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Convent Wisdom: How Sixteenth-Century Nuns Could Save Your Twenty-First-Century Life
Bloomsbury presents Convent Wisdom by Ana Garriga & Carmen Urbita, read by Aida Reluzco
'Brimming with fascinating historical details' MELISSA FEBOS, MARIE CLAIRE
'Profoundly useful and pleasure seeking' EILEEN MYLES
'A fizzy joy to read' BETSY CORNWELL
An infectiously edifying manual that mines the lives of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century nuns, offering advice for our modern age and proving one no matter the century, nuns know best.
When most of us think of nuns, we picture solemn shuffles down cloistered halls and hands clasped in prayer. But what about the nuns who erupted into jealous fights over makeup or crushed on their girlfriends? In reality, these women were no one-dimensional martyrs. Sixteenth- and seventeenth-century nuns were resourceful, rebellious and refreshingly relatable – and their lives hold surprising lessons for us today.
Convent Wisdom is your guide to navigating the chaos of the modern world with help from history's most fascinating nuns. Struggling with money? Saint Teresa and her fellow Carmelites have some divine budgeting hacks. Drowning in FOMO while scrolling through social media? Mary of Jesus of Ágreda's miraculous ability to be in two places at once might teach you how to finally keep up. Lost in the digital dating pool? Benedetta Carlini's treatise on the seven ways to spot a lesbian nun may offer unexpected insights.
Blending rigorous research with pop culture and personal anecdotes throughout, best friends Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita lift the veil on monastic life so you can better conquer today's anxiety-ridden, hyper-connected world. From procrastination to imposter syndrome, friendship drama to creativity slumps, the nuns of Convent Wisdom are here to guide you – with a wink and a prayer.
'Brimming with fascinating historical details' MELISSA FEBOS, MARIE CLAIRE
'Profoundly useful and pleasure seeking' EILEEN MYLES
'A fizzy joy to read' BETSY CORNWELL
An infectiously edifying manual that mines the lives of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century nuns, offering advice for our modern age and proving one no matter the century, nuns know best.
When most of us think of nuns, we picture solemn shuffles down cloistered halls and hands clasped in prayer. But what about the nuns who erupted into jealous fights over makeup or crushed on their girlfriends? In reality, these women were no one-dimensional martyrs. Sixteenth- and seventeenth-century nuns were resourceful, rebellious and refreshingly relatable – and their lives hold surprising lessons for us today.
Convent Wisdom is your guide to navigating the chaos of the modern world with help from history's most fascinating nuns. Struggling with money? Saint Teresa and her fellow Carmelites have some divine budgeting hacks. Drowning in FOMO while scrolling through social media? Mary of Jesus of Ágreda's miraculous ability to be in two places at once might teach you how to finally keep up. Lost in the digital dating pool? Benedetta Carlini's treatise on the seven ways to spot a lesbian nun may offer unexpected insights.
Blending rigorous research with pop culture and personal anecdotes throughout, best friends Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita lift the veil on monastic life so you can better conquer today's anxiety-ridden, hyper-connected world. From procrastination to imposter syndrome, friendship drama to creativity slumps, the nuns of Convent Wisdom are here to guide you – with a wink and a prayer.
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First published November 4, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
August 24, 2025
It was fun to learn that 16th and 17th century nuns were one of the girls. They had FOMO, worried about their reputation, ate weird snacks, and developed all-consuming friend crushes. I found myself wishing that it was a straight up historical or autobiographical book because I personally did not connect with the self-help aspects of Convent Wisdom. I did fall in love with the authors and their academic struggles; I will definitely be checking out their podcast. It was a 3.5/5 for me, thank you Avid Reader Press for the ARC!! <3
October 26, 2025
Convent Wisdom is a humorous book written by PhD graduates, Ana Garigga and Carmen Urbita, who specialize in the lives of Saint Theresa of Avila and her close friends for their graduate studies. They draw parallels between the glorification of nuns in the sixteenth century and modern-day celebrity culture and social media politics. It’s really fascinating to see how feminism, reputation, appearance, social status and “followers” all played a role in the lives of nuns and their convents in the 1500s in a similar manner that they do now for women both on and off social media today! This book is published on November 4th. Thank you NetGalley and Avid Reader Press for a #gifted advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions below are my own.
Garigga and Urbita draw parallels between the drama of Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears, and Paris Hilton and Saint Therese’s trio of friends. The authors comment on the current renewed interest in nuns through memes, the recent viral dancing nuns, and met gala / fashion trends. The way that followers of Theresa and other venerated nuns would be spied on through peep holes compares to how we gain glimpses into the lives of celebrities through their social media and paparazzi. Parts of a nun’s body and their possessions would even be taken upon their death, much like the possessions and products of celebrities are today.
The authors also reflect on their own seclusion and discipline during their graduate school days. Their graduate work placed them in a similar environment and scheduled system as the nuns they read about, which created an intimacy between them and a mutual understanding of how the nun’s philosophies are still applicable in today’s world.
It's such a fun concept to reflect on how celebrity culture isn’t just a phenomenon today, but it was very much active centuries ago in the way potential saints were followed and worshipped. The text dives into the personal writings of Saint Therese and her closest companions to illustrate the politics and strategies at work behind the scenes of a convent, such as how the nuns carefully craft how they present themselves to the public, the prayers and services they complete as a performance of their sainthood, their speeches and mannerisms being controlled in order to be the perfect demonstration of philanthropy.
This level of politics in how to dress and present oneself, how to speak, how to carry oneself, and how to act and perform charitable acts, are all performed by those we venerate today in the “cult of celebrity” through their charities, product placements and media training. Hence the subtitle of the book – how 16th-century nuns can save your 21st-century life.
The only weakness I found with the book: the cover and topic of the book suggests an intended audience that is younger (millennial and under), but the style that the book is written in is quite academic and verbose, to the point I sometimes felt an interesting topic or point may be lost on a Gen Z or Gen Alpha reader. I think this book could go far if it was written in a more accessible way to capture attention from a wider audience.
Garigga and Urbita draw parallels between the drama of Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears, and Paris Hilton and Saint Therese’s trio of friends. The authors comment on the current renewed interest in nuns through memes, the recent viral dancing nuns, and met gala / fashion trends. The way that followers of Theresa and other venerated nuns would be spied on through peep holes compares to how we gain glimpses into the lives of celebrities through their social media and paparazzi. Parts of a nun’s body and their possessions would even be taken upon their death, much like the possessions and products of celebrities are today.
The authors also reflect on their own seclusion and discipline during their graduate school days. Their graduate work placed them in a similar environment and scheduled system as the nuns they read about, which created an intimacy between them and a mutual understanding of how the nun’s philosophies are still applicable in today’s world.
It's such a fun concept to reflect on how celebrity culture isn’t just a phenomenon today, but it was very much active centuries ago in the way potential saints were followed and worshipped. The text dives into the personal writings of Saint Therese and her closest companions to illustrate the politics and strategies at work behind the scenes of a convent, such as how the nuns carefully craft how they present themselves to the public, the prayers and services they complete as a performance of their sainthood, their speeches and mannerisms being controlled in order to be the perfect demonstration of philanthropy.
This level of politics in how to dress and present oneself, how to speak, how to carry oneself, and how to act and perform charitable acts, are all performed by those we venerate today in the “cult of celebrity” through their charities, product placements and media training. Hence the subtitle of the book – how 16th-century nuns can save your 21st-century life.
The only weakness I found with the book: the cover and topic of the book suggests an intended audience that is younger (millennial and under), but the style that the book is written in is quite academic and verbose, to the point I sometimes felt an interesting topic or point may be lost on a Gen Z or Gen Alpha reader. I think this book could go far if it was written in a more accessible way to capture attention from a wider audience.
June 21, 2025
This felt like half memoir half historical non-fiction. I didn't find any of the insights particularly wowing but it was fun to learn more about the nuns. I might have liked a more hard historical non-fiction but this should be fun for most readers.
December 13, 2025
This book was really not what I expected. I could do without the modern day references- they really pained me and at times read like a bad Buzzfeed article. I think it’s clear that the authors had fun with this book, but I think I was hopeful that this book would be a deeper dive on nuns and nun culture. Just not quite what I was looking for but this didn’t meet the mark for me.
January 15, 2026
I bought this while it was half price - despite the book being incredibly new - and I think I've realised why. The book is both exactly what it says on the cover, but also not? Each story of the nuns - usually St. Teresa of Avila - is interspliced with the two authors own personal experiences that tie in with both the situation and the overall statement they're making in the micro-chapter. It was these little anecdotes that really dulled the book down for me. I bought the book called 'Convent Wisdom,' with a nun on the cover, talking only of nuns in the blurb, goodness forbid I expect ALL of the contents to be about nuns and not the two authors wondering whether or not to re-download Bumble. The two authors also don't seem to be catholic themselves or have much reverence for the religion, not that they particularly disrespect Catholicism or catholic beliefs but they routinely call the nuns silly or have a kind of pompous air about it that seems like they constantly think they're better than the saint or faithful that they're talking about. I know I'm being overly negative which I suppose in a way is unfair because I really did enjoy the parts of this book about holy (and un-holy) women throughout history but all the rest of the gunk really brought it down.
January 3, 2026
Forgettable and silly, in my opinion. I went into this expecting to get some tangible guidelines from nuns. All I received was the opinion of a girl who likes nuns. Some interesting stories, though.
Review of advance copy received from Otros
recuerdo que en la serie #friends #ross ridiculizaba a su hermana #monica cuando está se ponía una funda de almohada en la cabeza a modo de velo nupcial y Ross la llamaba #lamonjavoladora. Pero para quienes hayamos visto Friends no nos resultaria tan descabellada la idea de una Mónica que en lugar de casarse con Chandler lo hiciese con Dios y construyese un gran convento limpio como una patena donde refugiar a todas sus amigas empezando por Rachel y Phoebe. Una gran congregación neoyorquina para dar refugio a todas aquellas chicas maniáticas de la limpieza y el orden , el rigor y las to do list ....y buenas cocineras !
Pues esa #instrucciondenovicias que podría haber sido el spin off de Friends se convirtió en la sitcom con bastantes menos risas enlatadas de dos jóvenes doctorandas que deciden instalarse en Providence, Rhode Island como el último lugar en el mundo donde diseñar a la medida del siglo XXI un rinconcito terapéutico, un convento portátil para todas aquellas que en un momento dado hemos soñado con dejarlo todo y correr al abrigo de una celda maltrecha en la que apenas cabe una cama de noventa y un crucifijo y pasar gozosas el resto de la vida acudiendo a la llamada de maitines. Pero nada más lejos de la realidad. Si en el siglo XXI no te comes una rosca porque no tienes padrino lo mismo ocurría en los favoritisimos siglos XVI y XVII porque monja no se hacía quien quería sino quién podía y sin dote magnífica no había convento. Las puertas de estos lugares ancestrales solo se abren con moneda de cambio y una vez que consigues estar dentro hay que seguir ganándose el sustento y sino que se lo pregunten a Santa Teresa de Jesús que no solo consiguió la santificación por la transreverberación, sus bilocaciones o sus libros, también por su gran olfato para los negocios con la máxima que rica es quien menos gasta y haciendo la mejor oferta por lo bajo consiguió los mejores terrenos para su rebañito de fieles novicias.
Porque al final un convento también es un negocio pues hasta la fecha nadie vive solo por el amor a Dios aunque el ayuno fue otra de las grandes proezas de todas aquellas religiosas que ya tempranamente destilaban olor a santidad. Pero mientras languidecían en sus más de dieciocho horas sin probar bocado esperando a nadie sabe que para romper el ayuno una gran monja veneciana sucumbio al encanto de la creme de la creme del Venetto y conociendo la destreza de las monjas en el corte y confección las puso a diseñar los modelitos más atrevidos de la Serenísima Laguna. Que un hábito es un hábito y siempre merece respeto y el decoro es imprescindible pero ¿ a quien no le gusta saltarse de vez en cuando las reglas y que el atienda con el que llegar a la casa de Dios tenga un punto chic ?
Porque #grandisimarepugnancia es ponerse a trabajar y a escribir con todo lo que se tiene encima y haber sido capaz de escribirlo todo . #grandisimarepugnancia y a pesar de todo ser capaz de continuar cuando sientes que nada tiene sentido, que vivimos en un tiempo cíclico, que todo lo que nos ocurre ahora ya le ocurrió a alguna monja de los siglos XVI y XVII y que justo en esa dicotomía, en ese paralelismo infranqueable #anagarriga y #carmenurbita diseñan a medida un rinconcito de sosiego , una instrucción de novicias, un legado anacrónico de María de Jesús de Agreda para que está #grandisimarepugnancia que sentimos, que nos rodea muchas veces se pueda transformar en los versos más candentes de sor Juana Inés de la cruz "siento una grave agonía/por lograr un devaneo / que empieza como deseo/ y para en melancolía".
Pues esa #instrucciondenovicias que podría haber sido el spin off de Friends se convirtió en la sitcom con bastantes menos risas enlatadas de dos jóvenes doctorandas que deciden instalarse en Providence, Rhode Island como el último lugar en el mundo donde diseñar a la medida del siglo XXI un rinconcito terapéutico, un convento portátil para todas aquellas que en un momento dado hemos soñado con dejarlo todo y correr al abrigo de una celda maltrecha en la que apenas cabe una cama de noventa y un crucifijo y pasar gozosas el resto de la vida acudiendo a la llamada de maitines. Pero nada más lejos de la realidad. Si en el siglo XXI no te comes una rosca porque no tienes padrino lo mismo ocurría en los favoritisimos siglos XVI y XVII porque monja no se hacía quien quería sino quién podía y sin dote magnífica no había convento. Las puertas de estos lugares ancestrales solo se abren con moneda de cambio y una vez que consigues estar dentro hay que seguir ganándose el sustento y sino que se lo pregunten a Santa Teresa de Jesús que no solo consiguió la santificación por la transreverberación, sus bilocaciones o sus libros, también por su gran olfato para los negocios con la máxima que rica es quien menos gasta y haciendo la mejor oferta por lo bajo consiguió los mejores terrenos para su rebañito de fieles novicias.
Porque al final un convento también es un negocio pues hasta la fecha nadie vive solo por el amor a Dios aunque el ayuno fue otra de las grandes proezas de todas aquellas religiosas que ya tempranamente destilaban olor a santidad. Pero mientras languidecían en sus más de dieciocho horas sin probar bocado esperando a nadie sabe que para romper el ayuno una gran monja veneciana sucumbio al encanto de la creme de la creme del Venetto y conociendo la destreza de las monjas en el corte y confección las puso a diseñar los modelitos más atrevidos de la Serenísima Laguna. Que un hábito es un hábito y siempre merece respeto y el decoro es imprescindible pero ¿ a quien no le gusta saltarse de vez en cuando las reglas y que el atienda con el que llegar a la casa de Dios tenga un punto chic ?
Porque #grandisimarepugnancia es ponerse a trabajar y a escribir con todo lo que se tiene encima y haber sido capaz de escribirlo todo . #grandisimarepugnancia y a pesar de todo ser capaz de continuar cuando sientes que nada tiene sentido, que vivimos en un tiempo cíclico, que todo lo que nos ocurre ahora ya le ocurrió a alguna monja de los siglos XVI y XVII y que justo en esa dicotomía, en ese paralelismo infranqueable #anagarriga y #carmenurbita diseñan a medida un rinconcito de sosiego , una instrucción de novicias, un legado anacrónico de María de Jesús de Agreda para que está #grandisimarepugnancia que sentimos, que nos rodea muchas veces se pueda transformar en los versos más candentes de sor Juana Inés de la cruz "siento una grave agonía/por lograr un devaneo / que empieza como deseo/ y para en melancolía".
January 3, 2026
Part history, part self-help book, part PhD student memoir. I found the self-help angle pretty surface level, and the memoir angle interesting at first but then kind of repetitive ("here's another way being a grad student is like being cloistered"). I thought it shined much more as a history book, and would've liked the balance skewed more in that direction. 3.5, worth a read.
January 7, 2026
“ we who had become so accustomed to letting words pour forth, to accompanying any trivilaity with four times the amount of adjectives…..”. A sentence from this interminable book that sums up the verbose writing style.
Its too academic to be pop culture, too mired in pop culture of the age of the authors- namely Millenials -to be of wide interest, too much of a stretch of a fun, but ultimately unsuccesful premise, to work.
You should note the authors specialisms on the sleeve if you dive into this expecting a rich seam of wisdom from a diversity of European nuns. The references are almost exclusively Mexican or Spanish, specifically Discalced nuns and after all those soporific pages i still do not what on earth that means.
The device of writing together “ we think this, we did that” etc presents as juvenile and im sorry but they just come across as whiny spoiled Millenials.
I expected to love this but it was a trial worthy of the inquistion to finish it.
Its too academic to be pop culture, too mired in pop culture of the age of the authors- namely Millenials -to be of wide interest, too much of a stretch of a fun, but ultimately unsuccesful premise, to work.
You should note the authors specialisms on the sleeve if you dive into this expecting a rich seam of wisdom from a diversity of European nuns. The references are almost exclusively Mexican or Spanish, specifically Discalced nuns and after all those soporific pages i still do not what on earth that means.
The device of writing together “ we think this, we did that” etc presents as juvenile and im sorry but they just come across as whiny spoiled Millenials.
I expected to love this but it was a trial worthy of the inquistion to finish it.
November 29, 2025
Wavered between a 3 and 4 on this and went with a three because ultimately, I think it tried to do too much and was weaker for it.
THAT SAID: as someone who was also a bit traumatized by completing a PhD in history at an Ivy League school (like the authors, and an experience that frames much of the book), I found this soooooooooo relatable. 😄 I laughed a lot-- so much so that the woman on the plane next to me asked what I was reading and wrote it down, so I clearly was having fun reading it.
I think people without that specific background can still enjoy this book, but if you've survived a similar academic experience, you really should check it out. You will feel extremely seen.
And "greatest repugnance for work" may just become a Monday mantra for our time, not just the 16th century. 😄
THAT SAID: as someone who was also a bit traumatized by completing a PhD in history at an Ivy League school (like the authors, and an experience that frames much of the book), I found this soooooooooo relatable. 😄 I laughed a lot-- so much so that the woman on the plane next to me asked what I was reading and wrote it down, so I clearly was having fun reading it.
I think people without that specific background can still enjoy this book, but if you've survived a similar academic experience, you really should check it out. You will feel extremely seen.
And "greatest repugnance for work" may just become a Monday mantra for our time, not just the 16th century. 😄
February 19, 2026
este libro es absolutamente celebratorio de la posibilidad de pertenecer... cuantísimo conocimiento e ingenio!!! en él caben todas las emociones, todos los datos, todas las "cosas tenidas por pequeñeces" (que son todo lo contrario 📿).
qué disfrute y qué divertido!!!
y qué manera de aligerar el aire denso y en ocasiones irrespirable de mi opozulo. grandísima repugnancia
qué disfrute y qué divertido!!!
y qué manera de aligerar el aire denso y en ocasiones irrespirable de mi opozulo. grandísima repugnancia
January 1, 2026
i really enjoyed this book! i think it is geared more towards younger women who enjoy the middle ages, however that is perfect for me haha! i thought it was a great blend of the often dense medieval history with a modern flare that was relatable and informative.
February 24, 2026
Mi libro más esperado de este año. Y no defrauda.
Recoge los momentos más destacados de la vida (y obra) de diferentes monjas del Siglo de Oro, extrayendo de ellos reflexiones que nos ayuden a sobrellevar los dramas cotidianos en el siglo XXI. Escrito con gran rigor académico, aporta anécdotas y comentarios llenos de humor, una amplia bibliografía e incluso una guía de monjas para las que a veces nos perdemos escuchando a Las hijas de Felipe.
Recoge los momentos más destacados de la vida (y obra) de diferentes monjas del Siglo de Oro, extrayendo de ellos reflexiones que nos ayuden a sobrellevar los dramas cotidianos en el siglo XXI. Escrito con gran rigor académico, aporta anécdotas y comentarios llenos de humor, una amplia bibliografía e incluso una guía de monjas para las que a veces nos perdemos escuchando a Las hijas de Felipe.
dnf
March 2, 2026DNF after chapter 1 because it’s due back to the library and not compelling enough to keep overdue.
December 27, 2025
Hmmm I really struggled choosing how many stars I should give this book, in the end I think it will have to be a three. Although I do feel the book was quite charming and (very) easy to read , I feel like I could not connect with the constant parallel drawn between the authors struggles with writing their phds and being a nun.
I was very excited and feel this book has a lot of potential, I just wish it was slightly more organized and focused a little more on the nuns.
I was very excited and feel this book has a lot of potential, I just wish it was slightly more organized and focused a little more on the nuns.
December 15, 2025
I was really intrigued by the synopsis of this book. As I listened on audio, I was like “this feels like a podcast episode” only to learn the authors had (have?) a podcast. The research is impressive, for sure. It is primarily historical research, a little bit of pop culture and social commentary, lots of 16th-century-nuns-just-being-girls. and like 1% self-help. I unfortunately did not get the self-help aspect at all, or maybe it just didn’t resonate with me. I don’t know enough about Catholic teachings or mysticism for much of this to make sense to me, so I felt a little out of my depth. Still an interesting read.
October 7, 2025
“Convent Wisdom” by Garriga and Urbita was a book I was excited to pick up because of my own upbringing and fascination with nuns. I learned a lot reading this book, especially fun and weird facts that not a lot of people may know about what nuns were doing back in the day with all of the time they had on their hands. This book covers the authors’ own experience obtaining their PhD’s and the advice they took from the women that they were studying and writing about. I would recommend to anyone who has an interest in the topic, as some of the jargon can be tough to get through. I found myself losing focus with the text as it went on because the differing storylines of the nuns were hard to distinguish as a lot of them had similar (and long) names. 3 stars ⭐️
July 22, 2025
Nuns! They’re just like us! This is a delightful read - witty and fresh - and while you’re enjoying the voices of Ana and Carmen, you’ll glean a thing or two about life as 16th c. religious. Their lives were way more diverse and interesting than I’d have imagined. What an accessible way to put all that scholarship on the page. I literally laughed out loud.
Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC. The opinions are my own.
Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC. The opinions are my own.
November 10, 2025
I think I had wished this was more of a series of bios of these women, but I did really like this regardless!
February 1, 2026
(2,5)
tô livre!!!! senhor, parecia não acabar nunca. gostei bastante da ideia no começo, apesar de começar com um pé atrás por medo de encontrar uma escrita bem brega - o que é de fato o caso, mas acho que funciona bem com a proposta.
gostei das pontes entre as vidas das freiras nos séculos XVI e XVII e a vida das duas autoras/podcasters, e gostei também de como elas compartilham com a gente o tanto de pesquisa por trás do livro.
no entanto, achei meio confuso a maneira como elas organizaram os capítulos e depois da página 100 eu já não sabia mais qual freira era qual. o que começou como uma leitura divertida virou uma obrigação (até porque tenho que fazer uma resenha do livro pro meu voluntario).
tô livre!!!! senhor, parecia não acabar nunca. gostei bastante da ideia no começo, apesar de começar com um pé atrás por medo de encontrar uma escrita bem brega - o que é de fato o caso, mas acho que funciona bem com a proposta.
gostei das pontes entre as vidas das freiras nos séculos XVI e XVII e a vida das duas autoras/podcasters, e gostei também de como elas compartilham com a gente o tanto de pesquisa por trás do livro.
no entanto, achei meio confuso a maneira como elas organizaram os capítulos e depois da página 100 eu já não sabia mais qual freira era qual. o que começou como uma leitura divertida virou uma obrigação (até porque tenho que fazer uma resenha do livro pro meu voluntario).
January 21, 2026
The book is written as a long blog, not as a nonfiction book, with the authors jumping from history to their personal lives indiscriminately. What history there is is good, however it isn't combined as one narrative string and it jumps in where the authors thought it fit their personal experiences, which aren't really that interesting, to be honest. This is not a book for serious readers.
March 4, 2026
2.5.
Bof, intéressant par bout (certaines anecdotes sur la vie de certaines nonnes nous rappellent à quel point elles ne sont pas si éloignées de nous!), mais j'ai trouvé que les liens avec la culture pop contemporaine étaient souvent cringes et forcés. les autrices ont l'air d'avoir eu ben du fun à écrire ce livre et tant mieux pour elles, mais le plaisir ne sest pas tant rendu à moi. dommage.
Bof, intéressant par bout (certaines anecdotes sur la vie de certaines nonnes nous rappellent à quel point elles ne sont pas si éloignées de nous!), mais j'ai trouvé que les liens avec la culture pop contemporaine étaient souvent cringes et forcés. les autrices ont l'air d'avoir eu ben du fun à écrire ce livre et tant mieux pour elles, mais le plaisir ne sest pas tant rendu à moi. dommage.
Read
December 19, 2025Excited for the Spanish audiobook to be released, and hope it will be read by the authors - this was enjoyable, but lacking something of the delivery that they bring to the podcast.
January 5, 2026
I loved Convent Wisdom - Ana and Carmen did a masterful job of weaving together life as we know it with wisdom shared from sixteenth and seventeenth century nuns. Highly recommend.
January 26, 2026
Not sure these nuns wills save my life but it sure was interesting learning about their lives!
February 6, 2026
O sea AMO.
February 20, 2026
Sosiego verdadero.
February 27, 2026
I know this is not a book for everyone, but I liked it. Growing out of the authors' PhD research, the content about nuns of 400-500 years ago mixes with the life experiences of the authors as they pursue their advanced degrees. Snarky and learned in one book!
December 28, 2025
3,5/5
An interesting book, with a flawed execution.
This is a very accessible read, perfect for people who aren't familiar with academic texts. The tone is light, tongue-in-cheek and humorous. One thing that strikes me when studying history is that people in the past weren't so different from us. And this is exactly what we see here, through a kaleidoscope of anecdotes, illuminating how women of the past faced the same issues as we do now.
When we think of nuns, we think of strict routines and hierarchy. We think of boredom and austerity. But nuns were also people. And I learned plenty of interesting, touching or thought-provoking facts. So good for that part!
My main caveat was that the self-help part was poorly executed. Sometimes, it was just one of two sentences and everything stayed superficial.
-Blending personal experience with educational content is a delicate exercice. Here, it was poorly done. The authors tried to appear as relatable™, cool everygirls™. The issue is that what is relatable or not varies from one reader to another. And I just...didn't care about some aspects of their lives.
-Their tendency to cram as much contemporary references as possible was annoying .Their defense of the #GirlMath thing was poorly done. It is sexist, no matter how you twist it. You can't reclaim sexist stereotypes.
-The analysis was lacking in some places. They mention Arcangela Tarabotti's business endeavors. Fair enough. But Arcangela Tarabotti was also known for her fierce defense of women's rights. It would have been a good opportunity to remind people that feminist ideas are nothing new, contrary to what some would like you to believe.
-The analysis of the nuns' dietary habits stayed surface-level as well. Such a complex topic would have required a thorough examination. It's the same for the case of the weeping nuns. It would have been a perfect way of highlighting how showing your emotions is still pathologized in today's society, especially when it comes to women's tears.
-It stayed funny, witty, but avoided more complex subjects, such as the elephant in the room: the fact that the Church is a patriarchal institution that hides violence and sexual violence against women, including nuns. Yes, it mentions religious homophobia in passing, but that's it. In explaining the convent's appeal, they failed to highlight the main contradiction. From the beginning, nuns have subverted the expectations placed on women by refusing to marry and have children and living among other women. That's why the church has always strived to control them and place them under male surveillance. I recommend reading Jo Ann McNamara's "Sisters in Arms: Catholic Nuns Through Two Millennia". She perfectly sums it up. Here, the two authors speak of the convent as a place of female solidarity, of community...But avoid mentioning the fact that joining one means ultimately that you have to submit to patriarchal institutions. It would have been interesting to discuss how nuns tried to navigate and push back against that control.
An interesting book, with a flawed execution.
This is a very accessible read, perfect for people who aren't familiar with academic texts. The tone is light, tongue-in-cheek and humorous. One thing that strikes me when studying history is that people in the past weren't so different from us. And this is exactly what we see here, through a kaleidoscope of anecdotes, illuminating how women of the past faced the same issues as we do now.
When we think of nuns, we think of strict routines and hierarchy. We think of boredom and austerity. But nuns were also people. And I learned plenty of interesting, touching or thought-provoking facts. So good for that part!
My main caveat was that the self-help part was poorly executed. Sometimes, it was just one of two sentences and everything stayed superficial.
-Blending personal experience with educational content is a delicate exercice. Here, it was poorly done. The authors tried to appear as relatable™, cool everygirls™. The issue is that what is relatable or not varies from one reader to another. And I just...didn't care about some aspects of their lives.
-Their tendency to cram as much contemporary references as possible was annoying .Their defense of the #GirlMath thing was poorly done. It is sexist, no matter how you twist it. You can't reclaim sexist stereotypes.
-The analysis was lacking in some places. They mention Arcangela Tarabotti's business endeavors. Fair enough. But Arcangela Tarabotti was also known for her fierce defense of women's rights. It would have been a good opportunity to remind people that feminist ideas are nothing new, contrary to what some would like you to believe.
-The analysis of the nuns' dietary habits stayed surface-level as well. Such a complex topic would have required a thorough examination. It's the same for the case of the weeping nuns. It would have been a perfect way of highlighting how showing your emotions is still pathologized in today's society, especially when it comes to women's tears.
-It stayed funny, witty, but avoided more complex subjects, such as the elephant in the room: the fact that the Church is a patriarchal institution that hides violence and sexual violence against women, including nuns. Yes, it mentions religious homophobia in passing, but that's it. In explaining the convent's appeal, they failed to highlight the main contradiction. From the beginning, nuns have subverted the expectations placed on women by refusing to marry and have children and living among other women. That's why the church has always strived to control them and place them under male surveillance. I recommend reading Jo Ann McNamara's "Sisters in Arms: Catholic Nuns Through Two Millennia". She perfectly sums it up. Here, the two authors speak of the convent as a place of female solidarity, of community...But avoid mentioning the fact that joining one means ultimately that you have to submit to patriarchal institutions. It would have been interesting to discuss how nuns tried to navigate and push back against that control.
November 16, 2025
Have you ever read about a historical figure and used what they went through to help you get through difficult times? It is as if you read about their life at the perfect time in your life to help you get through your own struggles. Growing up, for me, it was reading about young Elizabeth I. For Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita, it was reading about 16th and 17th-century nuns, the ones that they were researching for their PhDs. What lessons did Garriga and Urbita find when they were researching two centuries and the nuns who lived during this period? They share the lessons that they learned from the past in their book, “Convent Wisdom: How Sixteenth-Century Nuns Could Save Your Twenty-First Century Life.”
I would like to thank Avid Reader Press/ Simon & Schuster and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. I am a novice when it comes to nun research, especially when it comes to those outside of England, so when I saw the title of this book, it was intriguing to me. I wanted to see how they could blend the past with the present day.
Garriga and Urbita met while working on their PhDs at Brown University, and this book follows their journeys as graduate students. They choose to pair their life experiences with those of nuns like Saint Teresa, Maria de San Jose, Catherine of Siena, Veronica Giuliani, and Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. We get to see these nuns deal with everything from extreme diets, feats of levitation, relationships with other nuns, and entrepreneurship to keep their convents and their own legacies going.
While I appreciate what they were attempting to do, I felt like the modern portions did take away from the stories of the nuns and were a tad distracting for me. I enjoyed learning about the different types of Catholic orders of nuns and fun facts about the nuns. I also enjoyed learning about the authors experiences as graduate students. When the separate elements were put together, it did not work as well as I had hoped in this book.
Overall, this was a decent book. A bit too modern for my taste when it comes to a historical nonfiction book, but that is just a personal preference. I do want to check out their podcast, Las hijas de Felipe, and I want to learn more about some of the nuns mentioned in this book. If you want a self-help book with advice from the past that has a modern twist, I recommend you read “Convent Wisdom: How Sixteenth-Century Nuns Could Save Your Twenty-First Century Life” by Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita.
I would like to thank Avid Reader Press/ Simon & Schuster and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. I am a novice when it comes to nun research, especially when it comes to those outside of England, so when I saw the title of this book, it was intriguing to me. I wanted to see how they could blend the past with the present day.
Garriga and Urbita met while working on their PhDs at Brown University, and this book follows their journeys as graduate students. They choose to pair their life experiences with those of nuns like Saint Teresa, Maria de San Jose, Catherine of Siena, Veronica Giuliani, and Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. We get to see these nuns deal with everything from extreme diets, feats of levitation, relationships with other nuns, and entrepreneurship to keep their convents and their own legacies going.
While I appreciate what they were attempting to do, I felt like the modern portions did take away from the stories of the nuns and were a tad distracting for me. I enjoyed learning about the different types of Catholic orders of nuns and fun facts about the nuns. I also enjoyed learning about the authors experiences as graduate students. When the separate elements were put together, it did not work as well as I had hoped in this book.
Overall, this was a decent book. A bit too modern for my taste when it comes to a historical nonfiction book, but that is just a personal preference. I do want to check out their podcast, Las hijas de Felipe, and I want to learn more about some of the nuns mentioned in this book. If you want a self-help book with advice from the past that has a modern twist, I recommend you read “Convent Wisdom: How Sixteenth-Century Nuns Could Save Your Twenty-First Century Life” by Ana Garriga and Carmen Urbita.
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