Love Heals is a beautifully illustrated book with a beautiful message, written by Becca Stevens, founder of Thistle Farms.* She defines healing in terms of “finding peace after trauma, feeling hope in the midst of grief, forgiving after being hurt, or just relief from the daily wear and tear of living in a broken world.” By recognizing and discerning fears, we can prepare to meet them and allow love to overcome them.

If you were moved by Paul Kalanthi’s book When Breath Becomes Air (155.9 K), you’ll want to read Everything Happens for a Reason, and Other Lies I’ve Loved (155.9 B). Kate Bowler is a divinity school professor studying “the prosperity gospel” (the belief that fortune is a reward from God for good behavior). In the midst of her happy and successful life, she is diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer, and struggles to cope with it. The book ends with suggestions for what to say and what not to say to people who are suffering. She closes with this: Just remember that if cancer or divorce or tragedies of all kinds don’t kill you, people’s good intentions will. Take the phrase “but they mean well…” as your cue to run screaming from the room. Or demand presents. You deserve a break.

~Carol Jensen, Church Librarian

*Thistle Farms is a community in Nashville whose mission is to heal, empower, and employ women survivors of trafficking, prostitution, and addiction. (www.thistlefarms.org)