Atlas Girl: Finding Home in the Last Place I Thought to Look

Disillusioned and yearning for freedom, Emily Wierenga left home at age eighteen with no intention of ever returning. Broken down by organized religion, a childhood battle with anorexia, and her parents' rigidity, she set out to find God somewhere else--anywhere else. Her travels took her across Canada, Central America, the United States, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. She had no idea that her faith was waiting for her the whole time--in the place she least expected it.

Poignant and passionate, Atlas Girl is a very personal story of a universal yearning for home and the assurance that we are known, forgiven, and beloved. Readers will find in this memoir a true description of living faith as a two-way pursuit in a world fraught with distraction. Anyone who wrestles with the brokenness we find in the world will love this emotional journey into the arms of the God who heals all wounds.

About this author

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Emily T. Wierenga is an award-winning journalist, blogger, commissioned artist and columnist, as well as the author of five books including "Atlas Girl: Finding Home in the Last Place I Thought to Look" (Baker Books). She lives in Alberta, Canada with her husband and two sons. For more info, please visit www.emilywierenga.com. Find her on Twitter or Facebook.




My Take:

Honest and real. It has been a long time since I have read a memoir and Emily writes from a place of honesty. I didn't feel as if she was trying to point her finger at anyone in particular, however I can understand how she felt slighted by her father's job. I have some very close friends whose father was a pastor, and I am sure that some of their teenage behavior was to grab his attention from the constant bombardment of his parishioners.
Emily's honesty will draw those who have had the same struggles of difficult relationships, anorexia, so if you know someone who has these struggles, this is a perfect book to recommend.