The Hard Titles – My Week in Reading

• Andi


• 6 Feb 2015

This week, I seem to have picked up a series of books that are quite challenging for me in a number of ways. When I come to a book like this, I read more slowly, turn to the pages less urgently than I might if I was reading something easier. So I’ve read less this week than I would like, but the reading is meaningful, so that’s okay.

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward – I have picked up this book twice before, and each time I begin it, I fall in love again.  Her language is rich and fresh, and the narrator grips my heart.  For me, the challenge with this book is the dog fighting and the puppies.  I have a hard time staying in the story when the subject is about animals in danger.  Still, I trust it will be worth it, and I plan to hold out for the whole book.

Twice Shy by Dick Francis –  My dad gave me this book to read – thought I’d really like it – and then when I asked him about it this week, he couldn’t even remember having read it. 😉  But I think he might know I appreciate the fact that the protagonist is a teacher, an innovative teacher, and that it’s a mystery.  What’s hard for me about this one is that the couple in the book can’t have children, so yeah, close to home a bit.  But also I don’t love horses, and there are a LOT of horses in this book.  Still, I’ll get into it I expect.

The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race by Willie James Jennings –
Years ago, my friends Melissa and Justin recommended this book to me, and they are right. I need to read it.  I picked it up at this point because I’m working on a book with a client, and I need to understand how my faith tradition has gone so awry when it comes to our thinking about race and our practice of faith.  It’s not light reading, but it’s rich – so powerful and rich.

Faithful Place by Tana French – I got a subscription to Audible this week, and the first book I snagged was this third in French’s Dublin Murder Squad series.  I loved the first two books in the series for the suspenseful writing, deep characters, and lyrical language.  So far, this one is proving to be no different.  And right now, this is my easy read.  So good.

I’m also looking to read something light and fun on the page, so if you have recommendations, please let me know.

What are you reading this week?