Welcome! We’re glad you’ve joined us to discuss all things books. Here and in the Facebook group (search for Woman Alive Book Club and we’ll add you) we love to make a cuppa and talk about the latest books we’ve read – why we liked them, what we gained, or why we wanted to throw them across the room in disgust.
Each month in the magazine, I choose a book or two and tell you how they captured me. I also interview a Christian author about their love of books. And I choose five top reviews from you – and those women receive complimentary copies of my selection and the latest book from the author I interview.
Join in and let us know what you’re reading. We benefit from the lively banter and interchanges. And come on over to our Facebook group, where along with our discussions we often have extra book giveaways.
I look forward to hearing what you’re reading!
Amy Boucher Pye
This month I'm reading ...
Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire with God, Not Food
Lysa TerKeurst (Zondervan, ISBN 978-0310293262, £9.99)
Word-of-mouth continues to be one of the strongest ways to sell books. Publishers and authors can spend thousands on book launches, publicity tours, advertising and the rest, but those efforts could be for naught if the book’s content doesn’t connect with readers. When it does, however, those readers get excited and tell others about it. And so on, and so on – propelling a book that might not have had a big marketing spend to the New York Times’ bestseller list.
Such as this month’s selection, which is another winner commissioned by my friend and former colleague Sandy VanderZicht at Zondervan. Editors are often unseen heroes, so let me give praise where it is due, for she was behind this book and One Thousand Gifts, which I highlighted last October. Both have wonderful messages that women want to talk about.
Made to Crave addresses how we as women may try to fill our God-given cravings with food. He made us to desire him, but when we feel empty, we often turn to salty crisps or sugary snacks for a short-lived burst of feeling fine. Then we crash, wondering why a headache plagues us. And even worse is when we step on the scales, hoping against hope that somehow, magically the number will be smaller than what we fear.
Lysa TerKeurst addresses our fallen tendencies in a straight-talking but compassionate manner. She shares her own struggles and her journey to live a sugar-free life. A verse from Scripture that she often quotes is one that she’d tell herself, when struggling not to eat some nacho chips or brownies: “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial” (1 Corinthians 6:12, paraphrased).
I was struck by her insights into some familiar passages of the Bible. For instance, the fall of Adam and Eve. Eve was tempted by the serpent to eat food, so why are we surprised when we also fall foul of this temptation? It’s an obvious insight, but one I hadn’t thought of previously.
Her book is not a ‘how-to’ in terms of healthy-eating plans or exercise regimes. Instead she addresses the root causes – our craving for God, which we have misplaced in food. In fact, she only hints at the food she eats, although she steers clear of all sugar, and all foods that turn to sugar in our bodies (such as bread, rice, pasta, etc). She doesn’t promise a quick fix, and admits that this has been one of the most difficult spiritual journeys she’s ever been on. But the benefits have been huge, and not only seeing a smaller number on the scales. For she is living wholly for God, enjoying overcoming temptation through depending on him.
One to consider if your New Year’s resolutions are a distant memory.