I thought Surprised By Oxford would be the perfect book for me: spiritual journey, a little bit of romance, and it takes place in Oxford, a huge plus for an Anglophile like me. The book centers around Carolyn Weber's search for Truth, and her eventually finding faith in God while she pursues a Master's Degree at Oxford.
While well-told and often interesting, I hate to admit that Weber's book was a little too scholarly for me. Although I consider myself intellectually not-too-shabby, I found myself reading and re-reading pages, to try and figure out what she had been talking about. Add this to the fact that the book is north of 400 pages, and it became pretty laborious to read after a while.
Weber does a good job of describing her wrestling with questions and with God, but I found it odd for her to say that she had been so closed off to the very idea of God, and then was almost immediately open to exploring theology upon her arrival to Oxford. While I'm sure her book is an absolutely accurate portrayal of what happened, I found it hard to believe that people who all disagreed so vehemently on important issues could get along so well.
In all, I think this was a pretty good book. It's definitely suited for more intellectual types, and if you're not wanting to finish a book in less than a week, it's great.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
