For the Love: A(n audio) Book Review

So all of my friends are going to stop talking to me soon because I say the name “Jen Hatmaker” too often in conversation lately.

For years I’ve told myself that I don’t have time to listen to audio books just for me or to listen to podcasts just for grown ups.

And for years that’s kind of been true.

But lately, as my Littles morph into Bigs, I find myself here and there standing in the kitchen alone.  Folding laundry in the bedroom by myself.  Baking cookies when no one else is around.

How did this happen?  I don’t know.  They tell me it will keep happening more and more.  To you moms of toddlers peeking in the bathroom every two and a half seconds, it will happen to you too – I promise.  (Wait – who am I kidding?  My ten year old still thinks it’s perfectly acceptable behavior to pop in for a chat when I am in the loo.)

Anyway.  The internets told me I had one audible point and that I could pick a book for free.  (Apparently I had signed up for a free month of audible.com, despite me having little to no recollection of said sign up ever occurring.)

Well.  Alright.

I clicked a button or two and Hatmaker’s For the Love popped up on my screen as an option and I didn’t really give it any deep thought besides “This is free.  People talk about her.  Beth likes her.  I like Beth.  The cover is red.  I say ‘for the love’ a lot.” And by then I had already clicked the link and the book was magically appearing on my portable burden device.

Oh my word.  I am obsessed with this book and her funny words and the cadence of her voice and her “thank you notes” to ludicrous things and I cannot remember a time when I laughed so frequently at an audio book yet felt so challenged and encouraged simultaneously.

I will say this – during the time period in which I was listening to this book, my laundry was pretty much caught up and my room was really tidy because I told myself that I had to accomplish things while I listened.

It was a fabulous motivation to stay in one space and clean stuff.

I find her words to be relatable and real and encouraging and convicting.  Usually all those things at the same time.  And, of course, funny.  I like my medicine with a dose of laughter, you guys.

She travels across many topics – parenting and community living and the value or lack thereof of short term missions trips and recipes and adoption and friendships with women and I don’t even know what else.

I like it all.

Even the parts I didn’t entirely agree with or didn’t find to resonate personally for me.

I still liked listening to her and thinking abut the words and sitting with them for a bit.

I’d actually like to own a real copy of this book so I could go back to her Pad Thai recipe and just because I love to underline ideas in books.  And turn the pages down.  I’m a page turner – are you?  (I have a detailed system for identifying quotes in books that I like.  Have I ever shared that system here?  It’s sort of super dorky.)

For the Love.

It’s a fabulous listen.  You should try it.  (And when you run out of your own laundry to fold, come on over.  I’ve got a heap and a pile of clothing to conquer.  At least several chapters worth.)