Good Apple : Tales of a Southern Evangelical in New York

"For a woman who thinks of herself as a New Yorker at this point, I buy a lot of clothes from companies named things like Shrimp & Grits. Why? Because identity is complicated." Elizabeth Passarella is content with being complicated. She grew up in Memphis in a conservative Republican family with a Christian mom and a Jewish dad. Then she moved to New York, fell in love with the city—and, eventually, her husband—and changed. Sort of. While her politics have tilted to the left, she still puts her faith first, and argues that the two can go hand in hand, for what it's worth. Whether you have city lights or starry skies in your eye, Good Apple will show you that: God pursues each of us, no matter our own inconsistencies or failures There's beauty in the gray areas of our lives We can all embrace the absurdity, chaos, and strange sacredness of life that brings us together In this sharp and slyly profound memoir, Elizabeth upends stereotypes about Southerners, New Yorkers, and Christians, making a case that we are all flawed humans simply doing our best. Praise for Good Apple: "With sly humor, ecumenical warmth, and disarming frankness, Elizabeth Passarella builds bridges between red and blue and North and South. Good Apple makes a strong case for New York City as the kingdom of God—and for handwritten thank-you notes." —Ada Calhoun, author of St. Marks Is Dead, Wedding Toasts I'll Never Give, and Why We Can't Sleep A wickedly smart, utterly hilarious debut from aSouthern Livingcolumnist--a mother of three, a Southerner married to a New Yorker, an evangelical Christian, and a Democrat--about the absurdity, chaos, and strange sacredness of her life on Manhattan's Upper West Side. "The thing about being an evangelical Christian and a Southerner living in New York City, raising her children in an apartment where one of them sleeps in a closet, is that there are a lot of people in your life to disappoint." So says Elizabeth Passarella in her wry and witty debut,Good Apple.Among the people she has to disappoint are her parents in Memphis, who are bewildered by how their daughter went from interning for Ralph Reed (it's a long story) to votingfor Hillary Clinton; her parents' friends, who don't understand how a family of five lives in a two-bedroom apartment; and, perhaps most of all, her colleagues and neighbors on Manhattan's Upper West Side, who are always surprised to learn that their sophisticated, irreverent friend is an evangelical Christian. Elizabeth keeps readers, no matter their faith or their politics, laughing and nodding along in solidarity, whether she is -proposing the benefits of fighting with her husband on New York City street corners; -explaining what it was like to grow up as a Christian with a Jewish dad; -or recounting the surreal and terrifying experience of finding a rat trapped in her bedroom in her apartment on the eighth floor. Her love of the city is infectious. Her transparency about highly embarrassing screw-ups is refreshing. And her reminders of forgiveness and grace give us hope. Elizabeth is the smart, funny, red-state, blue-state, Southern, Christian New Yorker you didn't think even existed--but now want as your best friend "For a woman who thinks of herself as a New Yorker at this point, I buy a lot of clothes from companies named things like Shrimp amp; Grits. Why? Because identity is complicated." Elizabeth Passarella is content with being complicated. She grew up in Memphis in a conservative, Republican family with a Christian mom and a Jewish dad. Then she moved to New York, fell in love with the city#8212;and, eventually, her husband#8212;and changed. Sort of. While her politics have tilted to the left, she still puts her faith first#8212;and argues that the two can go hand in hand, for what it's worth. In this sharp and slyly profound memoir, Elizabeth shares stories about everything from conceiving a baby in an unair-conditioned garage in Florida to finding a rat in her bedroom. She upends stereotypes about Southerners, New Yorkers, and Christians, making a case that we are all flawed humans simply doing our best. Good Apple is a hilarious, welcome celebration of the absurdity, chaos, and strange sacredness of life that brings us all together, whether we have city lights or starry skies in our eyes. More importantly, it's about the God who pursues each of us, no matter our own inconsistencies or failures, and shows us the way back home Passarella grew up in Memphis in a conservative, Republican family with a Christian mom and a Jewish dad. Then she moved to New York, fell in love with the city and, eventually, her husband... and changed. Sort of. In her memoir she shares stories about everything from conceiving a baby in an unair-conditioned garage in Florida to finding a rat in her bedroom. She upends stereotypes about Southerners, New Yorkers, and Christians, making a case that we are all flawed humans simply doing our best. More importantly, it is about the God who pursues each of us, no matter our own inconsistencies or failures, and shows us the way back home. -- adapted from jacket "A wickedly smart, utterly hilarious debut from a Southern Living columnist--mother of three, Southerner married to a New Yorker, evangelical Christian, and Democrat--about the absurdity, chaos, and strange sacredness of her life on Manhattan's Upper West Side"-- Provided by publisher