Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith
by Anne Lamott
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Book Reviews of Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith
Book Review: Funny, witty, endearing, a book for the open-minded...
Summary: 5 Stars
I read this book in about one day, couldn't put it down--am not now nor have ever been either Alcoholic or Christian. In fact, I seldom read books on religion, faith, or spirituality and chose this particular text because I am an Annie Lamott fan, not a believer (in the more conventional sense). I do, very sincerely, respect other people's beliefs, however orthodox or UN-orthodox, and I greatly enjoyed reading the way someone so totally unlikely to write about a spiritual journey nonetheless found herself on one when she became sober.I was very moved, and actually envious of the comfort Lamott's faith has given her life. Not only has her spiritual awakening played a role in controlling her alcoholism, but it has lead her to a Christianity more resonant of the teachings of Christ than is true of many more "traditional" spiritual authors.
However, this book may in many ways appeal more to those who are TOLERANT than those who might find the word "faithful" as the first on their tongue to describe themselves. Even the deeply skeptical, or the totally without faith will enjoy this book if they are "tolerant", because it is about the faith of someone so unlike those one generally finds writing about spirituality. This fact also makes the book a great deal more interesting than one might expect of a text about a spiritual journey (for those who aren't wild about that sort of literature in general), because you get to see how Lamott sustains her faith despite a mind with little of the "obedient" nature one generally associates with religious fervor. This is particularly true for those of us who see the word "religious" and think more of Pat Robertson and the Religious Right than somebody we might like to talk with at dinner.
I read this book maybe a year ago, and was shocked to see it now on the best seller list, since it's really quite liberal, and is not the sort of book I would expect to appeal to a wide range of Americans, given the fact that so many people voted in primaries for the son of George Bush--a man for whom Annie Lamott has never had a good word (to put it MILDLY! ).
Anne Lamott writes for Salon.com, and is not your average American by a longshot. She's got an incisive mind, she is witty and articulate, but she is also wildly opinionated (in a way I find attractive), and so liberal that most right wing "Christians" (as opposed to Methodists or Episcopalians or Roman Catholics)will run in the other direction should they pick up this book by accident-- These are probably the people responsible for most of the one star reviews of this book.
For the rest of the reading public, however, this is a taste of Annie Lamott at ALMOST her best--(I do think that "Operating Instructions" is even better, but so few books in my life have been capable of making me laugh OUT LOUD in the New York City subway system during rush hour, that it may be the funniest book about motherhood on the planet--and motherhood is its own unique kind of spiritual journey.)
It is also true that this book is about religious faith--the sincerity of this woman's vision of God is very touching for those of us willing to admit more than one concept to the way in which God is defined. It's somewhat disturbing to read reviews on this page where the way Lamott talks about God is considered offensive--this book is definitely NOT for those into dogma, fundamentalism or thought control.
It is however, a delight for those of us who have not entirely lost the idealism of a generation much maligned by the numbers of its members who have become so conservative with age that they view their younger selves as the enemy--if that's you, avoid this book like the plague, because there's lots of things here that will offend you. And for those who find reading about one person's spiritual life interesting--a fairly self-destructive person whose faith has enabled her to cope without flipping her out into a person who believes her way is the only way--the book is an incredibly enjoyable, irreverant and sincere journey documenting her less than well-traveled path.
Book Review: A gifted author, but a flawed book
Summary: 3 Stars
I would very much like to write the kind of glowing review of "Traveling Mercies" that some others here have written. Anne Lamott is a very gifted writer with an eye for detail, a penchant for turning a phrase, and a sass that permeates everything she sees. She also writes about matters of faith, a faith I share (although from a different tradition) and that desperately needs more airtime in our ferociously secular culture.But I didn't like the book, and for reasons that I had a hard time pinning down. She struggles earnestly with life's messes, trying to find grace in the mundane or the irritating or the sorrowful; she is clearly a loving and devoted mom (although c'mon: wouldn't you have let your kid go hang-gliding?); and she would probably make a fiercely devoted and rather interesting and unpredictable friend. But I kept getting the sense in reading through the vignettes in this book that I was watching a home movie, one where the camera was trained almost exclusively on a somewhat confused middle-aged baby boomer as she stumbles into and then out of the various crises in her life. But her crises are nothing we haven't all experienced, and many would have been completely avoidable with a tad more foresight and common sense. So by the end (and, truth be told, long before), my reaction was: so what? Augustine or Bonhoffer this isn't.
About midway through the book, Lamott reads a review of a lecture of hers that described her as "narcissistic", and that, I think, hits the nail pretty much on the head. It's not that one cannot find inspiration here, or humor, or compassion; the main difficulty in Traveling Mercies is that the essays are so consistently self-absorbed as to miss many of the lessons she could have learned were she able to get beyond herself even a little bit. So we have her chalking up as a minor miracle her being able to play the `bon vivant' with a fellow air-traveler who happens to be of a religious and political persuasion at which she would normally have sneered; it never seems to occur to her, however, that were the shoe on the other foot (as in: "I actually talked to a feminist today, and even though she's spreading Satan's lies, she really wasn't all that bad!"), the essay would have read as intolerably patronizing. Elsewhere she talks about how lovingly her church accepted her unwed pregnancy, unlike what might have happened had she been in a church in the South (one of a few such gratuitous swipes at the South). But then again, perhaps not: I used to live in the South, and she might well have found there the support and acceptance she craved but mixed with the kick in the butt and the admonition to "sin no more" that she needed.
So this is a mixed bag overall. I think it's fair to say that pretty much everyone will find something to relate to in Lamott's recollections, and few are better than she is at the craft of writing. But if you're looking for wry stories of domestic crises, read Erma Bombeck instead; she's funnier. If you want a spiritual autobiography, try David Brainerd or Julian of Norwich; they're theologically meatier. If your quest is a tale of life's adversity overcome imperfectly, I'd recommend C.S. Lewis' A Grief Observed. But if you want somewhat witty autobiographical essays by a neurotic left-coaster whose theology seems to have come straight out of a blender, look no further than Traveling Mercies.
Book Review: An Honest Faith.
Summary: 5 Stars
Let's be completely honest for a moment. Life is hard. Sometimes it can be incredibly hard. Bad things happen to good people and this happens quite often. We live in a fallen and sinful world. Contrary to the "Gospel of Prosperity" (aka greed) that seems popular in many places (and promoted by preachers such as Joel Osteen), you can sacrifice everything and still have nothing to show for it in this world. In fact, as followers of Jesus we have been promised "trials and tribulations". Yet, as followers of Jesus we have hope, joy, love, and peace. We have everything that the world (and what we ourselves) seek. It's not easy to not give into the despair and disillusions around us. We can get caught up in existing instead of living just as easily as anyone else. But, we can truly live and live a life abundant. It is a struggle, but it can be done.
This struggle is a lifelong one and in TRAVELING MERCIES Anne Lamott examines how it has affected and changed her life. From her childhood growing up with free-spirited liberal parents, to her drinking problems, an abortion, the death of her best friend, and the birth of her son, Lamott explores how Jesus has intervened in her life and taught her about grace and helped her overcome her feelings of inadequacy and despair.
Lamott writes in a very simple, yet eloquent personal style. Her writing is filled with beautiful metaphors that make her writing quite vivid. She can capture a complex thought or emotion in one paragraph or sometimes even in a sentence. Her writing flows like water from the heavens on a rainy day in May.
I enjoyed TRAVELING MERCIES immensely. There were times that some of the passages moved me. I am already a Christian, so the book did not cause me to convert or change my faith. However, it did reinforce many of my beliefs and provided me encouragement in my own struggles. I also learned a great deal about writing from reading this book. I love the style that Lamott writes in; it reminds me of an older, female (and slightly paranoid) version of Donald Miller's writings and reminds me of my own writing style. Much of it is pose written through poetry.
Though TRAVELING MERICES is a book I highly recommend for anyone who likes to read, it isn't for everyone. There were statements that Lamott made (such as when she refers to God as "she") that struck a nerve within me. I also know that there are probably many things Lamott and myself would disagree with politically. This did not dissuade me from enjoying TRAVELING MERCIES. In reading the book I felt like I was traveling with an old friend, one whom I would disagree with sometimes, but a person who was a dear friend and companion. We don't exactly have to agree on everything to follow Jesus. He's the one who will judge, not us. Nevertheless, I know that there are readers who will read this book and will hate it because of some of Lamott's ideas and leanings. Should you read it, try not to do that. TRAVELING MERCIES is simply one woman's honest (and sometimes raw) account of her journey so far and how grace found her when she wasn't looking.
If you're a writer and read this book, you should also check out Anne Lamott's book on writing, BIRD BY BIRD. It's just as honest and raw as TRAVELING MERCIES, but it's all about writing.
Book Review: Survived the journey.
Summary: 3 Stars
I had really high expectations for Anne LaMott. And I was hoping that an introduction like this would drive me to read all of her work. I was expecting that this would hit me like the work of Donald Miller, but it really didn't. This had some very beautiful moments. But in short, a lot of times I found it getting on my nerves. But when I say that, I know that a lot of people have been inspired by her work. But also with something like this, you have 3 choices: Love it, hate it, or just survive the journey like I did and laugh in the right places.
I can say that I can respect a woman like Anne, because she's come a long way. That's obvious. She's honest in everything, added with a twist of humor through a lot of it. She writes openly about her struggles with the bottle, and basically her walk through faith. She speaks with pride of her son, Sam. In short, she doesn't complain about what she doesn't have, but about what she does have.
But then, yep, with me unfortunately there is a gripe or 2, and I couldn't help but letting it get on my nerves. Ok, one thing I strongly believe in is loving the sinner, hating the sin. Now I have to work with all kinds of people, and I get along with them for the most part. But unfortunately I know people out there might make the kind of remark that says, "Homosexuals are some of my best friends." HMMM. Seems like Anne LaMott is one to say that too. And she's proud of it as well! When I hear people make a statement like that, especially Christians make statements like that I sincerely have a couple of questions for them. First of all, who cares? Ok? Just because a homosexual happens to be YOUR best friend, that doesn't change what The Bible says about it, ok? And second of all, what're you really trying to do when you say that? Trying to make a point, or a statement? When people come out and make a remark like that, it looks as if you say that out of favor. Now, if you're trying to impress people, ok. But come on! I'm friends with black people. I'm white, and I actually have a few friends that are black, are you impressed? Didn't think so. Now, I've had my say, now it is time for me to clear something up. I'm not blind to the fact that we all have our obvious differences, but I've never bought into the con that homosexuals are "born that way". So, while I choose not to hate, I also choose to be somewhat intolerant. Another thing that DIDN'T fail to peeve me off was when Anne referred to God, she said, "He or She". Now, if people consider me a Bible thumper for saying this, so be it. But my Bible speaks of a Heavenly Father, not either or. When Jesus prayed the Lord's prayer, He specifically said, "Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name." Either you believe that, or you don't. You may consider this petty, but I see it as a big deal, and I take my God seriously.
So, I dove head first into this, really hoping to LOVE this, page by page. But I survived the journey, just barely. I wish I could say that I'm searching the libraries to check out the rest of her stuff, but that won't be the case. The sincerity I can appreciate, but I don't agree with it all either. I will continue to ponder on the thoughts of this, and pray for the likes of the Anne LaMott's out there.
Book Review: And the cat came back...
Summary: 3 Stars
This book is one of those that gives me fits when I ask for it in a bookstore. The cashier says, "what section would it be in?" and I answer "well, nonfiction maybe... um, literature. Personal essay, is that a section? It could be under religion or spirituality... or autobiography?" The cashier just looks at me and tries not to laugh. Lamott writes about herself and all around her. The first third of the book, my favorite part, is a journey of faith from California hippie agnosticism/mysticism to strict atheism to christianity. She writes about her son, about her friends, alive and dying, about her journies and discoveries. She is very real, very tough, very high-strung emotionally and quite honest, I think. She reminded me of Ani Difranco -- if Ani Difranco was a bit older, had a son, was christian, and lived in California.
This book could be a cool drink of water to many sick and tired of "mainstream" christianity. Anne Lamott isn't mainstream, but she is definitely christian. She writes, "My friends like to tell each other that I am not really a born-again Christian. They think of me more along the lines of that old Jonathan Miller routine, where he said, "I'm not really a Jew -- I'm Jew-ish." They think I am Christian-ish. But I'm not. I'm just a bad Christian. A bad born-again Christian. And certainly, like the apostle Peter, I am capable of denying it, of presenting myself as a sort of leftist liberation-theology enthusiast and maybe sort of a vaguely Jesusy bon vivant. But it's not true...I could go to a gathering of foot-wash Baptists and, except for my dreadlocks, fit right in. I would wash their feet; I would let them wash mine."
Anne Lamott describes herself as "slightly more anxious than the average hypochondriac", and maybe it's well-earned. There is a lot of disease and dying in this book -- often used to paint a wonderfully painfully important lesson about faith, God, and people. I can't quite decide if reading this while being close to a serious illness would be incredibly good or disastrously bad.
All, in all, her writing is pretty good. At the end of some chunks, I was a little lost about how we got to this conclusion, or even what conclusion we came to. But the book is quite enjoyable, and potentially powerful. It's a quick, easy read, with pieces to savour.
A sample:
"Nothing happened. No burning bush, no cereal flakes dropping from heaven, forming letters of instruction in the snow. It's just that God began to act like Sam-I-Am from Green Eggs and Ham. Everywhere I turned were helpful household hints on loving one's enemies, on turning the other cheek, and on how doing that makes you look in a whole new direction. There were admonitions about the self-destructiveness of not forgiving people, and reminders that his usually doesn't hurt other people, so much as it hurts you. In fact, not forgiving is like drinking rat poison and then waiting for the rat to die. Fortune cookies, postcards, bumper stickers, everything but skywriting -- yet I kept feeling that I could not, would not forgive her in a box, could not would not forgive her with a fox, not on a train, not in the rain."...