Annie Downs’ last book touted, Let’s All Be Brave (linked to my review) and now she’s bravely and actively Looking for Lovely. The basic idea is to figure out what is lovely to you. What makes you feel happy and like your best self? Once you figure it out, then you do it.
I liked this book a lot. I probably like it more than the first book I read by her, because it’s a little more personal. That said, I wish she had gotten more personal. She shares about her “broken crazy” and alludes to it several times, but other than a few poor decisions and avoidance techniques, the readers aren’t really given insight to her brokenness. I can’t really explain why there was a disconnect for me, because she does share about how her approval-seeking and self-hate talk have hurt her psyche, and she’s real about certain disappointments and earnest hopes.
Just like Let’s All Be Brave, this is a great book for twentysomethings or thirtysomethings who still feel like they are in transition. I am in neither of those categories, but I am always looking for ways to make my faith more a part of my life and this book did a good job of highlighting how wrong thinking can interfere with a vibrant relationship with Christ.
I agree! It was not as “intensely personal” as the back cover wanted me to believe, but I am on the extreme end of transparent, so maybe I hoped for too much. It was a light read for me. Well-written, but more like a series of blog posts that didn’t go too deep.