Like coming home: A review of Roots & Sky by Christie Purifoy

This is quite possibly the most beautiful book I’ve ever read. I hope you know that I don’t say that lightly.

Roots & Sky by Christie Purifoy is a memoir about her family’s first year of living in a farmhouse in Pennsylvania. It’s organized by seasons and presents a picture of an imperfect acceptance of what it means to be home. (I received a free copy of the book in exchange for my review.) Christie’s journey home, both to a place and a presence, is so relatable I felt she could have been telling my story. Nearly every page contained words worth underlining. It was a privilege to read such a vulnerable story of the first year of life in a new home. I could sense the colors, sounds, tastes and feel of the seasons as each month passed.

Here’s a sample:

Wandering taught me to desire rootedness. In the wilderness, I began to long for a place where my heart and body could settle, free of striving, free of restlessness. A place where my feet could touch ground. A place where I could grow. Like a tree. … But whether we are homebodies or world travelers, we all long for the moment of arrival. We all dream of the rest and peace we imagine waits for us at the end of a long journey. (p. 19)

I can’t say enough good things about this book. Christie is a new favorite writer. She has a way of capturing deep emotions and helping the reader feel right along with them. But it’s a process of acknowledging things for the way they are and trusting that they can be better.

If you’ve ever longed for home, no matter where you live, this is a book you MUST read.

You can read more of her words on her blog, A Spacious Place.