When I first learned of Tim Challies’ 2024 Christian Reading Challenge, I thought I wouldn’t have time to read more than a few books in the coming year. I spend a lot of time studying the Bible to prepare messages I give at women’s conferences, SOLA: Femmes Scriptura training events, and episodes of Chrétienne. I had recently invested in an audiobook app called Everand, however, so I decided to dedicate time in the coming year to read and listen to more books.
The Advantages of Everand
I am one of the most frugal people I know. Almost all of my clothes come from thrift stores or friends. Virtually all the apps on my phone are free. And I refuse to maintain a subscription to Amazon Prime. But after hearing friends rave for months about the wonders of this audiobook application, I knew I had to give it a try.
Everand is a subscription-based service. Think of it as Netflix for books. It features a wide selection of audiobooks, eBooks, magazines, podcasts, and sheet music. You won’t find every book under the sun, but you’ll discover plenty of options to spark joy and curiosity.
Books Over Podcasts
For years, I’ve been an avid podcast listener. I tune in while running errands, doing chores, or cooking dinner. I also exercise five days a week, and I’ve always muted my workout video to listen to a podcast. Since discovering Everand, I’ve switched to listening to books far more often.
Podcasts still have a place in my life, but I’ve come to appreciate the careful reflection of a well-written book. After all, books undergo tremendous editing before they reach us in their final form. Podcasts, on the other hand, usually consist of informal, extemporaneous exchanges or monologues. And there’s nothing wrong with that, otherwise I wouldn’t cohost a podcast myself! But given my limited time, I’ve decided to tune into only my absolute favourite podcasts and commit the rest of my time to listening to audiobooks.
Books Over Social Media
Over the past year, I also found myself turning to books a great deal more than I had done in the past. I must confess that social media presents an ongoing temptation, and I find it all too easy to reach for my phone while waiting in a doctor’s office or relaxing at the end of a busy day. Tim Challies’ 2024 Christian Reading Challenge taught me to keep a pile of books next to my bed – and actually finish reading them! I also got into the habit of carrying a book in my purse to fill those moments of waiting with a good read. To date, I’ve read 23 books since January 1, far more than in any previous year.
The Benefit of Listening to Audiobooks
Once I decided to invest in Everand, I was determined to get my money’s worth. As someone who has always listened to podcasts at 2x speed, I easily managed to listen to most audiobooks at 3x speed. This allowed me to consume an enormous amount of rich content in a short timeframe. As of today, I have listened to 97 audiobooks since January 1, 2024! With paper and eBooks, that comes out to 120 books in total this year. Here are a few examples of my top reads by literary genre:
Theology/Christian Living
This genre represents over half of all the books I’ve read. Topics range from preaching, discipleship, and giving to parenting, marriage, and sexuality, to name a few. Some were Puritan classics such as Mortification of Sin by John Owen and The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan. Others were musts like Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis and Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton. Still others interested me due to their theological reflections in our current era, such as The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Truman and Secular Creed by Rebecca McLaughlin.
I highly recommend In Good Time by my friend Jen Pollock Michel, which offers a refreshing perspective on managing time, aligning our schedules with God’s purposes and embracing rhythms of grace over relentless productivity. And if you’re ready to take an honest and transformative look at your finances, Money, Possessions, and Eternity by Randy Alcorn challenges readers—sometimes uncomfortably—to embrace generous giving both within and beyond their means.
Non-Fiction
I love a good self-help book just as much as the next girl. Their wisdom wonderfully exemplifies God’s common grace. The first that I found especially insightful was Limitless: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life by Jim Kwik. I’d followed Kwik’s work on brain performance and memory improvement for a couple of years through his podcast Kwik Brain, and finally checked his book out at the library. Insights I found most helpful related to speedreading and memorization – two essential skills for a Bible teacher!
The second non-fiction book I especially enjoyed is Launch by Jeff Walker. A friend had recommended it to me as I prepared to launch my book Elles ont vu la fidélité de Dieu. Its advice offered me guidance for that season and for my next book launch or other big ministry endeavor.
Fiction
I once believed that I didn’t have time to read fiction. I thought that any spare time I gave to reading should focus on theology books. Over the past few years, however, I have learned that good fiction can cultivate empathy, illuminate truth through storytelling, reflect God’s creativity, and offer a deeper understanding of human experiences and the complexities of life from a biblical perspective.
That’s why, this year, I set out to read some of the classics of different cultures. As a native Spanish speaker, I would be remiss if I didn’t read Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote de la Mancha. Thoroughly unfamiliar with Russian literature, I gained my first exposure through Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. As a perpetual student of French language and culture, Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables and Albert Camus’ L’Étranger were a must. I came back to two dystopic novels I had read in high school, 1984 by George Orwell and Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Finally, I enjoyed two of my favourite classics of English literature, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin. What a delight to discover new friends and visit with old ones through each of these and more!
Memoir/Biography
I love memoirs. They give us glimpses into the lives of famous and lesser-known historical figures. Some of these were entire volumes of one person’s life, and others were collections of stories about various individuals who influenced history. The biography that surprised me the most was Augustine’s Confessions. I had heard so much about it over the years, and I had assumed it was lofty and inaccessible. To my great surprise, it was the exact opposite!
Jumping forward several centuries, I discovered much about the history of the church in Quebec by reading Henrietta Feller and the Grande Ligne Mission: A Memorial by Walter N. Wyeth. This early 19th-century Swiss missionary laboured with courage and tenacity to evangelize and disciple the lost across Quebec. She’s credited with founding what we know today as the Union Baptiste – the Québecois arm of the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec (CBOQ). What a legacy!
Another biography I highly recommend is Confessions of a French Sceptic by Guillaume Bignon, a well-known figure in French Reformed circles. The fact that his autobiography was published in English and made available in audio form speaks volumes about how compelling and relevant Bignon’s testimony is in increasingly secular North America.
Last to top my list was a recently released biography of Charles and Susie Spurgeon. Yours Till Heaven: The Untold Love Story of Charles and Susie Spurgeon by Ray Rhodes Jr. brought to life not merely the life of this famed and beloved 19th-century British preacher, but also the loving union that accompanied it.
Volume Over Depth
Some may question how much one can retain while listening to most books at 3x. I can see how slowly ruminating over each book might allow for greater retention. But my purpose was breadth, not depth. I liken the experience to committing to Professor Grant Horner’s Bible-Reading System, where you read 10 chapters of Scripture a day. The purpose isn’t to sound the depths of each chapter of the Bible but to gain greater exposure to God’s Word as a whole. Similarly, my goal in consuming large amounts of books in 2024 was to gain exposure to a large quantity of books of different literary genres. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and plan to continue this journey in 2025. Is anyone with me?
