I'm really into books like these at the moment: memoirs and autobiographies. I'm drawn to stories that tell of peoples' very individual journeys and the lessons learned and the understandings gained. Funnily enough, I felt "Traveling Mercies" was an apt title: it's something my parents would often say when someone was headed off on a long journey. On the recommendation of a good friend, I picked up Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott. This is the second book that I have read by this author--the first was Operating Instructions: a Journal of My Son's First Year of Life, which, as a brand new mother myself, I really appreciated.
Traveling Mercies was a good read. It was not full or intrigue or any eye-opening insights but it was what it said it was: some of Ms. Lamott's thoughts on faith, take it or leave it. Funny that I should pick up and enjoy the book since Lamott's faith is so totally different than mine but I think that's what I liked about: it. She tells of how she figured out her faith, came to terms with things that didn't always makes sense, and grew to come to a place of peace. The end of the book was kind of anti-climactic and I would say that it took me a long time to read the book because it really was a series of thoughts strung together from different moments and events in Ms. Lamott's life--kind of like a blog in book form. There wasn't necessarily a good flow . . . but that's how thoughts (and blogs) work sometimes.
Now I'm reading The Color of Water by James McBride, another memoir/biography, which I bought at a thrift store for a couple of cents years ago but never got around to reading and I am really enjoying it. It's so engaging and I'm moving quickly through it.
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