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
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Community Reviews
Good Apple Tales of a Southern Evangelical in New York by Elizabeth Passarella
232 pages
What’s it about?
Elizabeth Passarella works in journalism and has made a home in New York City. In this memoir she discusses her Southern heritage, evangelism, marriage, parenting, and her love of New York City.
What did it make me think about?
Elizabeth Passarella would be fun to have dinner with.
Should I read it?
I kept thinking that this book was having an identity crisis. It was definitely a memoir but in what other category would it fit- Christian, parenting, marriage, humor? Somehow Ms. Passarella makes it work- even though I am still not sure how to categorize this one. It was enjoyable. A step into a different life. Plus who doesn't love a woman who admits her faults!
Quote-
"The whole calling New Yorkers elitist is not much of a sting, to start. I'm not justifying it- only the shaman here- but, yeah, they are very happy to be elitist and do not consider this to be in any way an insult. Explaining the gobsmacked misery that was New York the day after the election had as much to do with surprise as it did with the homogeneity of politics. I'll put it in terms my Southern beloved can understand: picture being at a bowl game between Auburn and, I don't know, Brown, and Brown wins."
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