Churched felt like a good journey through my childhood and was reminiscent of books like Catcher in the Rye. My growing up in a Southern Baptist church and dealing with a few fundamentalist Baptists definitely made this book easy to relate to. In his discussion of confusing matters, such as Jesus' ability to get inside our heart, Turner skillfully captures the thoughts of a child growing up in church. He tells detailed stories about his childhood, but sometimes they feel a little too detailed, as though he embellished a few things. Not that I can blame him; I certainly don't remember every conversation I had when I was five. That was the only real issue I had with the book.
He's honest and funny and very human. Every chapter is deeper and more insightful than the previous, but he never gets incredibly in depth. The surface-level musings feel appropriate, though, as Churched isn't a self-help book; it's more of a memoir. He's never shallow in his writing, but he does seem more interested in stating facts and satirizing fundamentalists than in providing deep spiritual truths.
Churched didn't resolve like I thought it would. He didn't detail his journey away from fundamentalism or talk much about the effects his childhood church have on him today. He ended the book well, just not the way I expected him to.
This book is an easy read, and certainly one I recommend. I leave you with a quotation from an inspirational woman Matthew Paul Turner met...
"God loves you, children. He loves you more than you will ever know. Believe that and you will grow up to do beautiful things."
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