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A portrait of #marriage x2 that I found surprisingly honest and relatable.

#indeliblemoments
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Book 128

I listened to The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall. A character-driven, slow-unwinding story of two couples that are mirror images of each other. Beginning with their individual love stories, it moves into their shared career as pastors; it loses focus when it evolves into their children. It's worth the read, though, and I'm curious about other books by the author.

I forgot to post after finishing The Dearly Beloved.
Faith, marriage, enduring love. Two young-ish ministers share a congregation in NYC for decades. They each have spouses who are very different from each other but must form a sort of relationship based on their shared circumstances. A gentle read; comparisons to Crossing to Safety felt pretty spot-on. (Although this one didn‘t touch me as deeply as CtS did.)

Started this #audiobook during my afternoon walk, and spotted some lovely scenes. #audiowalk

Just shelved some of my favorite reads from this year... including some re-reads 📚

I reluctantly read this book assuming there‘d be a character created of stereotypical hardline evangelical beliefs. There wasn‘t, and the lives of James and Charles ministries and marriages was very interesting. I was confused when the emphasis focused on marriage and family life. Then I had to laugh at myself... This girl raised in Catholic Churches and schools has no reference point for the spouse and children of ministers.

#DoubleSpin

Seven bingos for #bookspinbingo in July. The tagged book was the one I just finished, and I loved it! 7 books were DNF out of 22. @TheAromaofBooks

The sky last night while I read 💙 this book was so much more than I thought it would be. It follows 4 disparate people who become entwined as husband/wife, neighbours, colleagues, friends and family. It‘s about faith, heartache, family, love, forgiveness, understanding, perseverance and miracles. It made me cry and it made me smile.

What time is it? My sister treated me with this awesome sign ( it also says wine 🍷) celebrating my birthday with more iced coffee and opening cards and some gifts ❤️thx to @StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego for the lovely card and bookmarks #poutinepenpals

I started this yesterday and it has me thinking of Normal People ( not as weird ) with its college aged characters from disparate backgrounds

Listening to this on my walks. So far I really like it.

Something about the writing style made it difficult for me to connect with this story. The tone just seemed too detached and impersonal for such intimate things as faith and grief. The whole book encompassed just 4 people with little connection to the outside world. Aside from a few mentions of the Vietnam War, I would not have been able to tell you when the story took place. It was not a bad book, but I do think something was missing.

Two couples, who share a pulpit. They have to learn to be as families and as a shared group to lead a community.

An even better view today. Really loving this book.

#vacation #idontwanttogobacktoreallife

My view today. 🌴☀️

Vacation books. Happy 2020! 🎉🎉🎉

What a great passage to read as we start 2020. With all the current events happening recently these words are especially timely: “Only empathy allows us to see clearly. Only compassion brings about lasting change.”

I can already tell this book is going to be great.

The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall is going on my best reads of 2019. It is a quiet, beautiful novel.
#bestbooksof2019 ##dearlybeloved

The writing style here didn‘t work for me. It reminded me a lot of a Wolitzer novel, so if you enjoy her books this may be a pick for you. The story is mainly about faith - religious faith and faith in family and friends. 3⭐️

Second book down for #readathon #deweyoct #deweysreadathon

I enjoyed this well written book about complicated people with complex lives and faiths. Charles and James are hired to pastor the same church in Ny in the 60s. They bring with them not only two very different wives but strengths that compliment one another. As their lives face turmoil you see them question their calling and faiths and they learn to face trials together as a team.

Book 2 for #readathon.. its a lovely night on the patio.

Achingly lovely writing. YMMV depending on how you feel about religion but I found this reminiscent of Marilynne Robinson‘s writing. It is a gentle exploration of marriage and faith spanning several decades. It is a “quiet” novel so those looking for something plot heavy will be disappointed but I thought this was just bursting with humanity. 4.5 ⭐️.

May I blow off work for the rest of the day? #currentread

Pretending its Fall and making pumpkin bread - because I need for Fall to hurry up and get here and cool things off in the south.

Listening to All The Books podcast. The tagged book was discussed and seems to be gaining a lot of momentum lately. Lots of very positive reviews. I can‘t wait to read it!

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-the-books/id993284374?i=1000447321219

I really enjoyed reading this story and found this easy to read. I wanted to savor this wonderful writing and this story and was just a little bit sad when it was over.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for and Advanced Reader's Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

For my full review visit: http://obsessedbookaholic.com/2019/08/06/the-dearly-beloved/

Gorgeous writing but it missed the mark for me. Not enough action in the plot and repetitive thoughts about belief in God. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ #Netgalley

Full review on Goodreads