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hollyd19's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies is a collection of short stories that spotlights Black women of various ages as they push against prescribed narratives & wrestle with purpose, sexuality, and worth. One endorsement described the collection as “cheeky and insightful” and I second that. I can’t say every story was for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed How to Make Love to a Physicist, Peach Cobbler, Snowfall, and Instructions for Married Christian Men. The stories are rich, artistically diverse, and deeply human.
I was surprised (perhaps I shouldn’t have been, given the word ‘secrets’ in the title) by how heavily sex factored in nearly all the stories. It was never gratuitous or explicit, but it did play a much larger role than I had expected. Additionally, I had the impression that the collection would be more... fun? Honestly, for the most part I found it fairly bleak. That’s not to say it wasn’t tender and at times funny, but most stories left me feeling rather melancholy. Each woman featured faces some significant strain — emotionally, relationally, etc — and I would have loved at least one story to be robustly joyful (the closest is How To Make Love to a Physicist). Finally, there is ample mention of church life & culture, but I wouldn’t define any of the protagonists as “church ladies.” They are all church-lady-adjacent, but perhaps that was Philyaw’s chosen device: a window into the lives of church ladies from those who are in some way outside the fold.
I was surprised (perhaps I shouldn’t have been, given the word ‘secrets’ in the title) by how heavily sex factored in nearly all the stories. It was never gratuitous or explicit, but it did play a much larger role than I had expected. Additionally, I had the impression that the collection would be more... fun? Honestly, for the most part I found it fairly bleak. That’s not to say it wasn’t tender and at times funny, but most stories left me feeling rather melancholy. Each woman featured faces some significant strain — emotionally, relationally, etc — and I would have loved at least one story to be robustly joyful (the closest is How To Make Love to a Physicist). Finally, there is ample mention of church life & culture, but I wouldn’t define any of the protagonists as “church ladies.” They are all church-lady-adjacent, but perhaps that was Philyaw’s chosen device: a window into the lives of church ladies from those who are in some way outside the fold.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Dementia, and Grief
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, and Violence
Minor: Murder
caseythereader's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
📚 Can a review just be entirely the 🤯 emoji? Asking for a friend.
📚 So many voices with so many conflicting feelings and dreams and obligations and small freedoms. There's not a dud in the group.
📚 This book prodded at all the ways the Christian church in America can push someone down, trying to force them into molds they don't fit. Some stories were all about that, and in some the church was just a shadow in the background, which I loved.
📚 Each story was in some way about boundaries - how much church to let in, who you have relationships with, when you allow someone in to see the messiness.
📚 So many voices with so many conflicting feelings and dreams and obligations and small freedoms. There's not a dud in the group.
📚 This book prodded at all the ways the Christian church in America can push someone down, trying to force them into molds they don't fit. Some stories were all about that, and in some the church was just a shadow in the background, which I loved.
📚 Each story was in some way about boundaries - how much church to let in, who you have relationships with, when you allow someone in to see the messiness.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Cursing, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Dementia, Grief, and Religious bigotry
gabriellejane's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wow!!! There's usually one or two stories in a collection that just doesn't do it for me and I would still consider it a great collection. But The Secret Lives of Church Ladies??? Every single story just hits all the notes. Peach Cobbler, Snowfall, and Jael were probably my favorites. Going to have to buy myself a copy to revisit this collection.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Cursing
Minor: Addiction, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Dementia, and Abortion
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