Carol Howard Merritt – Writers on the Classics #7

In 2013, we are encouraging our readers to mix up their reading habits, and read (or re-read) classics in addition to new books, such as the ones we review here in the ERB.

Broadly speaking, a classic is any book that is not a new book, or in other words that is worth reading five, ten or even one hundred years after its initial publication. ERB Editor Chris Smith has an article on The Huffington Post website arguing for reading a mix of classics and new books in 2013.

We’ve asked a number of noted writers to pick the classics that they often return to, and we will be running these lists as a weekly feature on our website through 2013.

 

This week’s post in the series is by Carol Howard Merritt.

Writers on the Classics:
[ #1 – Shane Claiborne ] [ #6 (Last Week) – Chris Smith ]

 

Carol Howard Merritt is a conference speaker, the author of [easyazon-link asin=”1566993946″ locale=”us”]Reframing Hope: Vital Ministry in a New Generation[/easyazon-link] and [easyazon-link asin=”1566993474″ locale=”us”]Tribal Church: Ministering to the Missing Generation[/easyazon-link] and the cohost of God Complex Radio. She has been a pastor for 13 years, serving growing Presbyterian Churches in the swamps of Cajun Louisiana, a bayside village in Rhode Island, and in an urban neighborhood in D.C. She also served as a pastor at Western Presbyterian Church, an intergenerational congregation in Washington, D.C.  Her blog Tribal Church is hosted by the Christian Century.

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[easyazon-image align=”none” asin=”1613821557″ locale=”us” height=”333″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yDx1SW8DL.jpg” width=”222″ alt=”Carol Howard Merritt” ] [easyazon-link asin=”1613821557″ locale=”us”]The Yellow Wallpaper[/easyazon-link] by Charlotte Perkins Gillman   [easyazon-link asin=”B0082UPBWC” locale=”us”]FREE Kindle ebook![/easyazon-link] Charlotte Perkins Gillman creates a horror story for creative people. As the main character struggles after post-partum depression, Gillman illustrates how women are often misdiagnosed and mistreated in this feminist classic. I have read this little book countless times and it always gives me insight into my writing, art and creative process.		[easyazon-image align=”none” asin=”1612931073″ locale=”us” height=”333″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41tK4lYCrTL.jpg” width=”222″] [easyazon-link asin=”1612931073″ locale=”us”]The Souls of Black Folk[/easyazon-link] by W.E.B. DuBois   [easyazon-link asin=”B0083ZJ86G” locale=”us”]FREE Kindle ebook![/easyazon-link] Throughout the years, I have turned to W.E.B. Dubois for poetry and prayers. Now I’m beginning to rely on him for a critique of our capitalist greed. But nothing stands out like The Souls of Black Folk, a rich sociology that tells us “the strange meaning of being black.”

[ Click to continue reading Carol’s list on Page 2… ]