A review by cassiealexandra
One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp

emotional hopeful inspiring slow-paced

3.5

This was my second time reading this book and I think I appreciated it more the first time. I was still touched by Voskamp’s story and her transformation through the practice of gratitude. I like the way she weaves suffering and beauty together and shares that giving thanks is often the key to joy, contentment, and fulfillment. But, I had a more difficult time with her writing style. There were some beautiful turns of phrase and passages of poetic prose, but sometimes the meaning felt convoluted and I struggled with her choice to leave out so many articles (dropping the word “the,” etc. often). Theologically I also felt that this toed a very fine line between God causing suffering and God being with us in our suffering. That line is very important to me. My mother-in-law gave me a copy of this book before she died years ago, and looking back, I can see why she personally loved it so much. Overall, this just didn’t hit me the same way it once did, but it was interesting to pick it up again and see some of my MIL’s footsteps in it.

— NOTES —
Genre: Christian nonfiction
Content: death of a loved one, depression, mild suicidal ideation, past self-harm

— MY RATING CONSIDERATIONS —
(all out of 5)

Levity/Humility: 4
Information: 3.5
Transformation: 3.5
My Gut Feeling: 3
Total Stars: 3.5