Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace review

Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace by Anne Lamott
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m becoming an Anne Lamott fangirl. She’s one of the authors I feel is writing directly to me. I think she’s the SARK of my middle age.

I asked for this book for Christmas and was thrilled to receive it. Thanks to my Nook it’s been a while since I’ve had a real hardcover book. “Small Victories” was the perfect first book for me to read in 2015.

Like her other works, this book is filled with essays and personal reflections on spirituality, religion and grace. The book is divided into themes: Companions, Families, Airborne and Ground. Some of the essays were reprinted from other books but all are filled with the same wit, warmth and grace that I have come to love and expect. She makes me want to be a more giving and less judgmental human being.

So why not five stars? Two reasons: first, some of the essays were reprints from previous works. Second…ok I get it. She hates GWB and everything that happened during his terms. She also despises Republicans. That hate and disdain really stands out in a book that’s filled with warm moments. It also means she’d never have coffee with me, as I voted for GWB on his first go-round and will vote for an (R) if I believe they are the best candidate. That makes me sad.

In the future, I’d like to read about Anne’s friendships and relationships with people who are still alive. Let’s just say the mortality rate of someone who is Friends With Anne is pretty damn high.

I’ll leave you with my favorite quote from the book: “We turn toward love like sunflowers, and then the human parts kick in.”

This was the first book I read in 2015. View all my reviews on Goodreads!