I just finished Shalom Auslander's memoir Foreskin's Lament, which I mentioned earlier this year. I'd started it some time ago, but like so many, it got pushed aside for some shiny, new book that likely suffered the same fate just days later. This one resurfaced and I am glad that it did. Foreskin’s Lament is not a Hitchens-ian screed against God, but a very personal story about growing up in a strict Orthodox Jewish community. Auslander chronicles his rebellion against his place and against the God that he was taught to believe in, one who was angry and vengeful and aware of every transgression no matter how small. However while Auslander notes that he is no longer observant, he has been unsuccessful in ridding himself of his fundamental belief in God. He's bitingly funny, frighteningly angry, and painfully self-aware.

I’m not sure what to read next. There is certainly plenty out there to choose from. I think I might stick with non-fiction for a bit. I started What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815 – 1848 by Daniel Walker Howe just last night and I found it captivating and really readable. It’s the latest in the Oxford History of the United States series and a mighty tome at that! This is a pretty action-packed and exciting time in American history and Howe’s objective is to cover these events; the massive territorial expansion, the growing industrialization, the religious and patriotic movements, with a fresh perspective and a strong focus on the cultural shifts and growths going on throughout these decades. Howe’s writing is engaging and he creates a compelling narrative that I’ve so far found approachable in spite of the enormous arc of his topic.