All kinds of pure

Book publishers can be really smart about some things. One wicked-smart thing is putting an excerpt from another book by the same author in the back of a book. That's how I found out about Pure. After I finished After the Kiss, which I did enjoy, but not enough that I was going to run out and read another book by McVoy right away. But as soon as I read the excerpt from Pure in the back of After I put that book on hold at the library.

Even though I have a giant stack of books to read I just couldn't start in on a new one the way I usually do after I finished Pure. I needed to just think about it. It was one of the best books I've read this year. If you aren't familiar with The Silver Ring thing, it might help to quickly google it before you read this book. Tabitha has a tight knit group of friends: her best friend, Morgan, best friends Cara and Naeomi and Pree, who is kinda the tag a long new friend. Tab, Morgan, Cara and Naeomi have all participated in a Silver Ring Thing-esque thing when they were in eighth grade during which they promised God and themselves and their families that they would remain sexually pure until marriage. When one of the girls goes back on this promise it threatens the whole group. Some of the questions raised in the book are what exactly is sexual immorality? What does forgiveness look like between friends, between a person and God? Should faith be talked about in school? What about the differences between churches and denominations? Between entire religions? Does one have to see everything as black and white or are their shades of gray? Being a very, what some would call liberal, but I just call 'followin' Jesus', Christian, I was delighted by the theological messages in this book. I shouldn't then go around and and start judging, but I'd bet my Judy Garland Fan Club Membership that this book wouldn't be found in a Christian school, even though though it should be. I loved the comparisons between Morgan's church and Tab's church, and their respective youth group leaders. I loved that the book mentioned the Tab's pastor's sermons. I loved, of course, that one of the pastors at Tab's church was a woman! I loved the complexity of the issues and I loved the ending. This book was one of the most realistic, right on portrayals of faith and doubt and the diverse Christian community. There are so many teens asking these very same questions, experiencing these very same things. Fantastic book for Christians of all denominations and non- Christians alike.