In her notes on her debut novel, Lilli de Jong, Janet Benton writes, “The difficult work of mothers has long been drastically under-recognized. I wanted to tell a story in which women’s strength was crucial to the world’s surviving and thriving—as it truly is and always has been.” How could I not write about review about a book that is meant to celebrate all our hard work? How can we not cheer along with Benton …

1 CHRONICLES 28:20 David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished.   Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, a novel of a boy and his father’s search for habitable earth in a cold and dying world, was one of …

There are many scientific reasons why adolescence is the worst time in your life, second only to menopause (and maybe even nosing ahead). At least you’re not spending menopause trapped in a confined space with other menopausal people. At least you can take it out on your spouse, kids, and co-workers. At least you’ve got a glass of cabernet at the end of the day to stave off the malaise. Adolescence in the 90s was …