BOOK REVIEW: “Surprised By Oxford” surprised and captivated me!

“Surprised By Oxford” managed to surprise me, and to captivate me just a couple pages into the prologue!

This memoir, written by Carolyn Weber and published by Thomas Nelson, reads like a New York Times best-selling novel, compelling me at the end of every chapter to turn the page and start the next.

That surprised me, considering my initial trepidation for selecting this book to review. When I was scanning the review offerings by Thomas Nelson, I wasn’t drawn to anything available. But the title “Surprised By Oxford” sparked my curiosity, so I read the publisher’s description of the book. This was supposed to be a memoir of a woman in her first year at Oxford. At that, red flags flew and sirens sounded … I immediately suspected a more poetic, “chick flick” version of a memoir.

I couldn’t have been more wrong!

Instead, I found myself completely captivated with the true story of a bright, personable, intellectual feminist arriving at Oxford University to study Romantic Literature, and what turned out to be an incredible journey to faith. From her background of coming from a broken home, to the eclectic characters that would enter her life during that first year at Oxford, this memoir captures an amazing conversion experience, and a compelling story with something to entice just about anyone: churning theological struggles, intrusions of literature and poetry, the charm of Britain, stories of friendships, hints of a romance, an example for the guys of how to be a “Christian gentleman,” and for Christians on how to share Christ in a way that your friends can receive.

Weber does a brilliant job of leading the reader into her thoughts and heart as she wrestled with her crumbling agnostic worldview, showing how discovering the grace of God changed her life.

Occasionally, I noted the writer got a little heavy with perfecting her writing, a common glitch among literary experts who want to capture just the right phrase. But then, I found myself once again captivated by Weber’s brilliant, clear story-telling.

“Surprised By Oxford” is surprisingly powerful in drawing the reader into Weber’s personal discovery of God’s grace. It’s a story that not only will captivate you, but bless you as well.

Scotty

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”