I had never read a memoir until Girl Meets God and what a great way to start! This was like dessert every night and was easy to pick up right where I left off. I loved how she felt that she was being pursued/wooed by Christ - what a wonderful, loving picture and yet she recorded the crazy things most of us think but never say! I felt comforted by her writing and found myself repeating chapters to really capture that feeling.

It was wintertime and I was speaking at a woman's conference in Charlottesville, VA. At my booktable aside from books I'd written, the church also had a few books they loved including this brand new, first book written by one of their church members who happened to be at this retreat. I bought GIRL MEETS GOD and took it to my hotel room and started reading it that night. I got hungry so I walked in the snow to a cool restaurant/pub and read the book at dinner under the little lamp at my table. I stayed at that table until the restaurant closed at 11pm because I couldn't stop reading, I was so absorbed in the story. I went back to my hotel room and finished the book by 3 in the morning. It was THAT good. I had the privilege of meeting Lauren Winner the next day at the conference. Needless to say I was a bit intimidated because I was such a fan. This was written better than any favorite fiction book I've read. If you want to cuddle up and enjoy a story, read GIRL MEETS GOD.

GIRL MEETS GOD tells of Lauren Winner's Jewish upbringing, the Orthodox Judaism of her college years, and then her conversion to Christianity as a young adult. The sections and chapters of this book are organized by and named after both Jewish and Christian holidays. This memoir is partly a love story, with Jesus as the hero. It is partly a story of traditions, both Christian and Judaism. It is partly a story of community, and Lauren's love and respect for the people, both within in Judaism and Christianity, who shaped her spiritually.

I loved reading this. Lauren Winner is a very passionate woman, and when she writes about spirituality, family, friends, love, and books, her enthusiasm is all over the pages. She really brings the reader into her life, showing how her spirituality affects everything from her academic development to her thoughts on sexuality. I felt like she was my new friend, although a friend who is greatly more intelligent and academic than I am. I highly recommend this.

So there I was slogging through a young author's account of her conversion from Judaism to Christianity, complete with a multitude of "foreign" phrases that should have annoyed me, but...fascinated me. The insight Lauren Winner offers into the Jewish experience on her path to accepting Jesus is thought-provoking, such that I don't believe I'll ever read the Old Testament again without a deeper appreciation for the Jewish people and their culture. Okay, so I wasn't slogging...

So there I was slogging through a young author's account of her conversion from Judaism to Christianity, complete with a multitude of "foreign" phrases that should have annoyed me, but...fascinated me. The insight Lauren Winner offers into the Jewish experience on her path to accepting Jesus is thought-provoking, such that I don't believe I'll ever read the Old Testament again without a deeper appreciation for the Jewish people and their culture. Okay, so I wasn't slogging...

For months I'd asked for this book at my local library; the clerk said it was constantly being renewed, or loaned out. The author is held in high regard among the younger intelligentsia in our shared Episcopal Church, so I hear her name checked in conversations with like minded people. Thus my excitement at obtaining the book and the earnestness of my review. The author and I share many traits, not the least of which is high emotional temperature/flair for theatrics, also propinquity of age. And she seemed to be the type of girl who could be my future wife. That helped, a little...

To her credit, the author writes lucid, at times compelling, prose, and knows her way around story arcs and cultural allusions. Her didactic artifice is far less successful. I was less interested in her conversion, from Reform, into, and out of, Orthodox Judaism than trying to understand why she ultimately chose Anglicanism. She just didn't give me a convincing rationale, unfortunately. Disturbingly, in a volume that purports to be about "something" substantial, even trying to find words in our language to describe, for example, "meeting" the God of Israel, the author displays the same sublimated cynicism and detachment from reality common to our generation. Her self-centeredness (when it's not "about" her, it's "about" her reactions to things she learns "about" herself from those around her) will not serve her will in her chosen discipline, religious studies, which requires empathy. Everyone except for her is a stereotype, even the "Sarahs who snubbed her", the Orthodox guys who wouldn't marry her because she's a convert, and even the "some man" she lacks the self-control to avoid having sex with (again? those details are superfluous, honey). She has the capability to be an effective spokesperson for our generation's desperately needed call to renewal, but if she just keeps on using her spiritual winnowing as a resume builder, her future students/readership would so easily be able to tell. We all aren't THAT obtuse!

Pity, I liked her better as a Jew (well she halachically still is, but I digress...). This is because she mirrors my affinity for Judaism (historico-moral significance and imperative, the "religious" aspect, if you will; far less the "cultural"). Reading her story reminds me that just because I lean so far off to left of post-modern Christianity, it doesn't equate that I'd eventually fall off into a life of running around Crown Heights screaming out, "Mazel Tov!".

I could actually still do this while remaining a Christian, but that is another matter entirely.

With her conversion to Christianity, she just lost that "spark", that specialness, I can't explain it. Sometimes when she would talk, it reminded me of my (long ago,as yet undegreed) college days when I was a Judaic Studies major in Boca (of all places). There was this girl who went to a Messianic synagogue in one of my classes and I thought to myself, "finally, a (not unattractive) girl who could talk intelligently about our desire to live as the first Christians (all Orthodox Palestinian Jews, as if we forgot...oh wait, we did) lived and thought." Well, she turned about to be "just" another gentile, like me. How disappointing! I paused several times reading this book, as if to say, "Aha, Lauren Winner seems like she's trying to be something she's not, a gentile". Like ships passing in the night, she and I.

The fact that I have a call to (what I naturally assumed was the Episcopal) ministry complicates my relationship to the ideas expressed in this book. The author, to my chagrin, immediately subsumed some of the WORST traits of our people (clannish behavior, pretense of ecumenism, over-reliance on the Prayer Book - I'll never forget the college professor who, upon hearing an obscure cite on my part, said, "An Episcopalian that KNOWS the BIBLE?") and so on. And I would let the author know that I have suffered much for the Episcopalian cause from other Christians (that I'm "pagan" b/c I read my prayers out of a book, "Every time your church is in the headlines, it's only because of something 'controversial', etc). I would suggest that the author can't just take, take, take, from Anglicanism without, too, defending it.

She seems far too deferential to evangelical Christians, and their "poise" and assurance of ownership. This I found troubling.

Her "Jewess at the foot of the cross" persona I found distasteful.

If I didn't care about her and the subject matter, I might suggest that writing a "memoir" in your twenties is silly, nay, capricious and arbitrary.

A seeming defense of the ultra-evangelical wing of the Episcopal Church (even with all she knows, and don't worry, she'll remind you every two pages) is what finally put the mechitza between us. As someone who is stuck in a diocese that is increasingly tilted towards a reactionary "low church"/conservative evangelical theology and clergy, I can say that it's not all romance and fighting for the "purity" of the faith. In fact, this polarization is the main reason the Episcopal Church and I are on the outs.

Because among other things, the local priest implied I was too liberal...too "Jewish". "You must bring your practice in line with those of the church". That being said, the only way I could see the author outdoing even herself, is to discover she has a call to the priesthood (like her "rescue fantasy" you learn about in the book, she also flirts with this idea, too) and she ends up teaching at the same seminary where I might eventually study for the ministry. No, I think that may actually happen, knowing our affinities.

Pair this up with "A Jew Examines Christianity" by Rachel Zurer (it's scarce, try interlibrary loan) for a more nuanced approach to some of the theological/"parting of the ways" pining the author insists on doing.

I think she is trying not to convince herself, in her words, "This Christianity thing isn't working". Maybe some of the syntax of the book wouldn't seem so hysterical if she proffered to be more stable.

You should read this book. But as for me, I ask, UCC, have you any room at the inn?

Hope you got something out of this.

This book was excellent, despite it's slightly cheesy title. Winner is smart, witty, and incredibly honest about her spiritual journey. I learned so much about Judaism, and definitely thought about my own Christian faith. This book is refreshing and thought-provoking in its honesty and intellectualism.

This book has gotten a great deal of good press, and to be sure, Winner is a talented prose writer. But her journey to Orthodox Judaism and from there to Christianity simply isn't enlightening -- her faith journey seems all about what makes her feel special. It's ego-driven. She does not mention the ethics of either religion, and for such an educated woman, the intellectual content of the book is minimal. It all seems to be about her comfort. She treats sincere Orthodox Jewish friends, people who literally treat her like family, as if they are disposable. Her reasons for leaving Orthodox Judaism are flimsy (a few people didn't like her as much as she wanted) and her attachment to Christianity comes off as capricious and even silly. Christ is like a giant Candyman in the sky. After the first third or so of the book, I wanted to say: please, grow up. There's a whole world of people out there. And I speak as a liberal Christian.

It is interesting to read the comments about this book from people from all denominations. The Orthodox Jews regret she left them; the Catholics wish she'd become a Catholic; the Reformed Church members wish she'd joined the Reformed Church. All I can say is: you can have her.

I loved it. A favorite.

After reading Ms. Winner's book, GIRL MEETS GOD, I felt a great sense of kinship. I, like Ms. Winner, was an Orthodox Jew. In fact I was a convert to the religion for many years (longer than the author) and I attended a Jewish seminary to boot (a yeshiva). I identify with her experience with Orthodox Judaism. It is a beautiful religion with a lot of spirituality and wisdom. But for me something was missing. After years I realized that God, after all the memorizations of laws and prayers, was every distant (the religion has an almost Gnostic side to it where God can be reached after certain steps are met). I felt a call to find a closer bond with Him. My long search within Judaism led me to Christianity. Another issue I had with Orthodox Judaism, which I saw in GIRL MEETS GOD, was that I did not belong. Sure all the books say I do. In fact a convert is supposed to be respected equal. But the people sadly treated me as a curiosity. Though I wanted to be married no match maker would set me up because I was not born Jewish. Their excuses ranged from not having memorized the whole Mishnah (a book of oral laws and traditions), not wearing my fedora 24/7, that I spoke to my non-Jewish family, that I some times wore jeans, that I have watched movies and TV, etc.

So while reading Winner's book, I found myself saying, "Me too!" Though I do not agree with some of her ideas, I still think we are on the same page. I can identify with her feelings for being seduced by Christ in the littlest of things like dreams, art, comments those closest to me have made. All in all I think it is a good book. I do not think, like others, that she is using her former Orthodox Jewish status to sell the book. It is an honest statement of her travels through life. Yes she is young. So what! God speaks to us at all stages in our lives and uses our energy to His own ends. If I could give her one bit of advice, I would advise her to check out more of the Reformed Theology, like the works John Calvin, I think she will find some connections between Reformed theology and Orthodox Judaism.

Lauren Winner grew up in the south, the child of non-religious parents with cultural ties to Judaism (father) and the Southern Baptist Church (mother.) Divorce broke up the marriage, but Lauren's mother kept her promise to rear the children as Jews, and saw to it that Lauren went to synagogue, though she herself did not attend. Lauren's spiritual journey, except for this initial parental nudge, is in many ways a solitary one. She made and kept close friends in her childhood synagogue and in the more strictly observant Orthodox Jewish community she is drawn to as a teenager, and in the Anglican Church she finally embraced, but a hunger to know more of God keeps her moving forward, though with many a fond backward glance. Even though Lauren writes from the perspective of one who knows Jesus, her recollections of the Jewish people she loved and learned from are tender and respectful. Girl Meets God is not a "Why I am Not a Jew" book.

I asked this question of friends who had also read the book: "Lauren wanders into British/American Christianity, her Jewish knapsack on her back. In what ways are Christians enriched by the things she shows them from her knapsack?" We spent two hours listing ways. Thankyou Lauren Winner. We're glad to meet you.

The book cover deserves five stars, and the inside of the book comes close to matching it. Girl Meets God was certainly a good book and is one which I will recommend to others. However, it's not quite one that will take a prestigeous place on the table by my bed.

The book is basically the story of young woman's journey from Orthodox Judaism to Christianity. It's not really a chronological narrative. Instead, Winner sets the book up as progression through a year of the Christian journey, and she reflects back on significant moments and insights that have to do with a time of year such as Lent or Easter. For me, this set-up seemed like the strength and weakness of the work. The way she reflects back on her past experiences makes those experiences more immediate and meaningful, and this organization seems less contrived than would a chronological narrative. However, this also makes the book somewhat uneven. Winner, for instance, sometimes will follow a compelling story with a fairly prosaic reading of some scriptural story. Sometimes Winner herself seems to be evident through her writing, but sometimes she seems too hidden. There are some really fine moments of writing and some excellent moments of insight, but there are also a few times when it is evident that this is first time writer. Of course, it's quite an achievement that most of the book seems like the work of an Annie Lamotte or Kathleen Norris(if not an Annie Dillard). Overall, this is a worthwhile read, and I'll be looking out for more works by Winner in the future.

The memoir of a fresh new writer and the story of her pull towards God that had defined her first through Orthodox Judaism and then through Christianity. Covering the full range of emotions from lighthearted, to rage, to reflective Winner delivers this story in a sophisticated voice reminiscent of Annie Dillard or Anne Lamott. Although naturally I was initially wary of reading an autobiography of a 20something (I mean how much can she really have to say!) I quickly became engaged by this touching story of faiths lost and found.

Lauren Winner has written an appealing memoir in "Girl Meets God." It is not, as some reviewers suggest, only of interest to evangelical Christians. I would describe my beliefs as skeptically agnostic but I still really enjoy spiritual memoirs. This book reminded me a bit of Anne Lamott's "Traveling Mercies." Both writers live in secular, intellectually driven communities but have committed wholeheartedly to a faith that many of their friends see as odd. While Lamott has hords of fans, I actually enjoyed Winner's writing more because she seems like a more level headed person. There is less egotism in her writing, even if it is slightly more bland. If you have grown tired of Lamott's narsissistic rantings, as I have, this might be the next step for you.

"Girl Meets God" is definately worth a read.