Talking Books with Jennie Nelson
A bookish buddy interview
Welcome back friends,
Today I’m excited to introduce a periodic series of interviews I’ll be having with like-minded bookish buddies!
There are so many things I could say about the benefit of book discussions, not the least of which is coming away with new recommendations. But I think the best thing about discussing literature is the way it deepens fellowship.
The famed saying “eyes are a window to the soul” comes to mind, because talking books helps us see stories through another’s eyes. Someone else’s lived experience draws out different themes and ideas from a book than my own. For example, I’ve had books I enjoyed be scorned by another. Learning why brought interesting epiphanies, not just about the story, but about the person.
Just as books themselves broaden my understanding of the world, so do others’ responses to those books.
To begin the series, I’ve invited my dear friend Jennie Nelson to be my first guest. One, because she is an avid reader who always has intelligent insights, but also because she’s been a great support to me on my writing journey, and I doubt I’d have even embarked on this Substack venture without her encouragement!
Jennie is a wife and homeschool mom of three sons. She is also the host of The Learning Path Podcast, a lovely place to glean pragmatic tips and encouragement for homeschooling. Additionally, she mentors women through Sally Clarkson’s Mom Heart ministry, and has an administrative role at her church.
Jennie’s son, Jack, is a good friend of two of my sons and the three of them are competitive climbers on the same team. This turns out to be a great benefit to our friendship as well. We get extra time together doing all the climbing things.
SO. MANY. CLIMBING. THINGS.
And so, with our introduction concluded, let’s dive in. Jennie has a plethora of book recommendations and insights into fiction and faith formation. I know you’ll be blessed!
~Let’s start at the beginning! Have you always been a reader? What were some of your favorite childhood books?
Yes! I’ve been a reader for as long as I can remember. My dad always had some kind of reading material in his hand (usually the newspaper or a magazine about cars or surfing) even while he was watching sports on TV. My mom was often studying her Bible and recommending books to me. We went to the library regularly and checked out piles and piles of books.
My very favorite childhood books are the Chronicles of Narnia- I think because I can remember my dad reading those to me and I don’t think he read to me very often. Sweet memories. I also loved Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, but really, I would read anything fiction I could get my hands on.
I read a lot of series- probably because I was such a fast reader that it was nice to live in those worlds for longer. The John White fantasy books were fun (and not very well-known) and my older kids enjoyed those as well.
~You grew up in a Christian home, but do you think reading was instrumental in your faith formation?
I think reading certainly helped in my faith formation. I was scared silly by This Present Darkness and other books about spiritual warfare, but it also helped me to read my Bible and consider what was accurate. They forced me into the Bible to find out for myself.
I think my view of family was influenced by reading a lot of “light” Christian fiction that upheld the views of family and faith. I enjoyed the warm fuzzy feelings from those books.
On the flip side, I think some of the storylines and tidy characters felt fake and unrealistic to the hardships of real life and faith. It wasn’t until I reached junior and senior high school and was reading classic literature and having in-depth conversations about the meanings of the books and what the authors were trying to convey, that I felt a sense of actually relating to the characters and their lives.
I also learned a lot about the hardship of life through books which I think helped me to lean on the Lord more and also to not be surprised when those types of storylines entered my own life story.
~As you grew into adulthood, how did your reading life grow and mature? Did your genres and interests expand or change?
My reading changed immensely as I entered adulthood. I started to ask for others’ suggestions and recommendations; I was reading for my various jobs, as well as growth-type books for my faith. Looking back to those early years of marriage and independent life, I think I relied on Christian books to inform my faith sometimes more than I relied on my Bible. I was also conscious of challenging myself in my reading, sometimes choosing books that I hardly understood the vocabulary, but tackled because I wanted to grow.
I did go through a phase where I cut down my fiction reading because it didn’t seem to be “helping” me to mature in my faith in any way. I thought only the expressly Christian books could do that. I learned relatively quickly that I was entirely misguided and now I consider fiction to inform my faith more often than non-fiction!
Another way my reading has changed is that I am just as happy reading a young adult fiction book as a classic literature book. There are so many books written for young people that are also excellent for adults! Andrew Peterson’s Wingfeather Saga, SD Smith’s The Green Ember series, Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt are a few that I loved.
~Are there any fiction books that particularly impacted your life? I mean this question to be broad. Perhaps a book that expanded your worldview, deepened your compassion, invoked empathy, or specifically grew your faith and/or knowledge of God? Not to compartmentalize any of those…I think anytime we experience soul growth, our life with God also deepens.
This is a hard question. I fall hard in love with books and am so sad to leave the world I inhabit when they are finished. I think the fiction works of Wendell Berry have given me a wider view of community and place that I didn’t sense as being important before. They showed me what it looks like to love people faithfully even though they are annoying or hurtful or mentally ill. In some ways, these books are a picture of what Jesus’ small, local ministry could have looked like, and I can put myself there much more easily than I can picture myself in Biblical times.
The Dearly Beloved is a recent novel that had an impact on me. It is the most honest portrayal of real faith in a fiction book that I have ever encountered. It shows how faith is not a static piece of people’s lives or marriages. How as people mature and grow, their faith journey can take wide detours. It shows what it might look like to love someone who has no faith at all. Sigh. So good.
YES! You recommended The Dearly Beloved to me. I thought about that book for weeks!
~I happen to know you are a voracious reader. In fact, I think you consume more books a year than anyone else I know! But you also hold all the roles I mentioned in the introduction. Your life is rich and full! Yet, you prioritize and successfully maintain a reading life. How do you build reading into your regular rhythm amid an already busy schedule?
My reading definitely goes in fits and starts these days as I juggle all the things you mentioned, but I always always always read before I go to sleep. Sometimes that’s in the bath for an hour, and sometimes it’s one paragraph before my eyes drop shut from exhaustion, but if I go even a couple days without reading before bed, I start to feel restless and uncomfortable in myself. I also try to always have a book next to me. If my kids start playing together, I will try to grab a book and read a few pages.
Sometimes I listen to audiobooks before bed or while cooking and certainly when I’m alone in the car. There is also always a read-aloud going with my 8-year-old as well as an audiobook together. And for him, I choose books that I will enjoy myself too. There are too many excellent books out there to waste my time and his on mediocre ones!
~Ah, the benefits of homeschooling! In regard to that, you host The Learning Path Podcast, which comes along side homeschooling parents with tips and encouragement, and I know reading is the foundation of learning in your home. What are a few fiction titles that have been particularly rich for your family?
There are so many! Some favorites include the Swallows and Amazon Series, which are somewhat realistic, exciting adventures that lead naturally to imaginary play. Also, The Heartwood Hotel Series—sweet and fun! Other series we’ve enjoyed are The Growly Books and The Green Ember Series, as mentioned previously.
For classics there are Freckles and Little Men. Nonfiction favorites include Boys in the Boat and the YWAM Biographies (especially the one on Thomas Edison).
We’ve also enjoyed Snow Treasure, The Burgess Seashore Book, and Echo (best listened to since there is a musical storyline).
~Do you track and catalog your reading? If so, how?
Yes! I use Goodreads to keep track of what I’ve read. It has helpful “bookshelves” that I track a variety of things- what I’ve read with the kids, what was recommended by Sarah Clarkson’s Book Girl book, what I recommended for teen boys, etc. It helps me to send people links to a list that is already made rather than creating a list in my head from scratch every time. It also helps me to go back and look at how many stars I gave a book if I can’t remember if I liked it or not.
~Do you have a favorite book (or books) that you regularly recommend to others?
YES! All the Light We Cannot See is one of my most favorite books of all time. It is rich in language and the WWII plotlines kept me engaged until the last page. In This House of Brede is another that I recommended that not too many people have read. That one was such a picture of living faithfully with people that are not always easy to love. I was engaged in the plot but reading too fast in the descriptive parts and so when I finished, I immediately started it over! That is very rare for me.
Elizabeth Goudge is one of my favorite authors and I have loved almost every book I have read of hers. Encouraging stories of life and family with plots that kept me reading.
~What is your current read or your most influential read from this year?
Oh me Oh my, The Women by Kristin Hannah rocked my world. I had no idea that there were women serving in Vietnam or the treatment they received both there and afterwards. The writing is exquisite and the audio was excellent! The Women forced me to examine how often I prejudge people’s actions or mental health with having no real idea of what they have been through. God calls us to love one another and that includes traumatically injured people.
I also loved the setting because much of the book was set in and around my hometown of San Diego and it was so fun to know exactly where the character was as she went about her life. [Trigger warnings of lots of violence, and some sexual content.]
I’m just finishing listening to The Women, and I agree. Powerful story, and I’ve learned a lot. SO good. (But yes, the content you mentioned plus language!).
~Any final thoughts or tips for us?
I think everyone can find a type of book that would appeal to them. If you want to be a reader, don’t give up! Try different genres, find someone you respect that you can get recommendations from, challenge yourself to read one hour or one chapter or one page most days. Your life will be enriched in ways you won’t see coming.
~Thank you for being my guest, Jennie! As always, you are a delight!
I hope you found today’s interview as enjoyable as I did. You can find Jennie @ The Learning Path, as well as on Instagram and Goodreads.
Blessings in books,
Tiffany