A Couple of Beautiful Books

Sometimes, books touch our soul in a way that few things can. One of the great gifts my parents gave me was to instil a love of reading, and books have always filled the homes I have lived in.

I love bookshops, browsing and picking them up. I love to read the back sleeve if a book looks interesting, and I like to alternate between fiction and non-fiction.

In the past couple of months, two works of fiction have moved me very deeply. One is definitely more overtly Christian in its themes, and even in some of its references, but the other spoke powerfully about universal themes like loneliness, friendship and grief.

Without throwing in spoilers and, maybe, to whet your appetite, ‘Theo of Golden,’ by Allen Levi, is about an elderly, mysterious Portuguese man who arrives in a small southern city in Georgia in the United States called, ‘Golden.’

He settles into an apartment on the main street and spends some of his time at a local coffeehouse. On the walls are 92 portraits of local townspeople drawn by a local artist who is very gifted. Theo begins purchasing the portraits and seeks to track down the subjects to gift the artwork back to its ‘rightful owner.’ He writes a series of simple, but beautiful, letters to these subjects and meets with them. Each of these interactions sparks a unique story, builds an unexpected friendship and changes a life through creative generosity.

The story highlights how simple acts of attention and care can transform a community. We discover the power of being truly seen where every exchange allows lonely or overlooked people to feel truly valued and seen. It celebrates creativity, music and the beauty found in ordinary life. For every act to have value, we are told at one point in the book, it has to have love in it.

The way these stories unfold and interconnect is unique and beautiful and made me laugh and cry at various points, and I’ve been interested to hear how the book has touched so many people who have read it. It’s something of a literary phenomenon in that it was originally self published, it had no marketing campaign and, yet, word of mouth meant that it was eventually picked up by a major publishing house and reached the dizzy heights of number one on the New York bestsellers list.

The second book, ‘Remarkably Bright Creatures’ is the bestselling novel by Shelby Van Pelt and follows Tova Sullivan, an elderly widow who works the night shift cleaning an aquarium. She forms an unlikely, but profound, friendship with Marcellus, a grumpy, highly intelligent, giant Pacific octopus who lives at the aquarium.

She befriends a wayward young drifter called Cameron, who arrives in town searching for some unresolved parts of his own history. Marcellus, the octopus, uses his clever observations to try to help connect these two characters who both end up working at the aquarium, and help them to solve a mystery that is central to the whole story.

The story explores grief and the power of friendship and the importance of believing in people when others seem to dismiss them. It speaks beautifully of the power of generosity, paying attention and the capacity of friendship and love to bring hope and healing into situations of brokenness. Sometimes, it is the most unlikely creatures and people who channel this in unexpected ways. I’m told it has now been made into a drama on Netflix, and it will be interesting to see if the words that touched me so deeply will translate into a television adaptation.

I’ve recently had a few messages from someone who has started reading the Bible for the first time. He is using some Bible reading apps on his phone, and has joined a Bible study group to help him on his spiritual quest, and he is loving what he is discovering.

Just like these powerful books I have described, he is discovering that there are so many themes and ideas connected with his daily life that are explored in the teaching of Jesus. He is discovering wisdom that he never knew existed and how relevant and applicable it is to his life. It seems to cover everything from his relationships to his work and interactions with others. It’s affecting how he views others and has prompted a desire to pray and serve and find out more.

Just like whetting my appetite for books, I have my parents to thank for encouraging me to read the Bible. I remember being read Bible stories as a child, but it wasn’t until my teenage years that I started to read it for myself. I was given some Bible reading notes to help me by a teacher who was interested in helping students to discover the Bible for themselves, and it has been something I have treasured and valued ever since.

I’m so grateful to our Sunday school teachers and youth leaders and Messy Church leaders who continue to nurture that opportunity in the lives of our children.

If you have children, grandchildren or neighbours of primary school age, why not bring them along to Messy Church this Friday afternoon between 3.30 and 5pm. These quarterly gatherings include Bible teaching, crafts, games and food, and there’s a weekly opportunity to learn more at Sunday school. This Sunday, our Sunday school children are looking forward to hearing about the work of the Samaritan’s Purse organisation at church, and the opportunity to fill shoeboxes for children around the world through Operation Christmas Child.

Look forward to speaking again soon.

Much love to everyone,

Jono.

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