other partner. From there, it's up to them to enact the scenarios as they see fit. The instructions are printed on the back cover of the box and the deck comes with a few blank cards for couples to customize. This is a fun little gift for couples -- and just in time for the holidays. I received a free copy of this game from the Blogging for Books review program in exchange for my honest review here.

My Review of "Roadfood"

Jane & Michael Stern's Roadfood gives us another (this is the 10th edition!) gastro road trip across the US. Roadfood is like a road map through backroads and interstates for some of the best food in each state and region in the US. Roadfood celebrates venues most travelers would never venture near, let alone enter. Most of the state-by-state listed restaurants are, however, for dining on the cheap. Like Litton's in Knoville, TN -- which really does have amazing burgers. While one could hardly map a road trip by the Sterns' restaurant finds -- some cities, like Chicago, are overrepresented, while the rest of Illinois is all but ignored -- this fun and fanciful volume is pure pleasure. I received a free copy of this book as part of the Blogging for Books program in exchange for my honest review here.

My Review of "Born to Be Awkward"

Born to Be Awkward is a collection of those pictures that I simply can't resist on Facebook -- photos of children whose awkward moments are memorialized and shared for the rest of us to chuckle and give thanks that our own photos have never seen the light of day. It's full of awkward childhood photos. I was crying so hard from laughing when flipping through this book. This book is 160 pages long and would make the perfect gift for any parents to be or even just a wonder coffee table book. Born to Be Awkward even has a place, in the back of the book, to share those personal photos -- so put them in, place them on the coffee table, and bring hours of laughter for friends and family. I received a free copy of this book as part of the Blogging for Books program in exchange for my honest review here.

The Mrs. & the Minister

Search This Blog