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Being Elisabeth Elliot: Elisabeth’s Later Years
Being Elisabeth Elliot: Elisabeth’s Later Years
By Ellen Vaughn
Because Elisabeth Elliot was among many things a writer at heart, she left behind a lot of correspondence and journals along with the many articles and books she authored. Her biographer, Ellen Vaughn, had a treasure trove of resources available to her as she documented the life of Elisabeth Elliot. This book follows up on the earlier years of Elliot’s life which Vaughn also wrote about in Becoming Elisabeth Elliot. In this book the reader not only learns the rest of Elliot’s story, but also takes a deep dive into the challenges of being a biographer as experienced by both Elliot and Vaughn. In that role, as in all of her writings for a Christian audience, Elliot faced pressures from her readers, her editors, and her publishers to end each book with a happy ending in which someone came to salvation in Jesus. Her struggle as a missionary and then as a writer is that not every situation will end in such a way. She felt an imperative to share the truth even if it went against the wishes of her readers.
Elisabeth had a number of crossroad moments because she desired so passionately to make choices that aligned with the will of God and at the same time she wanted to be loved and cared for by a man, a husband. She wanted to “matter to someone.” Although she didn’t see herself as a very social person, she actually had a number of friends. The selection of male friends in her circle was limited—by age, availability, and suitability. Yet she continued to make decisions as she kept her eyes open for the man who could make her feel loved. Meanwhile, she traveled a lot as a speaker, continued to write, moved a few times, raised her daughter, took in boarders, and even considered returning to Ecuador as a missionary.
If you don’t know about her two marriages after she returned to the U.S., I won’t include spoilers except to say that she experienced the “best of times and the worst of times.” There is not a lot of documentation about her third marriage because that husband burned her journals from those years. Perhaps it is just as well. Elisabeth gradually lost her “voice” to Alzheimer’s passing away in 2015, but her message continues to impact new generations via her writing, recordings of her speeches, and through the Elisabeth Elliot Foundation.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Biography, Nonfiction, Christian
Notes: Authorized Biography
Publication: 2023—B&H Publishing
Memorable Lines:
Few loved the Bible more than Elisabeth Elliot. But she was appalled when Christians used it as a weapon to clobber or distance themselves from people who were different from them. Or to distance themselves from suffering, mysteries, and difficult questions.
“My observations, it turned out, were ‘controversial,’ not because I had taken sides but because I had not taken sides.”… Again, as so many times in the past, she felt squelched by religious and commercial institutions that wanted her voice, but only if she parroted the party line.
Here in the core of her hideous loss, Elisabeth looked back again to the fundamental losses of her life. It was not hard—they were always, it seems, present in her mind, part of that which shaped her experience and her understanding of the mystery of faith in an inscrutable God.
Who was she? I would say she was a woman who lived imperfectly, as we all do, loved God and sought to serve Him with everything she had.
Rebecca–fascinating classic with dark vibes
Rebecca
by Daphne du Maurier
First published in 1938, Rebecca has been republished multiple times and continues to gain new audiences. I read it as a young adult and remember being fascinated by it, but could no longer remember the details. When our book club decided to read it, I was excited to revisit this dark classic, and I was not disappointed.
The author’s technique is to begin the book with the situation of the characters at the end of the story. Then she deftly switches to current actions as she describes how the protagonist, who is never named, comes to meet Maxim de Winter, the owner of the magnificent Manderley estate. She is a shy young lady with less nobility in her background than Maxim. This suspenseful story is told from her point of view.
Manderley is almost a character in this book, not just a backdrop. The other important character is Rebecca, the dead wife of Maxim. Her presence is palpable to the new Mrs. de Winter as her touches are evident throughout the house in decor and in the general management of the household. Mrs. Danvers, Rebecca’s former maid and the current household manager, revered her first mistress who could do no wrong in her eyes. She is a leader among the servants in making the new Mrs. de Winter feel like an unworthy interloper.
Much mystery surrounds Manderley as the newlywed couple try to settle in. They have to endure proper welcoming visits from the locals who encourage them to host a costume party as Rebecca used to do. As the story progresses, the reader can feel the evil and sadness that has taken root in Manderley, but it is not obvious why.
Rebecca is certainly worth a reread. It has a complex plot with characters with hidden motivations. Secrets are gradually revealed as tension mounts. The climax is a gripping surprise. As an unusual twist for me, I found myself returning to the first two chapters to study how the author set the reader up for the rest of the book. Impressive craftsmanship!
Rating: 5/5
Category: Classic novel, Gothic, Suspense, Mystery
Notes: Goodreads refers to 864 editions!
Publication: 1938—Doubleday
Memorable Lines:
Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.
Describing Maxim’s sister Beatrice: She belonged to another breed of men and women, another race than I…If it had been Beatrice who had done this thing instead of me, she would have put on her other dress and gone down again to welcome her guests. She would have stood by Giles’s side, and shaken hands with people, a smile on her face. I could not do that. I had not the pride, I had not the guts. I was badly bred.
I wondered how many people there were in the world who suffered, and continued to suffer, because they could not break out from their own web of shyness and reserve, and to their blindness and folly built up a great distorted wall in front of them that hid the truth.This was what I had done. I had built up false pictures in my mind and sat before them. I had never had the courage to demand the truth.
If You Give a Man a Cookie–spousal humor in parody format
If You Give a Man a Cookie
Written by Laura Joffe Numeroff
Illustrated by Brian Ajhar
For as long as I can remember, our family byword for “one thing leading to another” has been “if you give a mouse…” We don’t even have to finish the title; we all know what it means. I’m sure a lot of my readers can identify with that as you grew up with If You Give a Mouse a Cookie as a storytime favorite. Or maybe you were one of the many adults who shared this book with children.
Laura Joffe Numeroff has since produced many variations on this children’s book, but now she has written one for adults: If You Give a Man a Cookie. In this humorous parody, a woman offers up a cookie to her husband and, to nobody’s surprise who has read the original, he asks for milk to go with it. The book progresses in this delightful fashion with lots of helpless husband scenarios that may seem familiar to patient spouses.
Whereas Felicia Bond is responsible for the sweet, funny, and appealing artwork in Numeroff’s children’s books, the illustrator of If You Give a Man a Cookie is Brian Ajhar. His style is very different with sharper lines in a more comic book manner, with more appeal to its adult target audience. Be sure to note the dog who appears on almost every page adding to both the story and the humor.
This book would make a fun, less serious gift for the woman who has it all, including a man with 24/7 needs. I think most men would even find the humor in it. Also, consider it for those contemplating marriage; they might have second thoughts!
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Andrews McMeel Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Entertainment, Humor
Publication: October 10, 2017—Andrews McMeel Publishing
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