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Best Books of the Month: October 2018

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Giveaways

Authentic Christianity by Peter E. Watts

Authentic Christianity: Why it Matters for Followers of Jesus
by

Peter E. Watts (Goodreads Author)

Release date: Mar 29, 2018

Enter a chance to win one of 100 Kindle ebook copies of my book "Authentic Christianity: Why it matters for followers of Jesus". It explores our commo ...more

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Format: Kindle book

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Availability: 100 copies available, 324 people requesting

Giveaway dates: Dec 21 - Jan 20, 2019

Countries available: U.S.

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Top Reviews This Week

Emily May's review of Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Janie saw her life like a giant tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branches.

I've spent many years wanting to read this book, but also not wanting to read it because the title made

Janie saw her life like a giant tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branches.

I've spent many years wanting to read this book, but also not wanting to read it because the title made me think it was going to be heavy on religion, which is something I generally avoid in books. It's not, though. It's a wonderful, lyrical tale of a woman's life and search for independence.

Now I'm fascinated by interpretations of the title because religion and God don't feature much in the story at all. I’ve been reading about the idea that the title implies how Janie must look to God - not white people, not husbands, not well-meaning family members - to determine her future. While this theory doesn't give her much agency, it does fit with her search for a life outside of others' expectations (except God's).

It's set in Florida in the early 20th Century, at the height of Jim Crow. The novel begins with Janie Crawford sharing her life story with her friend Pheoby. We are taken back to her youth and sexual awakening-- an event that triggers her grandmother's insistence that she marry for protection. Nanny, herself, is fascinating. You feel both Janie's frustration toward her controlling grandmother, and Nanny's desire that Janie will have a better life and be taken care of.

"She was borned in slavery time when folks, dat is black folks, didn’t sit down anytime dey felt lak it. So sittin’ on porches lak de white madam look lak uh might fine thing tuh her. Dat’s whut she wanted for me – don’t keer whut it cost. Git up on uh high chair and sit dere. She didn’t have time tuh think whut tuh do after you got up on de stool uh do nothin’."

As you can see from above, the novel's dialogue makes strong use of dialect and colloquialisms.

Through three marriages and many instances of physical abuse, Janie remains fierce and unapologetic. It was a terrible time in America for a black woman to find freedom and independence, but Janie pursues it nevertheless. It's now eighty years after the book's first publication and Janie's indistinguishable spirit is as captivating as it surely always was.

In the end, the book is about defying expectations and living for oneself. Everyone in Janie's life wants and expects something from her. Her Nanny wants her to marry for protection, white men want to keep her down, darker-skinned African-Americans feel she should emphasize her lighter skin, each of her husbands wants her to behave and dress in a way that suits them. But Janie remains wholly herself throughout. I love her.

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Book Look

I'd Rather Be Reading: A Library of Art for Book Lovers

I'd Rather Be Reading: A Library of Art for Book Lovers translates the passion for reading into contemporary art, photography, and illustrations.

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Romance Author Interviews

Kendall Ryan

Kendall Ryan, the bestselling author of Hard to Love and Filthy Beautiful Lies, introduces us to a seriously seductive friendship in Flirting with Forever. She talked to us about irresistible banter, book boyfriends, and favorite romance tropes.

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