The Englewood Review of Books Podcast

Jen is joined by Liuan Huska and Amy Julia Becker for a thoughtful and honest conversation about the integration of spirituality, health and wholeness, particularly when experiencing chronic pain, brokenness and different abilities in our bodies.

Liuan Huska is a freelance writer and speaker focusing on topics of embodiment, ecology, and spirituality. Her first book, Hurting Yet Whole: Reconciling Body and Spirit in Chronic Pain and Illness was published with InterVarsity Press in December 2020. Liuan lives with her husband and their three little boys in the Chicago area.

Amy Julia Becker is an award-winning author and speaker on faith, family, disability and privilege. She is the author of four books and also hosts the Love is Stronger than Fear podcast. A graduate of Princeton University and Princeton Theological Seminary, Amy Julia lives with her husband and their three children in western Connecticut.

Books Mentioned:

If you’d like to order any of the following books, we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books (An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)

• Hurting Yet Whole: Reconciling Body and Spirit in Chronic Pain and Illness by Liuan Huska
• Sitting Pretty: The View From My Ordinary Resilient Body by Rebekah Taussig
• (Article) What Are Bodies For? An Integrative Examination of Embodiment by M. Elizabeth Lewis Hall
• Honoring the Body: Meditations on a Christian Practice by Stephanie Paulsell
• An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith by Barbara Brown Taylor
• A Hidden Wholeness: The Journey Toward an Undivided Life by Parker Palmer
• The Wounded Healer: Ministry in a Contemporary Society by Henri Nouwen
• Counterproductive: Time Management in the Knowledge Economy by Melissa Gregg
• A Good and Perfect Gift: Faith, Expectations, and a Little Girl Named Penny by Amy Julia Becker
• The Disabled God: Toward a Liberatory Theology of Disability by Nancy L. Eisland
• What Can a Body Do?: How We Meet the Built World by Sara Hendren
• Becoming Friends of Time: Disability, Timefullness, and Gentle Discipleship by John Swinton
• Calling All Years Good: Christian Vocation Through Life's Seasons by Kathleen Cahalan and Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore
• Vulnerable Communion: A Theology of Disability and Hospitality by Thomas E. Reynolds
• Adam: God's Beloved by Henri Nouwen
• The Road to Daybreak: A Spiritual Journey by Henri Nouwen
• Disability and the Way of Jesus: Holistic Healing in the Gospels and the Church by Bethany McKinney Fox
• The Overstory by Richard Powers
• Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong
• Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teaching of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
• Let the Circle be Unbroken by Mildred D. Taylor
• The Land by Mildred D. Taylor
• Road to Memphis by Mildred D. Taylor
• The Premonition: A Pandemic Story by Michael Lewis
• The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk
• White Picket Fences: Turning Toward Love in a World Divided by Privilege by Amy Julia Becker

Joel takes over the podcast for a chance to touch-base with a few contributing reviewers for Englewood. This time they talk about authors and recent books that are somewhat thematically connected to the "Inklings."

Erin Feldman is a content writer for The Austin Stone Institute, at The Austin Stone Community Church. Her recent projects include liturgies in Words for Winter and An Introduction to REAP: A Method for Studying the Bible. Find her online at: www.writerightwords.com

Sarah Blascovich Brown lives, reads, and writes in Lithonia, Georgia, just east of Atlanta. A former classroom teacher, she is passionate about education and literacy. Mom to three and wife to one, Sarah spends most of her online time on Instagram, where you can find her @readitmakeit.

Books and Reviews Mentioned in this Episode:
If you’d like to order any of the following books, we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books (An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)

• Erin's review of 'Tolkien's Modern Reading'
• Tolkien's Modern Reading: Middle-Earth Beyond the Middle Ages by Holly Ordway
• The Book of Dragons by E. Nesbit
• Best Short Stories of Algernon Blackwood
• The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
• Sarah's review of 'Subversive'
• Subversive: Christ, Culture and the Shocking Dorothy L. Sayers by Crystal Downing
• Gaudy Night: A Peter Wimsey Mystery by Dorothy L. Sayers
• The Sherlock Holmes Collection by Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Wisdom of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton
• The Mind of the Maker by Dorothy L. Sayers
• Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
• The Space Trilogy by C.S. Lewis
• The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis
• The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings by Philip and Carol Zaleski
• Wonder Tales: The Book of Wonder and Tales of Wonder by Lord Dunsany
• Beatrix Potter the Complete Tales
• Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
• The Master of Revels: A Return to Neal Stephenson's D.O.D.O by Nicole Galland
• Hope Against Hope: A Memoir by Nadezhda Mandelstam
• Gingerbread: A Novel by Helen Oyeyemi
• Homeland Elegies: A Novel by Ayad Akhtar
• Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

• 3000 Miles to Jesus: Pilgrimage as a Way of Life for Spiritual Seekers by Lisa Deam
• A World Transformed: Exploring the Spirituality of Medieval Maps
• Laura Fabrycky's Review of 3000 Miles to Jesus for ERB
• Awakened by Death: Life-Giving Lessons from the Mystics by Christiana Peterson
• Mystics and Misfits: Meeting God Through St. Francis and Other Unlikely Saints by Christiana Peterson
• God Walk: Moving at the Speed of Your Soul by Mark Buchanan
• Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich
• Hildegard of Bingen, Doctor of the Church: A Spiritual Reader by Carmen Acevedo Butcher
• The Cloud of Unknowing: A New Translation by Carmen Acevedo Butcher
• The Essential Writings of Christian Mysticism by Bernard McGinn
• An Explorer's Guide to Julian of Norwich by Veronica Rolf
• Setting the World on Fire: The Brief, Astonishing Life of St. Catherine of Siena by Shelley Emling
• Hildegard of Bingen: The Woman of Her Age by Fiona Maddock
• St. Francis of Assissi: His Life, Teachings and Practice by Jon Sweeney
• Lady at the Window: The Lost Journal of Julian of Norwich (A Novella) by Robert Waldron
• On the Road with St. Augustine: A Real-World Spirituality for Restless Hearts by James K.A. Smith
• The Confessions of X: A Novel by Suzanne M. Wolfe
• Motherhood: A Confession by Natalie Carnes
• Chris Smith's Review of 'Mystics and Misfits' for ERB
• Christine Greenwald's Review of 'Awakened by Death' for ERB
• Consoling Thoughts of Sickness and Death by St. Francis De Sales
• Death's Summer Coat by Brandy Schillace
• Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons From the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty
• The Undertaking: Life Studies from the Dismal Trade by Thomas Lynch
• To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings by John O'Donohue
• Pilgrimage by Lucy Pick
• Between the Dark and the Daylight: Embracing the Contradictions of Life by Joan Chittister
• The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold

Jen is joined by A.J Swoboda and Nijay Gupta (who have recently launched their very own podcast called "In Faith and Doubt," which we highly recommend to ERB listeners!) to discuss the role of reading, especially slow reading, in the journey through doubt and deconstruction.

Books Mentioned in this episode:

If you’d like to order any of the following books,
we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books
(An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)

• Paul and the Language of Faith by Nijay Gupta
• Reading Philippians: A Theological Introduction by Nijay Gupta
• Beginner's Guide to New Testament Studies by Nijay Gupta
• Subversive Sabbath by A.J. Swoboda
• After Doubt: How to Question Your Faith Without Losing It by A.J. Swoboda
• How (Not) to be Secular by James K.A. Smith
• A Habit Called Faith by Jen Pollock Michel
• Eat This Book: A Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading by Eugene Peterson
• The "For Armchair Theologians" Series from Westminster John Knox Press
• How to Talk About Books You've Never Read by Pierre Bayard
• Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God by Dallas Willard
• Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
• Might From the Margins: The Gospel's Power to Turn the Tables on Injustice  by Dennis Edwards
• Practicing Lament by Rebekah Eklund
• A Scandalous Beauty: The Artistry of God and the Way of the Cross by Thomas Schmidt
• Reading While Black: African-American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope by Esau McCaulley
• The Elegy Beta: And Other Poems by Mischa Willett

Joel takes over the hosting role for a freewheeling conversation with the ERB editors (Chris Smith, John Wilson and Erin Wasinger). We discuss content from the website, upcoming books we are looking forward to, and as always, what we are reading right now. Enjoy!

Books and Writings mentioned in this episode:

If you’d like to order any of the following books,
we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books
(An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)

• Erin's Review of 'Outside, Inside' and 'Home is in Between'
• Home is In Between by Mitali Perkins
• The ERB Used Book Sale
• Alessandro Rovati's Review of In Conversation: Samuel Wells and Stanley Hauerwas
• Lectionary Poetry Series through Lent
• Aarik Danielsen's Review of "There is a Future"
• What is God Like by Rachel Held Evans and Matthew Paul Turner
• When God Made the World by Matthew Paul Turner
• A Burning in My Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene Peterson by Winn Collier
• Living Nations, Living Words: An Anthology of First People's Poetry, ed. by Joy Harjo
• Donald Barthelme: Collected Stories (Library of America) 
• Hiding Man: A Biography of Donald Barthelme by Tracy Daugherty
• The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth by Beth Allison Barr
• Stamped (For Kids): Racism, Anti-Racism and You by Sonja Cherry-Paul
• Reading the Times: A Literary and Theological Inquiry into the News by Jeffrey Bilbro
• How to Watch TV News by Neil Postman
• Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids by Cynthia Leit Smith
• The Book of Delights: Essays by Ross Gay
• A Dark and Splendid Mass by Mari Evans
• Continuum: New and Selected Poems, Revised Edition by Mari Evans
• Congregation in a Secular Age by Andrew Root
• The Presence of the Word by Walter J. Ong
• Glossolalia and the Problem of Language by Nicholas Harkness
• A Secular Age by Charles Taylor
• The Black Church: This is Our Story, This is Our Song by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

John Pattison is co-author of Slow Church: Cultivating Community as well as Besides the Bible. He is also the content manager for Strong Towns and co-host for The Membership podcast, a podcast about the life and work of Wendell Berry. John writes and speaks frequently on topics related to the neighborhood, the church, and the creative life. He lives with his family in rural Oregon.

Christie Purifoy is a writer, gardener, podcast host, and placemaker. She is the author of two memoirs: Roots and Sky and Placemaker, and she also has a book of garden essays and photographs forthcoming from Harvest House. Christie earned her PhD in English Literature from the University of Chicago but traded the classroom for an old Pennsylvania farmhouse, Maplehurt, where she lives with her family.

Books Mentioned in this Episode:

If you’d like to order any of the following books,
we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books
(An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)

• Slow Church: Community in the Patient Way of Jesus by Chris Smith and John Pattison
• Besides the Bible: 100 Books that Have, Should or Will Create Christian Culture by Dan Gibson, Jordan Green and John Pattison
• Roots and Sky by Christie Purifoy
• Placemaker: Cultivating Places of Comfort, Beauty and Peace by Christie Purifoy
• Library of America Wendell Berry Series
• Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham
• Round of a Country Year: A Farmer's Day Book by David Kline and Wendell Berry
• Hogs are Up: Stories of the Land, with Digressions by Wes Jackson
• Farmer Boy (Little House #2) by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
• The Crosswicks Journals by Madeleine L'Engle
• Gardenmaker (forthcoming in 2022) by Christie Purifoy
• Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May
• Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• The Isabel Dalhousie Series by Alexander McCall Smith

If you’d like to order any of the following books,
we encourage you to do so from Hearts and Minds Books
(An independent bookstore in Dallastown, PA, run by Byron and Beth Borger)

SUBSCRIBE to the ERB podcast on iTunes, Google, Spotify or wherever you access your favorite podcasts.

Joel takes over as podcast host for our first "reviewer round-up" episode. He is joined by two regular ERB contributors to discuss their recent book reviews, as well as what they're currently enjoying and reading.

Ope Bukola is a founder of Behold, an app that helps Christians practice stillness and pray the scriptures every day. You can learn more and get the app on iPhone or Android.

Jamie A. Hughes is a writer/editor living in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband, two sons, and a pair of needy cats. She has written for Christianity Today, The Bitter Southerner, CT Women, Comment Magazine and more. You can read more of her writing at tousledapostle.com and follow her on Twitter at @tousledapostle.

Books Mentioned:

• Howard Thurman and the Disinherited: A Religious Biography by Paul Harvey
• Ope's Review of Howard Thurman and the Disinherited on ERB
• Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman
• Strength to Love by Martin Luther King, Jr.
• The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
• The Black Church: This is Our Story, This is Our Song by Henry Louis Gates Jr.
• Meditations of the Heart by Howard Thurman
• How to Fight Racism: Courageous Christianity and the Journey Toward Racial Justice by Jemar Tisby
• The Color of Compromise: The Truth About the American Church's Complicity in Racism by Jemar Tisby
• Jamie's Review of How to Fight Racism on ERB
• Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America by Christian Smith and Michael Emerson
• White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity by Robert P. Jones
• Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson 
• The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson
• Waking Up White: and Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving
• White Awake: An Honest Look at What it Means to be White by Daniel Hill
• My Vertical Neighborhood: How Strangers Became a Community by Lynda MacGibbon
• A Burning in my Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene Peterson, Translator of the Message by Winn Collier
• A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society by Eugene Peterson
• Ragged: Spiritual Disciplines for the Spiritually Exhausted by Gretchen Ronnevik
• Reading the Times: A Literary and Theological Inquiry into the News by Jeffrey Bilbro
• Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems 1988-2000 by Lucille Clifton
• Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah
• Mathematics for Human Flourishing by Francis Su
• The City We Became: A Novel by N.K. Jemisin
•  Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes: Patronage, Honor and Shame in the Biblical World by E. Randolph Richards and Richard James
• Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Removing Cultural Blinders to Better Understand the Bible by E. Randolph Richards and Brandon O'Brien
• Joel's Review of Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes on ERB
• The WEIRDest People the World: How the West Became Pyschologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous by Joseph Henrich

Jen is joined by two great guests to continue discussing the theme of our previous episode: reading and mental wellness. This time, her conversation partners look at this important topic through the lens of church history.

Diana Gruver writes about spiritual formation and discipleship in the everyday. She is the author of Companions in the Darkness: Seven Saints Who Struggled with Depression and Doubt. 

Laura Fabrycky is an American writer, diplomatic spouse, and mother of three. Her book, Keys to Bonhoeffer’s Haus, is a historically grounded memoir of her experience as a volunteer guide at the Bonhoeffer-Haus in Berlin. She was a guest on a previous episode, so you’ll hopefully recognize her voice.

Books Mentioned in this Episode:

• Companions in the Darkness: Seven Saints Who Struggled with Depression and Doubt by Diana Gruver
• Keys to Bonhoeffer's Haus: Exploring the World and Wisdom of Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Laura Fabrycky
• Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks, and a Writer's Life by Kathleen Norris
• A First-Rate Madness: Uncovering the Links Between Leadership and Mental Illness by Nassir Ghaemi
• The Cry of the Soul: How Our Emotions Reveal Our Deepest Questions About God by Dan Allender, Tremper Longman, et al.
• Depression, Anxiety and the Christian Life: Practical Wisdom from Richard Baxter by Michael S. Lundy
• William Cowper: Selected Poetry and Prose
• Herbert: Poems by George Herbert
• Spurgeon's Sorrows: Realistic Hope for Those Who Suffer From Depression by Zack Eswine
• The Silent Shades of Sorrow: Healing for the Wounded by C. H. Spurgeon
• Getting Involved with God: Rediscovering the Old Testament by Ellen Davis
• Emily Dickinson and the Art of Belief by Roger Lundin
• Markings by Dag Hammerskjold
• Still by Lauren F. Winner

Jen kicks off 2021 with a thoughtful and timely discussion of the reading life, and the connections between one's sense of place and mental wellness. The poet Tania Runyan joins Jen and Chris for this conversation.

Tania Runyan is the author of many poetry collections: What Will Soon Take Place, Second Sky, A Thousand Vessels, Simple Weight and Delicious Air, which was awarded Book of the Year by the Conference on Christianity and Literature in 2007.  She’s also written the guides, How to Read a Poem, How to Write a Poem, and How to Write a College Application Essay. When she is not writing, Tania plays fiddle and mandolin, drives her kids to appointments, and gets lost in her Midwestern garden.

C. Christopher Smith is the Founding Editor of The Englewood Review of Books and the author of a number of books, including most recently How the Body of Christ Talks, published by Brazos in 2019.

Books discussed in this episode:

• What Will Soon Take Place: Poems by Tania Runyan
• Second Sky: Poems by Tania Runyan
• A Thousand Vessels by Tania Runyan
• Simple Weight by Tania Runyan
• How to Write a Poem: Based on the Billy Collins Poem "Introduction to Poetry" by Tania Runyan
• How to Read a Poem: Based on the Billy Collins Poem "Introduction to Poetry" by Tania Runyan
• How to Write a College Application Essay: Expert Advice to Help You Get Into the College of Your Dreams by Tania Runyan
• A Plum Tree in Leatherstocking Country by Daniel Bowman Jr.
• Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community by Robert Putnam
• Becoming Friends of Time: Disability, Timefullness and Gentle Discipleship by John Swinton
• All the Young Men by Ruth Coker Burks
• Becoming Wild: How Animal Cultures Raise Families, Create Beauty and Achieve Peace by Carl Safina
• The Library Book by Susan Orlean
• Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness by William Styron
• The Hilarious World of Depression by John Moe
• Lost Connections: Why You're Depressed and How to Find Hope by Johann Hari
• Finding Jesus in the Storm: The Spiritual Lives of Christians with Mental Health Challenges by John Swinton
• The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk

Jen is joined by three great guests for a live conversation (as well as an abundance of recorded contributions from other guests) for a wide-ranging and freewheeling conversation about our favorite books of 2020.

C. Christopher Smith is the Founding Editor of The Englewood Review of Books and the author of a number of books, including most recently How the Body of Christ Talks, published by Brazos in 2019.

John Wilson is the former editor of Books & Culture. He is now Contributing Editor for The Englewood Review of Books.

Sarah Arthur is the author of a dozen books on the intersection of faith and great literature, including the award-winning A Light So Lovely: The Spiritual Legacy of Madeleine L’Engle. She served as co-director of the first-ever Madeleine L’Engle Conference “Walking on Water” at the end of 2019 and will co-lead the L’Engle Writing Retreat in northwest CT, tentatively rescheduled for November 2021. You can learn more about her work at her website saraharthur.info. Sarah is currently writing fiction and a preliminary fiction judge of the CT Book awards

Books mentioned in this episode:

• A Light So Lovely: The Spiritual Legacy of Madeleine L'Engle by Sarah Arthur
• A Long Time Comin' by Robin Pearson
• Keys to Bonhoeffer's Haus: Exploring the World and Wisdom of Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Laura Fabrycky
• Deacon King Kong by James McBride
• The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride
• The Good Lord Bird by James McBride
• Sex and the City of God: A Memoir of Love and Longing by Carolyn Weber
• Rhythms for Life: Spiritual Practices for Who God Made You to Be by Alastair Sterne
• Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson
• What It's Like to be a Bird by David Allen Sibley
• East of Eden by John Steinbeck
• Sisters by Daisy Johnson
• Dorothy and Jack: The Transforming Friendship of Dorothy Sayers and C.S. Lewis by Gina Dalfonzo
• The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism and the Road to Sexual Revolution by Carl Trueman
• The Last Children of Mill Creek by Vivian Gibson
• Midwest Futures by Phil Christman
• Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers by Dane Ortlund
• A Prayer for Orion: A Son's Addiction and a Mother's Love by Katherine James
• Can You See Anything Now? by Katherine James
• Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
• Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller
• Everything Sad Is Untrue: A True Story by Daniel Nayeri
• Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir by Nikki Grimes
• Class Act by Jerry Craft
• When God Made the World by Matthew Paul Turner
• Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez
• A Pilgrimage to Eternity: From Canterbury to Rome in Search of a Faith by Timothy Egan
• The Uncontrollability of the World by Harmut Rosa
• Charis in the World of Wonders: A Novel Set in Puritan New England by Marly Youmans
• Living Things: Collected Poems by Anne Porter
• One Long River of Song: Notes on Wonder by Brian Doyle
• The Recovering: Intoxication and its Aftermath by Leslie Jamison
• Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes
• Art & Faith: A Theology of Making by Makoto Fujimura
• How to Fight Racism by Jemar Tisby
• A Prayer in the Night: For Those Who Work or Watch or Weep by Tish Harrison Warren
• Antiquities by Cynthia Ozick
• A Burning in My Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene Peterson by Winn Collier