Sarah Sisson Rollandini
May 31, 20173 min
We're going to take a bit of a detour this week to talk about some fabulous memoirs. Like any engaging story, well-written memoirs allow us to escape our own lives for a time to jump into someone else's drama. Is there a better time to take a hiatus from life then when we are stuck in the seemingly endless waiting room of infertility? Since most memoirs are borne out of pain and conflict and involve significant growth for the author, these true life accounts can help us to remember that suffering and transformation are part of the human experience.
I believe that all truth originates from God, therefore I dive into both secular and Christian books of all genres. While a secular author is unlikely to point out moments of divine intervention, most believers can identify God's presence in any literary work and pluck universal truths from it.
Here are are a handful of my favorite memoirs. Brew some tea, settle into that overstuffed chair, and prepare to trade in your tiresome troubles for someone else's for a few priceless hours.
1. Undone: A Story of Making Peace With an Unexpected Life
Michelle Cushatt
What I love about this book: An honest handling of Michele's grappling with her faith when life throws her a curve ball in the form of cancer and unexpected parenting after her kids are grown.
2. Flash: The Homeless Donkey Who Taught Me About Life, Faith, & Second Chances
Rachel Anne Ridge
What I love about this book: Whimsical and full of hope, Rachel Anne Ridge masterfully connects vignettes of Flash the homeless donkey to God's life lessons for her.
Jeannette Walls
What I love about this book: Jeannette's story is unlike any I've read. and reminds me of the resilience of the human spirit.
4. Anchored: Finding Hope in the Unexpected
Kayla Aimee
What I love about this book: The prose Kayla Aimee uses to talk about her faith as her preemie daughter clings to life is gut wrenching and spot on.
Ron Hall, Denver Moore, Lynn Vincent
What I love about this book: The initial clash of rich and poor and how, ultimately, we are all one in Christ
6. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
Cheryl Strayed
What I love about this book: It's an armchair adventure that often had me on the edge of my seat.
Alison Hodgson
What I love about this book: The way the author faced her fears and how a dog was integral in her daughter's healing after a house fire that was a total loss.
8. Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, and Learning the Hard Way
Shauna Niequist
What I love about this book: Niequist's handling of infertility and the language she uses to create a strong sensory experience for the reader
9. Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia
Elizabeth Gilbert
What I love about this book: A vicarious vacation to three different locales in 400 pages
10. Ruined
Ruth Everhart
What I love about this book: That Everhart does not suger coat her terrifying experience of being raped as a college student and her doubt and struggle with her faith, which ultimately brings her back to God
And a few I can't wait to read:
At Home in the World - Tsh Oxenreider
Amazon description: As Tsh Oxenreider, author of Notes From a Blue Bike, chronicles her family’s adventure around the world—seeing, smelling, and tasting the widely varying cultures along the way—she discovers what it truly means to be at home.
Amazon description: "When I started my journey into parenthood I never thought it would look like this. I never planned on having three adopted children, and I certainly never imagined that two of them would have Down syndrome. But like most of the things God does, once we stepped into the craziness and confusion of the unknown and unplanned, we quickly realized that we were indeed among the lucky few."
And Still She Laughs: Defiant Joy in the Depths of Suffering - Kate Merrick
Amazon description: Kate Merrick examines the Bible’s gritty stories of resilient women as well as her own experience losing a child—a journey followed by more than a million on prayfordaisy.com—to reveal the reality of surprising joy and deep hope even in the midst of heartache.
Happy reading, blog friend, and BTW, do you have any book suggestions for me? If so, please leave a comment below. Thanks for stopping by!