Why I Love Shauna Niequist

I can’t remember how I first heard of Shauna Niequist. I wish I knew who recommended her to me. I do know that the first book of hers I read was Bread and Wine, which mixes essays with recipes, and I absolutely fell in love.

Shauna’s writing is like great wafts of fresh cool air on a hot day. It’s water when I’m so thirsty. It’s a hand reached out and a voice calling me sister, pal. Her style is lyrical and accessible and lovely, and it soothes the soul.

I’ve read all her books except for Savor, which is a year of devotionals, and I have that one too--I’m just not so great at always remembering to read a daily devotional. Her books are collections of short essays loosely centered on a theme: Cold Tangerines is on finding joy in life; Bittersweet is about clinging to God and to hope in the hard times; Bread and Wine is about hospitality and community and peace, and about finding God and love at the table; Present Over Perfect is about how to be centered in your one and only life, exactly the way you are.

My favorites are probably the last two, although I love them all and recently just whipped through a reread of Cold Tangerines. I really do love the food in Bread and Wine, especially the blueberry crisp--it’s so good!--but also the way she writes with sensory details, making the experience come alive, and pulling my introverted self into the excitement of opening my home and table.

Present Over Perfect hit me at exactly the right time, as I was beginning to make some progress in letting go of the anxieties that had crippled me for so long. Shauna’s essays, especially in the second part of the book, were inspiring and kind and so full of grace. They helped me forgive myself and release the stranglehold for control I had on my entire life, and when I reread that book, as I am currently doing, my soul relaxes as I remember to do this again.

What I like most about her writing is its lyricism and sensory appeal, but I also like its accessibility. Reading Shauna is like listening to the smartest and kindest person you know speak at your church. It’s full of wisdom without being preachy; it’s personal without being a diary; it’s relatable but still written with style. As my writer self grows up, I want her to be like Shauna.

I read Shauna Niequist’s books when I need to let my soul rest in wisdom, thought, and grace. Her writing is challenging in love, and that’s incredibly appealing. I’m thankful for authors like Shauna, who show how to value who you are in God more than who the world tells you to be, and whose words hug your heart while you figure out ways to get there. Life is trial and error, and Shauna’s writing provides both inspiration and love to help you find your way.