Book Reviews

Author Dr. Kevin Jenson Book Review by EDJ Part memoir and part theology, this book is helpful for conservatives who are deconstructing or challenging the traditional “Christian” sexual ethic. Chapters eighteen and nineteen were by far my favorites….

By Cassandra Alane This book lives up to its name! It is a beautiful light in the world, particular for those who have suffered from an eating disorder or who know someone suffering from an eating disorder.  The…

Book by Dr. Camden Morgante As a purity culture survivor, I appreciated this book a great deal. Camden was able to identify purity culture myths and other relevant cultures—rape culture, patriarchy, marriage culture etc.—and describe why people like…

Book Review A critical education in everything you need to know about abortion in the USA post Dobbs. Reading this book I learned that most Americans, regardless of their religious or political affiliations, support the legality of abortion…

Brilliant explanation of Christian Nationalism! As an immigrant living in the USA, I found this book incredibly illuminating. I had ideas about “Christian nationalism” but this really spelled it out. I was impressed with April’s understanding of the…

Book by Sheila Wray Gregoire, Rebecca Gregoire Lindenbach & Joanna Sawatsky There is some really valuable and insightful information in this book. The three authors delve into topics like respect, boundaries, dating, bodily functions, sex education, self-esteem, sexual…

Mattie Jo has written a delightful memoir about evangelical deconstruction, particularly purity culture. Her vibrant personality comes through on every page, making this an easy, entertaining read.  Mattie delves into what she was raised to believe, and how…

I freaking love Rebel!! I didn’t even realize how much I loved her until I read her memoir and learned more of her life experiences.  As an Australian, I love her “Aussie-battler” work ethic.  As I leftie, I…

This is an incredibly important book for those of us concerned about rape culture, sexual assault and other forms of sexual abuse that come under the umbrella term “Sexual Terrorism.” Dr. Brenita has spent her life researching the…

My impression is that Jill has done absolute justice to the telling of her story within the Duggar family. I found her parents described as believably loving, good people, who made mistakes (as we all do) and fell…

Shannon’s memoir expresses a deep sadness that can be felt by the reader. The feeling of being used and abused by a legalistic religious system is poignant and relatable. She painted a stark picture of how she was…

Book Review I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated Donna Freitas’ recent memoir, Wishful Thinking. Donna was raised Catholic, but has spent the majority of her adult life as an atheist. However, she has teetered on the edge of faith…

Book Review Britney’s memoir is absolutely shocking. I haven’t followed Britney’s journey much, despite being born only one year later. Of course I heard her songs: “Oops, I did it again,” “Hit me baby one more time,” and…

Book Review This box set includes: The Author’s Guide to Marketing Books on Amazon, The Author’s Guide to Email marketing, and The Author’s Guide to Write Text that Sells Books. These three books are jam-packed with information to…

Book Review Liz does an excellent job of identifying numerous ways in which patriarchal societies like the US, still discriminate against women. She contrasts complementarianism and egalitarianism and how even in gender-inclusive spaces, sexism can still rear its…

Book Review This book addresses some of the reasons that Christians deconstruct and offers some new perspectives for people to consider rather than giving up faith in God altogether. For example, people can be hurt by a belief…

I found Jada’s memoir to be emotionally and spiritually deep. I did not know much of Jada’s story whatsoever and was surprised time and again as I read. The dangerous environment she grew up in was quite foreign…

This is a challenging but very necessary and beneficial read. All of us need to be working toward anti-racism. Education and awareness about the ways in which we fall into racist, white supremacist traps is the first step….

The premise of this book is that God is not omnipotent because God is love and love does not control, coerce, puppeteer, force, or overpower the subject of its affections. God’s love means and necessitates that God cannot…

I loved this book! I do not have the same journey as Matthias, but his experiences are very relatable and there are truths he shares about deconstruction that benefit many of us “holy runaways” as we reconstruct our…

This book is difficult to summarize, there are so many gems in it! So, I am simply going to share about my own journey and how this book impacted me. The Universal Christ has tentatively (holding loosely and…

This was a gripping story about a mother whose four-year-old daughter is dying. Her ex-husband is a pastor who is believing for healing, but the mother is struggling with her faith and is trying to be realistic about…

By Christy Barritt I have loved the entire Lantern Beach Mysteries Series. These three books (4-6) tied up all the loose ends. We find out who killed Cassidy’s best friend. We find out who killed Elsa, the original…

Book by James H. Cone In his book, The Cross and the Lynching Tree, James H. Cone does an excellent job of demonstrating how the lynching (murdering) of black people is no different to the crucifixion of Jesus…

Book by Brandan Robertson Overall, this book was good. It felt like I was reading 19 well-prepared sermons (and I’m not criticizing this writing style. I’ve based books on blogposts, which is kind of similar). Brandan is trying…

Book by Bart D. Ehrman This was an interesting read for sure. Bart Ehrman is a New Testament historical-critical scholar who is also an agnostic atheist. I have read this book at an interesting time in my life…