#COLLABOREADS: A Vintage Book (25+ Years Old)
If you're new to #COLLABOREADS, welcome!
Every month, Kristin from Taz + Belly and I host this fun little book-loving link-up, and we're so happy you've stopped by!
Here's how this works: We pick a theme every month, you pick a book that fits (we all read different books! it's fun that way!) and then all link up and share our thoughts (with a handy-dandy R.E.A.D.S. acronym usually--see below!) and link up and become BFFs. You can read more about this whole thing here.
If you're looking for an easy way to be reminded of when #COLLABOREADS is coming up, just sign up for our mailing list and we'll shoot you a reminder when it's time to get those posts ready!
This month's theme was: A Vintage Book
I chose: Life of the Beloved: Spiritual Living in a Secular World by Henri Nouwen
You can grab this book HERE! (affiliate links are here and throughout this post!).
Riveting.
What part of the book could you NOT get enough of? Let me just tell you, I hardly EVER re-read books. Like, I can probably count on two hands how many books I've read more than once. From the moment I first picked this one up back in 2015, I knew I would come back to it again and again. Here's the review I wrote back in July 2015 when I read it for the first time:
“I cannot say enough good things about this book. I have already come back to it more than a handful of times to soak up the words again and again and again. I have always loved and wrestled with the idea of being beloved, and this book illuminated all of that. Originally written by Nouwen for a Jewish friend, I found it incredibly convicting and humbling and stunning as a lifelong Christian. I want to get the word beloved tattooed on my body to remind me forever of the core truth of my identity: I am His Beloved.”
Funnily enough, I HAVE since gotten the word "beloved" tattooed on me, just in Greek! (Read that story here, if you want!) Every word of that review is true, and I stand by it all today. This one is just RICH, and so, so worth reading.
ps-- I totally forgot about this link-up this month, and was so glad to find that not only had I accidentally read a vintage book (this one was originally published in 1992, the year I was born!) but that it was one I loved and wanted to rave about!
Elements.
How did you relate to/care for the characters? What's your thought on the plot line and twists and turns? I love that this book came to be because Nouwen was friends with an atheist who asked him to write a book for him and his friends. You can feel the love of their friendship come through every page, and it makes a faith-focused memoir so much more. While there aren't "characters," you hear Nouwen's voice strongly, and you see his friend mentioned, so it feels personable, warm, and moving.
Associate.
What other books are like this one? If none, did it remind you of a particular TV or movie with it's themes and characters? Does it serendipitous-ly line-up with things going on in your life or the news right now? It's similar to C.S. Lewis books (like Mere Christianity), other books Nouwen has written (I especially love Return of the Prodigal Son or this new devotional with selections from all of his books), and other Christian books (but none specifically come to mind).
Design.
You know you judged this book by the cover. What did you think of it? How did it relate to the contents of the novel? And the font and layout of the pages? This cover is simple but just interesting enough. I would have read it regardless of the cover, though!
Stars.
How many out of five do you give this book? Would you recommend this book to a friend? This one got all 5 of 5 stars from me. If a book is THAT good on both the first read and the second, with even more insights and highlights and richness coming to the surface, you better believe it's getting the highest of ratings from me!
LET'S LINK UP NOW.
FOR THE FUTURE:
December's theme is "A Book You Can Get For Free". Find any freebie (HEY, library!), read it this month, blog your thoughts (you can use our R.E.A.D.S acronym or whatever style you want!) and link up at the end of the month!
Kristin from Taz + Belly and I are so excited to have you joining us, and we can't wait to see this fun little link-up grow this year!
We'll link up next on DECEMBER 19!
Also...
Kristin and I have been thinking about the idea of hosting a different kind of bookish linkup. Here's more of what she wrote (because she says it so well!):
How many of you would be interesting in joining, if we hosted a more general link up the first week of each month? We would be sharing our reading recaps from the month prior, but you could add any book related post you wanted. The linky would be open for the entire month, so you could add at your own pace and even share multiple posts each month! We would love to form an online community, centered on reading, but we need you to join us. Now we just need a name…
