Two years ago, I converted to Catholicism. I was raised Lutheran, identified as kinda Lutheran-by-default for most of my life, dabbled in Unitarianism, and settled into an indifferent agnosticism that seems pretty common in my generation – a kind of “how am I supposed to know if God exists, but I can vouch for the fact that a whole lot of Christians are real assholes” thing. Then I got engaged to a lapsed Catholic, and we both started having some God-related restlessness and feeling some […]
Indonesian best-seller about poverty, education and hope
The Rainbow Troops: A Novel is not so much a novel as a memoir or collection of vignettes from the author’s childhood in Indonesia. It is an eye-opener about life in the world’s fourth most populated country, the largest Muslim-majority country. Hirata is Indonesia’s best selling writer of all time (according to the book blurb) and The Rainbow Troops was a huge best-seller in Indonesia and abroad. Hirata provides a vivid depiction of the poverty that many Indonesians experience and of the hope that education […]
The end of the beginning
When this book first came out, a friend of mine texted me and told me I had to read it. I dutifully added to my TBR list, but privately I thought I’d never get around to it. I couldn’t imagine ever being in a mood where I’d want to read the memoir of a man who died of cancer in his 30s. I work in direct service, and it’s a convenient excuse to get out of a lot of “sad” things. I see real life […]
It’s a pleasure to sit at this old lady’s knee.
It’s been years since I read the first Call the Midwife book, and I only vaguely remember it. When this finally made its way to the top of my Goodreads list, I was a little concerned that the gap would be a problem. Fortunately, Shadows of the Workhouse more or less functions as a standalone book. Knowing the basic workings of Nonnatus House is useful, but hardly required. Whereas Call the Midwife was a pretty straightforward memoir of Jennifer Worth’s time as a midwife working […]