Book picks similar to
Only the Devil Tells the Truth by Jake Parent


academic
eventually
politics-and-society
spiritual

Tennessee Tails: Pets and Their People


Kathryn Primm - 2013
    Personal and medical details paint a charming picture of the author's love for her patients, respect for their owners and dedication to her profession. America's Veterinarian, Dr. Marty Becker says, "Animal lovers will love this book."

Heaven Is Beautiful


Peter Baldwin Panagore - 2015
    This book and its illuminating truth pushed my restart button! Best page-turning read of the year!” —Jennifer Skiff, author of God Stories: Inspiring Encounters with the Divine and The Divinity of Dogs“Heaven is hot right now—not in temperature, but in public interest. Everyone who longs to get a glimpse of the afterlife will be grateful for this gripping first-person account by Peter Panagore, who dies on a cold mountainside after a heart-pounding ice climb in the Canadian wilderness. There he meets the God who made him and knows him—the God who is loving, all-powerful and real. This book will give hope and confidence to all who wonder about what lies beyond our earthly existence.” —Henry G. Brinton, senior pastor of Fairfax Presbyterian Church in Virginia and author of The Welcoming Congregation: Roots and Fruits of Christian HospitalityWhen Peter Baldwin Panagore died on the side of a mountain, his life was forever changed. Decades later, the intense spiritual journey continues, with a story that combines the thrills of a wilderness adventure with the awe-inspiring elements of a paranormal novel.In March of 1980, college senior Peter Panagore went ice climbing on the world-famous Lower Weeping Wall, along the Ice Fields Parkway in Alberta, Canada. His climbing partner was an experienced ice climber, but Panagore was a novice. On their descent, they became trapped on the side of the mountain. As the sun set, he was overcome by exhaustion and hypothermia. He died on the side of that mountain. And in those minutes on the other side, he experienced hell, forgiveness, and unconditional love. Heaven was beautiful.Panagore’s death experience changed his life and resulted in an intense spiritual journey that has continued for decades. It impelled him to pursue a master’s degree at Yale Divinity School, focusing on systematic theology and Christian mysticism. His educational background coupled with 30 years of meditative practice and 20 years of professional work with the dying and grieving has given him unique insight, language, and perspective on heaven, God, death, life, love, beauty, and hope.I have told my story to audiences large and small for a decade now.... My story touches people’s hearts; every time I tell it the audience is gripped and silent…. This book is about hope. It is meant to give real hope to the dying, hope to the fearful, hope to the hopeless, hope to the grieving.—from the book

Keep It Simple: Daily Meditations for Twelve Step Beginnings and Renewal


Anonymous - 1989
    The recovery wisdom in each thought for the day works as an engaging reminder to show up for yourself, your program, and your overall wellness every day.As you go through your journey of recovery with the Steps as your guideposts, these inspirational daily meditations give your spirit a feeling of regular renewal, fellowship, and new beginnings. Each page serves as your cornerstone for a new life, helping you cultivate true health, personal growth, and transformation—in a way that complements the life-changing guidance of Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, and other programs. By providing a year’s worth of encouragement, reflection, and prayer, Keep It Simple becomes the sustaining daily dose of support and strength you can always count on. Cherished by millions for decades, this recovery classic is an expansive collection of insight and guidance. Weaving together traditional teachings and diverse voices, it’s your daily invitation to a practice of mindfulness, therapeutic healing, and overcoming addiction.

The Gate


Dann A. Stouten - 2013
    When he arrives and is ushered through the gate, he finds something far different from the typical vacation retreat. In fact, it seems he may have found the back door to heaven. The proprietor and people from his past welcome him with food, rest, and conversation until what started out as a little escape from everyday life turns into an experience he will never forget.

Miles from Where We Started


Cynthia Ruchti - 2018
    Too bad they can't find the off-ramp.Weeks away from their one-year anniversary, Mallory and Connor Duncan can't even agree on how to end their marriage. But when a last-minute crisis lands them on a three-thousand-mile road trip together, Mallory wonders if their story may not be over after all.The trip begins to unravel before the key is even in the ignition, and an at-risk, trouble-seeking missile of an eleven-year-old is unexpectedly launched into their travel plans. Close quarters get even tighter, and the couple believes this whole experience will spell disaster.But as new challenges pop up around each bend, Mallory and Connor are surprised by the strengths they see in one another--and how they complement each other. Their first year of marriage hasn't been the arm-in-arm togetherness they expected . . . but can they find a new beginning when the road ends?

For Kicks


Jenna Bayley-Burke - 2008
    She has to prove herself by making sure the product launch for her company’s cornerstone client, Nitrous, is a success. No way is she is she about to let live-for-the-moment Logan Chandler tarnish her professional reputation. Even if the former athlete is now Nitrous’s poster boy and makes her heart pound like she’s run a marathon.After surviving a near-fatal accident, Logan doesn’t want to waste a minute of life. It’s meant to be lived, ravished, enjoyed—and there’s no one he’d like to ravish more than Breeze. There’s a fiery desire beneath her icy facade. He can feel it every time they touch.Logan’s ready to take her for a run on the wild side—but he’ll have to catch her.

Travels with Epicurus: A Journey to a Greek Island in Search of a Fulfilled Life


Daniel Klein - 2012
    Drawing on the lives of his Greek friends, as well as philosophers ranging from Epicurus to Sartre, Klein learns to appreciate old age as a distinct and extraordinarily valuable stage of life. He uncovers simple pleasures that are uniquely available late in life, as well as headier pleasures that only a mature mind can fully appreciate. A travel book, a witty and accessible meditation, and an optimistic guide to living well, Travels with Epicurus is a delightful jaunt to the Aegean and through the terrain of old age led by a droll philosopher. A perfect gift book for the holidays, this little treasure is sure to please longtime fans of Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar and garner new ones, young and old.

Outside In


Doug Cooper - 2013
    To Brad Shepherd—recently forced out of his job as a junior high math teacher after the overdose death of a student—it's exactly the kind of place he's looking for.Allured by the comfort and acceptance of the hedonistic atmosphere, Brad trades his academic responsibilities and sense of obligation for a bouncer's flashlight and a pursuit of the endless summer. With Cinch Stevens, his new best friend and local drug dealer, at his side, Brad becomes lost in a haze of excess and instant gratification filled with romantic conquests, late-night excursions to special island hideaways, and a growing drug habit. Not even the hope from a blossoming relationship with Astrid, a bold and radiant Norwegian waitress, nor the mentoring from a mysterious mandolin player named Caldwell is enough to pull him out of his downward spiral. But as Labor Day approaches, the grim reality of his empty quest consumes him. Brad must accept that identity cannot be fabricated, but emerges from within when one has the courage to let go.

Hiking Naked: A Quaker Woman's Search for Balance


Iris Graville - 2017
    They sought adventure; she yearned for the quiet and respite of this community of eighty-five residents accessible only by boat, float plane, or hiking. Hiking Naked chronicles Graville’s journey through questions about work and calling as well as how she coped with ordering groceries by mail, black bears outside her kitchen window, a forest fire that threatened the valley, and a flood that left her and her family stranded for three days.

Every Bush Is Burning


Brandon Clements - 2011
    When he is caught and it all comes crashing down, Jack is left with no one to turn to. No friends. No family, except his recovering drug addict of a sister. On a Sunday morning drive, he sees a homeless man locked out of a church service, banging on the door. He stops and offers the guy a cup of coffee. He asks the man his name, and the guy says Yeshua. As in, Jesus.Jack's not stupid. This isn't the real Jesus. But with nowhere else to turn, Jack forms an unlikely friendship with this eccentric homeless man--one that will test his idea of truth, faith, love, and forgiveness. And Jack is completely unprepared for the real-life twists his story is going to take.Watch the trailer, get a free sampler, and find out more at www.EveryBushIsBurning.com.About the Author: Brandon Clements lives in Columbia, SC. He drinks coffee with no cream or sugar, once hit a cow with a truck (the cow lived), and adores his wife Kristi. This is his first novel. You can find him at www.BrandonClements.com or @brandonclements on Twitter.Reader Reviews (taken from Amazon reviews): "Couldn't put the book down, and didn't even begin to guess the twist at the end. An absolutely beautiful story on many levels." -Lorna Johnston"I can't imagine anyone not remembering this book long after they've come to the last page." -Shelley Waldaias"Clements' book surprised me. I thought it was one thing, a typical jab at the Christian establishment, and it turned out to be something different, a jab at what it means to be human and to long for love, but to come up short, the kind of jab that makes us all start looking, and maybe finding, that love we had forgotten." -Joe Bunting

The God Dare: Will You Choose to Believe the Impossible?


Kate Battistelli - 2019
    Where will you hear it? . . .   Deep down inside, you know you’re on this planet for a reason. God has a plan in mind just for you. In fact, He chose you for His plan before the foundation of the world. He designed you very specifically for this time and this place, and He’s perfectly equipped you to accomplish His purpose in the earth.   Through engaging and memorable true stories—both biblical and modern—author Kate Battistelli challenges and encourages you to discover how God has specifically designed you for this time in history, your place in the world, your role in His cosmic plan. Once and for all, let go of your fear, worry, pride and strife. . .   All God ever needs is a willing vessel. Will you say yes?

Marianne Williamson On Miracles


Marianne Williamson - 1995
    Experience the energy and magnetism of Marianne Williamson with these recordings of Meditations, Commitment, Miracles, Spirituality, and also her perennial bestseller A Return to Love .

The Ground You Stand Upon: Life of a Skytrooper in Vietnam


Joshua Bowe - 2018
    Wilbur E. Bowe was living on his family’s farm when he was drafted in 1965 and assigned to Alpha Company, 5th Battalion, 7th Calvary. The 5/7th Cavalry was formed as a brand-new battalion in order to fill out the 1st Air Cavalry Division’s 3rd Brigade. The young men of the battalion were largely drafted together in 1965 as the build-up of regular Army forces in Vietnam had just begun. Together, these impossibly young men would be trained in the airmobile infantry and become what were known as “skytroopers”. They would then be sent deep into the jungles of Vietnam, where together they would learn what “search and destroy” meant and face the reality of this new war.The story features many of the letters and photographs my dad sent home from the war zone. His dispatches were sent from some of the most remote valleys and outposts in Vietnam, written under the most austere of conditions, often scribbled in haste before another mission, or by flashlight, under a poncho in the rain. They would travel over 8,000 miles across the ocean, to be placed in a mailbox that stood across from a farmhouse, along a rural county road in Wisconsin.Many former skytroopers of Alpha Company were interviewed for this story, and their personal accounts recall much of the humor and friendship they shared, along with the sadness and tragedy that would accompany a year spent in the jungles of Vietnam. The story also draws upon the 5/7th Cavalry’s daily staff journals and situation reports for every day of the battalion’s first year in Vietnam.This is their story, told in great detail from their time spent training together at Fort Carson – through their historic journey across the ocean aboard the USNS Gaffey, where they would encounter a massive typhoon – through their many battles fought together in Vietnam – and eventually, their final patrol.

Junkie Love


Joe Clifford - 2013
    Based on Clifford’s own harrowing experience with drugs as a rock ’n’ roll wannabe in the 1990s, the book draws on the best of Kerouac & the Beats, injecting a heavy dose of pulp fiction as it threads a rollicking narrative through a doomed love triangle, lit up by the many strange characters he meets along the way. Part road story, part resurrection tale, Junkie Love finds a way to laugh in one’s darkest hour, while never abandoning its heart in search of a home.

Blush: A Mennonite Girl Meets a Glittering World


Shirley Hershey Showalter - 2013
    Three locations shaped her-a family farm, a country school, and Lititz Mennonite Church. She later became a college president and then a foundation executive, but the rosy-cheeked, barefoot farm girl never quite disappeared. As Willa Cather said, "Most of the basic material a writer works with is acquired before the age of fifteen." This childhood memoir tells the story of a girl who might have left the church but found another way.