Religion can be simultaneously so unifying and divisive because it cuts to the very core of who we are. It is the framework for what we believe about life’s deepest questions: Why are we here? How should we live? What happens to us after we die? Whether or not you have settled on answers for these questions for yourself, it is immensely valuable to learn about the answers others are living by. Even if we have different answers, we all have the same questions. Here are some memoirs that might fit into Read Harder’s task 22: memoirs by someone from a religious tradition (or lack of religious tradition) that is not your own.
“We Have Always Been Here: A Queer Muslim Memoir” from Samira Habib details her struggle to reconcile her Muslim faith with her queer identity. Growing up in Pakistan, Habib’s family relocates to Canada to escape persecution. Habib finds herself unable to cope with the life that is expected of her, Habib sets out on a journey of self discovery.
“A Man Without a Country” by renowned atheist author Kurt Vonnegut discusses religion, art, politics, society, and so many other things. Vonnegut’s trademark wit, humor, and incisiveness shine through in this collection of essays and speeches.
In “Pure: Inside the Evangelical Movement That Shamed A Generation of Young Women and How I Broke Free,” Klein details her evangelical Christian upbringing and the war it waged on her body and sexuality as a woman. Steeped in biological misinformation and policing of the female body, this book details Christian and ex-Christian women’s experiences recovering from the internalized judgment, shame, anxiety, and fear that they were taught by the purity movement.
“The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” follows the medical journey of 3-month-old Lia Lee, the epilectic daughter of Hmong refugee parents. The culture clash between her doctors and her parents is never resolved, and Lee faces a tragic end. Her doctors adhere to typical western medical practice while her parents stand by their traditional Hmong religious beliefs, seeking spiritual cures such as animal sacrifice to cure their daughter’s condition, which they describe as qaug dab peg — the spirit catches you and you fall down. This book does not condemn their religious beliefs, but rather emphasizes the importance of practicing cross-cultural medicine.
“My Spiritual Journey: Personal Reflections, Teachings, and Talks” offers a glimpse into the life of Tenzin Gyatso, the fourteenth Dalai Lama. This three-part collection discusses his childhood, his life as a Buddhist monk, and his life as the Dalai Lama. In this memoir, Gyatso explores the universal human experience, and all of the suffering, hope, and compassion that goes along with it.
Tara Westover’s journey to a PhD from Cambridge is far from typical, as she recounts in her memoir, “Educated.” Westover’s fundamentalist Mormon parents were so distrustful of the government that she was left with no birth certificate, medical records, school records, or education outside of reading, Scripture, and survivalism. Subjected to abuse from her older brother, Westover attempts to escape through education. Against all odds, she achieves a good ACT score and begins her educational journey at Brigham Young University, which is only the beginning for her.
For more suggestions for this prompt, check out this list in our online catalog. To connect with your fellow Read Harder-ers, join our Read Harder Facebook page! Stay safe, stay home if you can, and happy reading!
