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A review by silver_valkyrie_reads
The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction by Justin Whitmel Earley
challenging
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
I loved the premise of this book of habits as living out your theology. I would consider it a must read, mostly for the early parts of the book that present this premise.
I was often braced for the author to cross a line into legalistic rules of habits you must have, but he stuck to presenting what HE does and why he chose certain habits to express and train his beliefs. Obviously, he thinks these habits are a good idea, but he does often suggest alternatives of how his wife or friends have chosen different variations on these habits.
Despite the variations, my biggest frustration with the book was actually how focused the author is on how he does things himself. I would have loved a full chapter on how his wife does or doesn't implement these same habits instead of just a few side comments. He does try to help the situation with an appendix with suggestions for different types of people (parents, artists/creatives, etc), so it's less a flaw in this specific book and more my usual problem that no one writes for full time homemakers without children.
While portions of this book might be suited to working through as a whole family, it does touch on some more difficult topics such as addiction, depression and miscarriage at times, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for younger readers to read on their own.
I was often braced for the author to cross a line into legalistic rules of habits you must have, but he stuck to presenting what HE does and why he chose certain habits to express and train his beliefs. Obviously, he thinks these habits are a good idea, but he does often suggest alternatives of how his wife or friends have chosen different variations on these habits.
Despite the variations, my biggest frustration with the book was actually how focused the author is on how he does things himself. I would have loved a full chapter on how his wife does or doesn't implement these same habits instead of just a few side comments. He does try to help the situation with an appendix with suggestions for different types of people (parents, artists/creatives, etc), so it's less a flaw in this specific book and more my usual problem that no one writes for full time homemakers without children.
While portions of this book might be suited to working through as a whole family, it does touch on some more difficult topics such as addiction, depression and miscarriage at times, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for younger readers to read on their own.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage