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FAITHFUL FIVE

Five faithful beach reads

Date published: 6/28/2008

By Flowers Umble BOOKS FOR YOUR BEACH TOTE BAG

I've been at the beach all week, so this seems the perfect time to offer a list of spiritual beach reads. For those of you looking for an alternative to the typical trashy romance beach read, here are some of the books in my tote bag this week:

1. "Sundays in America" by Suzanne Strempek Shea: One of the things I love most about my job as religion reporter is the chance to visit different houses of worship. So I had to snatch up this read about a reporter who spent a year visiting different churches across America. Shea was inspired to try out different sects after the death of Pope John Paul II.

2. "Sex God" by Rob Bell: I've been intrigued by this book since an area pastor recommended it. Bell, a Michigan pastor, explores the connection between spirituality and sex and between God and our relationships with others.

3. "Autism and the God Connection" by William Stillman. Do people with autism share a special bond with God? An intriguing question, and I can't wait to explore it more in this book, which critics have called "groundbreaking." Written by a man with Asperger's, this book theorizes that people with autism not only understand more than we give them credit for, but also have a deep spirituality.

4. "Abide With Me" by Elizabeth Strout: This novel tells the story of the Rev. Tyler Caskey as he deals with the loss of his wife and of his congregation as it reels from revelations of a shocking secret.

5. "Fearless Fourteen" by Janet Evanovich: It is a vacation, after all, so not all my reads are religious. And I can't wait to read the latest in Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. The stereotypical New Jersey characters and the setting always make this Jersey girl feel a little less homesick.

--Amy Flowers Umble

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Date published: 6/28/2008