Michael, thank you so much for this incredibly thoughtful review. “Gut-wrenchingly good” may be one of my favourite descriptions of the book yet -- but even more than that, I’m so grateful for how many of its nuances you picked up on.
I especially loved your observation that the book asks more questions than it answers. That was very much what I hoped it would do: resist easy explanations for why people become who they become, or what healing is supposed to look like.
And I really appreciated your comments about faith. You’ve identified something I wrestled with while writing the book. My deconstruction from the particular form of Christianity I grew up in could probably have filled another book entirely, and there was much more I wished I could explore about what came after the loss of that framework. It’s a subject I may return to in future writing.
Thank you for reading the book with such care and for taking the time to engage with it so deeply. This review genuinely meant a lot to me.
I especially loved your observation that the book asks more questions than it answers. That was very much what I hoped it would do: resist easy explanations for why people become who they become, or what healing is supposed to look like.
And I really appreciated your comments about faith. You’ve identified something I wrestled with while writing the book. My deconstruction from the particular form of Christianity I grew up in could probably have filled another book entirely, and there was much more I wished I could explore about what came after the loss of that framework. It’s a subject I may return to in future writing.
Thank you for reading the book with such care and for taking the time to engage with it so deeply. This review genuinely meant a lot to me.