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  • Where the Light Fell

  • A Memoir
  • Written by: Philip Yancey
  • Narrated by: Philip Yancey
  • Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
  • 4.9 out of 5 stars (46 ratings)

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Where the Light Fell

Written by: Philip Yancey
Narrated by: Philip Yancey
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Publisher's Summary

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).

“This stunning tale reminds us that the only way to keep living is to ask God for the impossible: love, forgiveness, and hope.” (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 '60s-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.”

©2021 Philip Yancey (P)2021 Random House Audio

What the critics say

"[Raw], honest, beautifully written, and at times searing . . . We live in a world that is always clouded by ungrace, by strife and anger and division, according to Yancey, and Christians should be on the other side . . . The pain of [Yancey’s] early life gives his words and his witness an authority and authenticity that he would otherwise not have. He has become, over time, a person to whom the wounded and the brokenhearted are drawn, compelled by his message of grace.”The Atlantic

Where the Light Fell is in many ways a classic spiritual autobiography tracing one man’s conversion from cynic to believer. But it’s more. It’s a searing family story as revelatory as gothic Southern fiction. It’s an exposé. It’s a social critique. It’s a tragedy. It’s a tale of redemption. . . . The memoir itself is an answer to the question that looms throughout: What do we do with the burdens, sins, and pain of our past?”Christianity Today

“Searing. Heartrending . . . This stunning tale reminds us that the only way to keep living is to ask God for the impossible: love, forgiveness, and hope.”—Kate Bowler, New York Times bestselling author of Everything Happens for a Reason

What listeners say about Where the Light Fell

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  • jjb
  • 2022-05-12

Excellent Summation and Memoir

Fantastic and Enlightening memoir/analysis of growing up in the deep south immersed in fundamental evangelism. Helped me to understand that I am not alone in my perceptions of the pros and cons of this twist of religious faith.

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excellent read.

I found this so engaging. devoured it.. honesty is helpful in reconciling damage I have done and done to me in a non Hollywood way

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Compelling, revealing, heartbreaking and healing.

This has been the most enjoyable audiobook I have listened to to date. At times it is laugh out loud humorous, recounting the cleverness of two young boys trying to navigate their unique circumstances. At times, too familiar for anyone raised in a fundamentalist or evangelical subculture of decades past (complete with some overly spiritual pat phrases that still come out of Evangelical’s mouths - and Philip‘s brother’s question wondering what is real and what is fake.)

A story of a distraught single Christian mother who made a vow before God for her sons future that wasn’t her prerogative to make.

At times shocking about the overt racism of the American South and the white fundamentalist church’s complicity in it. In the end it is just such an honest recounting of a personal journey marked by suffering and grace.

The performance is superb with the author changing speech patterns and accent to convey the voices of all the characters.

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Powerful, Redemptive Story

This is an incredible story of a true and beautiful faith that emerges from a sad, twisted representation of God. Grateful and encouraged.

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Raw and inspiring

I have enjoyed and grown from every Philip Yancey book I have read. This book felt like the behind the scenes of how he bacame the rlman and writer who has been such a blessing to me and countless others. I cried several times listening to this, both out of sorrow for the painful moments and out of joy in witnessing God's redemption. Thank you for this testimony of Jesus' grace.

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WOW

Like the stories we read in the bible, where it don’t attempt to give us that “social media” look to its characters, Phillip has given us the privilege to “see” his life with all good and the bad and alll the grace that came with it, and encourages each of us to “look back” as we continue to move forward. As always, most excellent writing and the reading in his own voice.

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Awesome

So we’ll done. Loved the book, and audio.
Would love to hear Mr Yancey narrate some of his other books.

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  • Ed
  • 2022-01-22

too much information

We didn't need 'a tell all book'. Yancy already alluded to his background enough in his books.

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