Cold Tangerines by Shauna Niequist

[sklein43]

I read this book as part of a women's group study and, I have to say, I am so glad that I did. We broke it out into about 5-6 chapters in between each gathering and it took everything in me not to move ahead in the reading. I love Shauna's creative ways to relating the simple things in life to faith. As we all know, life is not easy and it does not always feel rewarding, but she reminds us how the simplest things are such blessings. I know, this sounds like a cliche Christian book, but it is not just that. As you read through her book, she shares experiences that you can actually relate to. Or if you cannot relate (because life is not the same for everyone) you gain a different perspective. I have read other Christian books where everything is just shoved down your throat leaving you feeling like a horrible Christian and a less than adequate human being, and its just the opposite with Cold Tangerines. She reminds us that life is real, crappy things happen, we make mistakes, but life continues and we still have so many amazing moments to be grateful for. Because it relates to how I am exactly, I love how she says "I have to create hope in my life, because there's something inside me that has a radar for the bad parts of life... I have a dark, worst-case scenario sensor, and it takes over. It's true...I just don't want to live in only that reality". I loved Cold Tangerines and I look forward to reading Shauna's other books.

[e-tasana-williams]

Thanks for your review sklein43! This sounds like a book I would enjoy reading. I love Christian books, but I agree with you that preachy Christian books are not a great read. The authors that relate their faith to real life situations that we all face are the ones that pull me in...I'll be adding this to my bookshelves for sure.