The Spring 2025 Book Review for People Who Love Jesus and Literature

Let's get cozy and review some books, shall we?

Writing with Jesus is a reader-supported publication where laughter is found, tears are shed, and faith is made steadfast. Writings on wrestling with God, motherhood, and some comedy to lighten the mood.

Hubby and baby girl on film

Hello from Florida! As the outside climate here in the Sunshine State quickly rises to the cremation temperatures of summer, I thought we could recap spring with another book review.

What to expect in this post:

• Reviews of books from this spring including The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer

• Baby Daisy’s recent board book favorite for bedtime that has nothing to do with spring and everything to do with New Jersey. Confused? You should be. I’ve never even been to New Jersey (except for the airport), so for my international readers who might not know anything about New Jersey here in the United States, I didn’t know how to describe it. So, I did the unthinkable. I asked Chat GPT. Here are some of the descriptions Chat GPT came up with when I had a conversation with it about defining New Jersey to a foreigner:

New Jersey: The Garden State (With Attitude)

New Jersey is like America’s spicy middle child — loud, proud, and constantly reminding you it’s not part of New York. It’s where you can go from the beach to a cornfield to a diner at 2 a.m.

It’s a place where:

• People are friendly… just in a “don’t waste my time” kind of way.

• The state bird might as well be the construction crane, and the state flower could be “freshly paved road.”

Despite being one of the smallest states, New Jersey packs in:

• Big personalities

• Bigger traffic

• And somehow, even more bagels

New Jersey doesn’t ask for your approval. It assumes it already has it. Fast-paced, densely packed, and fiercely opinionated, it’s the state equivalent of a double espresso with a Bluetooth headset and somewhere to be. In other words: absolutely unforgettable.

Now imagine all that in a children’s book. Stay tuned.

The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by author, former pastor, and teacher, John Mark Comer

Rating: 4.5/5

Okay, simply speaking, this book changed my life. If you haven’t read it yet, you need to. Like, maybe tomorrow. Are you stressed out? Burnt out even? Read this book. Are you an overachiever? Read this book. Do you feel that you can sometimes (or a lot of the time) have an unhealthy relationship with your phone, television, or screen time in general? Read this book. Are you struggling to find quiet time with the Lord every day amidst the busyness of career, motherhood/fatherhood, or school? Read this book. Are you struggling to find time to rest or slow down just in general? Read this book!

Comer breaks down the history of how the modern world evolved into its hurried and busy society, dives into the spiritual implications of these lifestyles, the potential demonic roots behind busyness and distraction that has infected our world with lukewarm Christianity, advocates for the divine importance of weekly sabbath, and gives a step-by-step guide on how you too can ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your day-to-day life in order that you might rest your weary and heavy-laden soul onto the One whose yoke is easy and burden is light.

I gave this book review a 4.5 out of 5 for probably the pettiest reason ever, that being that I didn’t like the way the format of his paragraphs was written. It often felt like reading a really long Instagram or Facebook post instead of a book. Me and my crotchety old soul like paragraphs, but in a world that will almost always pick up its phone to scroll before it will turn the pages of a book, I can see the appeal that Comer’s writing style might have to the greater public.