well read // Cold Tangerines

In Cold Tangerines, Shauna Niequist, shares a collection of short stories, centered around finding joy in the everyday. I enjoyed her candid approach to writing that made me feel like we were old friends curled up on her couch, as I listened to her catch me up on life. I also appreciated her vulnerability, where she shared thoughts I was honestly surprised to read about, but even more surprised to see how much I related to them.

But somehow, I still only felt “meh” about this book.

Maybe that’s because there was so much hype surrounding it, and by hype, I mean that every Christian girl I know on instagram was reading it this summer, even though it was published in 2007. I think that part is due to the fact that her new book, Bread and Wine was released last year, so everyone is backtracking and reading everything she’s written.

My friend Nina, who is a wonderful writer, and far more well read than I’ll ever be, shared some insight as to why Niequist is so popular now, which proved valuable in dissecting my feelings about her book. She informed me that Niequist’s style is called “creative non-fiction,” and in this case, it’s even more specific, because it’s “Christian creative non-fiction.” This gives her a distinct advantage as she is currently filling a popular niche where there is very little competition. So maybe it’s not her fault I was dissatisfied with the book. Maybe it’s mine because I should know by now that whenever there is a certain amount of hype surrounding anything, I let my expectations skyrocket, and I am inevitably let down. I mean, Frozen… come on, really? What was the deal with that movie????

So to Niequist’s credit, she accomplished what she initially set out to do, which was to write a collection of stories about joy. She made me feel something from her stories. Maybe I expected to feel a little too much, but what are you gonna do. It was her first book, and I think it left me intrigued enough to read what else she has out there and to see how her work has progressed.

Anyone else read Cold Tangerines and have similar feelings? Or did you absolutely love it? I’d be curious to hear both sides!