Book Review: The Air We Breathe, by Christa Parrish

There was so much tragedy in the first few chapters of The Air We Breathe that I had to put it down for a couple of days, and I was a little afraid to pick it up again. But because I had read and appreciated Christa Parrish’s other novels (my reviews: Home Another Way, Watch Over Me), I trusted her enough as an author to know that it would be worth persevering through the hard stuff to get to hear what she wanted to say in this book. And I was not disappointed.

Christa’s books are not always easy to read, but they are honest. She accesses her characters’ deepest emotions and presents them in a way that is beautifully, startlingly raw and vulnerable. She always writes with warmth and compassion.

In this book, I thought she did a particularly good job of incorporating spiritual content in an appealing, unexpected manner. This is Christian fiction done right.

The Air We Breathe is, in my opinion, Christa’s best-written and most “literary” novel to date. She is a talented author, and I look forward to reading more from her.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.