One abusive mother, two brothers, one is drawn to God, the other not. The author shares his brother's agonizing life of suffering as a contrast to the painful yet marvelous experience of his own long draw to God, sharing this example how in at least his particular case, was an increasing awareness of good and beauty and wanting to know the source of such gifts. So yet again we have a Yancey book about grace, but this one is super personal (not only revealing bad behavior within a subculture, but of his own). The perfect title comes from an Augustine comment about his past life: "I had my back toward the light, and my face toward the things on which the light falls." One of the great gifts the light fell on was his future wife. By the end he's turned to the Light, the Giver, but his brother (at least when the book ends) had not...yet. The contrasting lives left me thinking about a statement made early to the author, that "perhaps the grace is here, and you don't have the receptors to receive it." So without preaching on the doctrines of grace and election, I'm nonetheless left pondering them, marveling and praising. ( )

This is an excellent autobiography of one of my favourite American Christian writers. Yancey is honest, unemotional in his description of some of the horrors of his childhood, and ultimately full of grace.

He acknowledges many of his mistakes and some of his wrong actions taken, and shows how a child of an impoverished, angry and racist mother can still become one of the most influential and thought-provoking writers in the Christian world.

I'm not always a fan of autobiographies, but found this one gripping, sometimes moving and inspiring. Very highly recommended for anyone who appreciates Yancey's writing.

Longer review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2024/01/where-light-fell-by-philip-yancey.h... ( )

In this searing meditation on the bonds of family and the allure of extremist faith, one of today’s most celebrated Christian writers recounts his unexpected journey from a strict fundamentalist upbringing to a life of compassion and grace—a revelatory memoir that “invites comparison to Hillbilly Elegy” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

“Searing, heartrending . . . This stunning tale reminds us that the only way to keep living is" (Kate Bowler, New York Times bestselling author of Everything Happens for a Reason)

Raised by an impoverished widow who earned room and board as a Bible teacher in 1950s Atlanta, Philip Yancey and his brother, Marshall, found ways to venture out beyond the confines of their eight-foot-wide trailer. But when Yancey was in college, he uncovered a shocking secret about his father’s death—a secret that began to illuminate the motivations that drove his mother to extreme, often hostile religious convictions and a belief that her sons had been ordained for a divine cause.

Searching for answers, Yancey dives into his family origins, taking us on an evocative journey from the backwoods of the Bible Belt to the bustling streets of Philadelphia; from trailer parks to church sanctuaries; from family oddballs to fire-and-brimstone preachers and childhood awakenings through nature, music, and literature. In time, the weight of religious and family pressure sent both sons on opposite paths—one toward healing from the impact of what he calls a “toxic faith,” the other into a self-destructive spiral.

Where the Light Fell is a gripping family narrative set against a turbulent time in post–World War II America, shaped by the collision of Southern fundamentalism with the mounting pressures of the civil rights movement and Sixties-era forces of social change. In piecing together his fragmented personal history and his search for redemption, Yancey gives testament to the enduring power of our hunger for truth and the possibility of faith rooted in grace instead of fear.

“I truly believe this is the one book I was put on earth to write,” says Yancey. “So many of the strands from my childhood—racial hostility, political division, culture wars—have resurfaced in modern form. Looking back points me forward.” (Publisher blurb)

I heartily recommend Yancey’s memoir. He and his brother’s life stories are one of tragedy but also great victory through faith. An excellent book, although very tough to get through at times. ( )

This is the memoir of one of my favorite authors who write about Christian issues. I think the book is so good! I couldn't put it down. He is very honest and authentic about his experiences, and there's so much detail that I wish I could discuss with others.

The author was born in 1950 in Atlanta to a devout Christian widow who vowed to raise his brother and him to become missionaries to Africa. He grew up poor, attending an all-white conservative churches that deemed Billy Graham too liberal. He wrote about attending youth camps that denounced Elvis and The Beatles, listening to school lectures that sympathized with the Confederate and sermons that supported segregation (and accepting those beliefs until he was high school age), and faking moving testimonies at church and youth camp order to gain approval from that community. This is very interesting to me. I can still see traces of these phenomena in the some conservative Christian thinking I encounter today. The author and his brother had a strained relationship with their mother and did not see her as exemplifying the Christian virtues she taught and promoted. The author's brother was pious until his college years, then eventually left the faith. A large part of the book's focus was on how poorly his mother and brother treated each other, and how reconciliation is so hard, even after 40 years.

The author acted Christian at the urging of his community, but he "did not feel anything." He skipped two grades, so at a pretty young age he was in high school reading Camus, Nietzsche, and other writers/thinkers who made much more sense to him than the theology of his mother and his church. He attended a conservative Bible college that his mother approved of, but he distanced himself from the teachings and basically became a rebel. Up to that point I really didn't see how he could later become a Christian lol He tried to describe what changed him. Throughout his life he could always see he was a deprived human being who didn't build other people up. Through love nature, classical music, and romantic love, he grew a respect and admiration for the God who operates behind them. Then, one evening in his sophomore year, he had a divine encounter with Jesus when he was praying. It makes me ponder how I should raise my children in the faith and reevaluate what practice is desirable. ( )