Midwest Book Review Loves New Literary Memoir

Book Girl
Sarah Clarkson
Tyndale Momentum
c/o Tyndale House Publishers
351 Executive Drive, Carol Stream, IL 60188
www.tyndale.com
9781496425805,
$15.99, PB, 288pp
www.amazon.com

Reviewed by Jim Cox, Editor-in-Chief at MidwestBookReview.com

Synopsis: When you hear a riveting story, does it thrill your heart and stir your soul? Do you hunger for truth and goodness? Do you secretly relate to Belle’s delight in the library in Beauty and the Beast? If so, you may be on your way to being a book girl (or boy!).

Books were always Sarah Clarkson’s delight. Raised in the company of the lively Anne of Green Gables, the brave Pevensie children of Narnia, and the wise Austen heroines, she discovered reading early on as a daily gift, a way of encountering the world in all its wonder. But what she came to realize as an adult was just how powerfully books had shaped her as a woman to live a story within that world, to be a lifelong learner, to grasp hope in struggle, and to create and act with courage. She’s convinced that books can do the same for you.

In the pages of "Book Girl: A Journey through the Treasures and Transforming Power of a Reading Life" readers will join Sarah in exploring the reading life as a gift and an adventure, one meant to enrich, broaden, and delight in each season of life as a woman.

In Book Girl, reader's will discover: How reading can strengthen your spiritual life and deepen your faith; Why a journey through classic literature might be just what you need (and where to begin); How stories form your sense of identity; How Sarah’s parents raised her to be a reader -- and can be done to cultivate a love of reading in the growing readers around us; and some 20+ annotated book lists, including some old favorites and many new discoveries.

Whether you’ve long considered yourself a reader or have dreams of becoming one, "Book Girl" will draw you into the life-giving journey of becoming a woman (or a man!) who reads and lives well.

Critique: Although primarily written for female readers as reflected in the title, "Book Girl: A Journey through the Treasures and Transforming Power of a Reading Life" by author, blogger, and student of theology Sarah Clarkson is an extraordinary read that is very highly recommended to the attention of all dedicated bibliophiles regardless of gender. Rarely has a truer portrait of the joy and influence of a literate life been so well exemplified or showcased.

While "Book Girl" is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to community and academic library collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that it is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $10.44) for the personal reading lists of students and non-specialists general readers with an interest in the subject. Librarians should note that "Book Girl" is also available as a complete and unabridged audio book (Blackstone Audio, 9781982558284, $34.95, CD).

And for the record, I have no personal or professional relationship to Sarah Clarkson and wouldn't recognize her if I were to pass her on the street.

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