Books, essays, podcast episodes, and more that I think are worth your time, plus recent cultural news that I’m paying attention to in the month of July…
{Get my favorites delivered to your inbox each week. Subscribe here.}
Books
Novel: Whistler by Ann Patchett
Ann Patchett’s latest novel is just lovely. It’s a beautiful story of a middle-aged woman who reunites with her stepfather of four decades earlier. They had experienced a serious car accident together when she was nine, and her mother divorced him soon after the crash. Now, as an adult, she learns his backstory and offers us hers and invites us into a meditation on life and love and loss.
Non-Fiction: The Affections of Christ Jesus: Love at the Heart of Paul’s Theology by Nijay K. Gupta
I don’t usually recommend theological books here, but I’m offering this one because it seems so important for us to see that the most important truth that runs through the whole Bible is the truth of God’s unending, neverfailing, faithful love. This book pulls that thread through Paul’s letters and demonstrates again the centrality of love to understanding Paul’s thought and understanding our own lives as God’s beloved.
Fiction: Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
You are more likely to have heard of Yesteryear than The Affections of Christ Jesus, since it’s been on the NYT bestseller list for ten weeks already. I raced through this story of a trad-wife influencer who finds herself mysteriously transported to 1855, the year her farmhouse was built. That said, I wish that Caro Claire Burke, or her fictional character Natalie Heller Mills, had read The Affections of Christ Jesus, because Natalie is a supposedly devout Christian who doesn’t seem to know much at all about said affections (aka love) or about Jesus. Perhaps this is an essay for another time, but I find myself baffled, saddened, and angered these days by the number of people—fictional and in real life—who represent Christianity as a set of moral rules that boil down to judging the people who will never measure up to a religious standard of holiness or purity. So if you read Yesteryear, which I do recommend, just keep in mind that the Jesus who actually shows up on the pages of the Bible is the one who says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit…those who mourn…the meek…” Remember that the writers who followed in Jesus’ steps said things like, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” and “Love never ends” and “Nothing can separate us from the love of God.”
Novel: The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
I love Elizabeth Strout in general, and The Things We Never Say lived up to her earlier work. If you haven’t read anything by her in the past, she’s a very solid New England (Maine) writer. The characters feel very familiar to me—like they could be my mother or teacher or neighbor here in Connecticut. This novel is about a man named Artie Dam, a high school English teacher going through a rough year personally and within our current political climate. It’s understated and lovely and haunting and I highly recommend!
Non-Fiction: The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle
I also loved The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle. It’s one of those leadership/social science books where every chapter starts with a fascinating story that I then went on to tell my whole family at dinner. For anyone who is interested in how culture is created, leadership, or really just what draws out the best of our humanity, this is a great one.
Memoir: Conversion Therapy Dropout by Timothy Schraeder
It is so important for any of us who grew up in an evangelical subculture that assumed “same-sex attraction” is inherently bad and could be healed by the power of the Holy Spirit to listen to the stories of gay Christians. Timothy Schraeder endured almost a decade of conversion therapy and conferences led by “ex-gay” Christians before he finally realized he couldn’t “pray the gay away.” He also realized he didn’t need to renounce his faith in Jesus in order to be a gay man. His story is just one of many that has helped me reckon with the destruction and pain wrought by the church’s approach to human sexuality.
Shows
Netflix Series: Little House on the Prairie
I mentioned above that Marilee and I started watching the new rendition of the show, which is more true to life than the Michael Landon fare from my own childhood. This version explores the meanness of life on the prairie, the injustices experienced by and relationships with the Osage Indians, and the hardships of being a woman—or a girl—in a land that requires brute strength to survive. As an aside, when Marilee was younger, we read these books alongside The Birchbark House books, a wonderful series by Louise Erdrich that take place in a contemporary setting from the perspective of a young Ojibwe girl.
Podcasts
Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership with Ruth Haley Barton: S29 Ep 9 | It’s Complicated: Sexuality, Love and Life in Our Families
I was blown away by the generosity of spirit both Ruth Haley Barton and Jonathan Merritt expressed in this conversation about sexuality and what it means to be human.
The Russell Moore Show: Daniel Nayeri AND Beth Moore on Everything Sad Becoming Untrue
And I also loved this conversation with Russell Moore and Beth Moore talking to Daniel Nayeri about his books, Everything Sad is Untrue and Teacher of Nomad Land.
Essays and News
Cognoscenti: How I’m trying to help my nonverbal son communicate — and why it’s controversial
I’m grateful for Micha Boyett’s words here about her son Ace and the ways they are learning to communicate with each other. I especially resonate with the idea of “presuming competence” instead of problem or deficit.
Disability Scoop: Neuroinclusive Neighborhoods Sprout Up To Address IDD Housing Gap
I love the win-win of these neighborhoods that provide inter-ability housing. We need more and more of them!
The New Yorker: Misery Loves Company—If There Are Snacks
This New Yorker essay (I’m sorry I don’t have a gift link) is about people who host “get-things-done” evenings, either on Zoom or in person, where everyone tackles the annoying tasks they’ve been putting off. It turns out those dreaded to-do lists are much easier to face in community. (Snacks help too!) It made me wonder whether this could be a great model for families navigating disability-related paperwork, insurance forms, etc.
Get my favorites delivered to your inbox each week.
Subscribe here.
More Favorites and AJB Recommends
If you use a link from here to purchase something I recommend, it sometimes earns me a small commission, which enables me to continue the work I do here. So thank you! (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)
SUBSCRIBE to my Substack newsletter: amyjuliabecker.substack.com
JOIN the conversation on Instagram: @amyjuliabecker
LISTEN to my podcasts: amyjuliabecker.com/shows/
CONNECT on YouTube: Amy Julia Becker on YouTube
Amy Julia Becker desires to challenge assumptions about the good life, proclaim the inherent belovedness of every human being, and help us envision and build a world of belonging where everyone matters. Amy Julia invites people to reimagine the good life through her writing and speaking on disability, faith, and culture. She is the author of several books, including To Be Made Well, White Picket Fences, Small Talk, and A Good and Perfect Gift. She is a guest opinion writer for national publications and hosts two podcasts: Take the Next Step and Reimagining the Good Life. Becker is a graduate of Princeton University and Princeton Theological Seminary (MDiv). She is a member of the Disability Ministry Network and the Alliance for Disability Justice and Ethics in Reproductive Genetics. She lives with her husband and their three children in western Connecticut.
