Atlas Girl

I had the privilege to be part of the Atlas Girl launch this month, and I was eager to read through Emily T. Wierenga's memoir.  I've read Emily's blog for a couple of years now, and I already knew that she was a beautiful writer.  That much is evident from page one of Atlas Girl.  The book begins with Emily's relationship with her parents, and it sounds familiar.  The strict pastor dad.  The rebellious older daughter.  But as her words transport you along the many places of her life, continually you are grounded in real places, real memories, and so you never forget that these are not characters in a story, but her actual family.  So when her journey takes its own unique course, when it departs from all the preconceived notions that you retained after watching Footloose too many times, you don't know what will happen next or how it will all turn out.  Emily's story is tied up in the family she created, as well, and she pulls no punches as she chronicles a love that holds her close, forgives her outbursts, and proves the 1 Corinthians passage true as a love that never fails.

But if I'm really honest, I'm also a little jealous of the life she leads.  She is married with little boys, like me, but she is a published author, an artist, a world traveler.  Just scanning the table of contents of this book reads like a tour of the world.  Emily pours her heart out in the pages of her book, and only as it reached the conclusion did I realize how hard-won all her accomplishments are.  Suddenly, I'm not feeling jealous, but inspired at all that has happened, all that she has overcome and struggled through.  I encourage you to purchase a copy of Atlas Girl: Finding Home in the Last Place I Thought to Look, or, if we are friends in real life, I will happily let you read my copy :)  Also, check out her website (www.emilywierenga.com) for her lovely essays about body image, motherhood, faith, and love.