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I have had 7 on my TBR list for a few years now, so when I was given the opportunity to read Simple and Free, I jumped on it. To me, this book felt like typical Jen Hatmaker writing. It gave me some things to think about, challenged me at times, and made me laugh. Some of it did feel dated because I know about the author’s evolving beliefs, but I appreciated being able to see her comments on how her beliefs have changed in this book. She left the original content from 7 and added comments and up...
I read "7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess" in 2015 and felt moved by it enough to preach a series on the idea of minimizing your things so as not to be possessed by your possessions.Then, in 2016, Jen spoke out against Donald Trump and in support of the LGBTQ community. As a result, the publisher stopped printing her books.So, in 2020, she updated "7" and rereleased it under a new publisher with a new title.During this reread, the following ideas stood out to me:During the month where she...
I read 7 about a decade ago and wasn’t excited about the re-release, but I listened to this on audiobook and am glad I did. It’s still fresh and inspiring and thought-provoking, perhaps even more so with the 2021 updates.
Wow. Makes ya think. I loved the revisit and updates she gave about how these experiences have impacted her life Over the past 10 years. Lots of great ideas and I sought in how to live a better- and simpler- life.
I am not normally one for self-help, and self-help with a Christian bent? Forget it. However, I really enjoy following Jen Hatmaker on social media and have enjoyed a couple of her other books, so I decided to give this one a shot and I’m glad I did! I really liked that it wasn’t a framework but more a deep dive into an idea and a place to start conversations. Everything they did wouldn’t work for me, but it made me think a lot about what would work for me, which was the point. I also really app...
I first read 7 back in 2013, while working through the study guide. Rereading the words here in the updated version and also the updates from Jen helped me identify parallels in my own life. I’m actually kind of surprised by how much the content from 7 has influenced me and my decisions. It was the beginning of my own minimalism/downsizing journey and 9 years later I’m reminded and corrected in my own way of thinking after reading S&F.
This book appears to be a new revision to Jen Hatmaker’s 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess which was updated and revised in 2020. The premise remains the same: a laudable concept of fasting from excess and living as simply as possible with less, with the additions of the author’s reflective comments to the original text. New as I am to her work, I applaud the premise but not the way it is carried out. It’s too drastic to be possible for many.Fasting from anything can be an extreme activit...
Hatmaker revisits a book she authored a decade earlier and provides commentary on her thoughts from her earlier self. The book was taken off the shelves when she aligned herself with the LGBTQ community against her evangelical roots. Seven is the magic number as each month revolves around a different plan ie only eating seven foods or wearing seven articles of clothing to be more godly. My favorite is the gardening stories. Note: Hatmaker is working on a cookbook!Copy provided by the publisher a...
Ten years ago, Jen Hatmaker and her family designed a series of experiments to help their family learn about and attempt to alleviate the excess in their lives. For one month at a time, they focused on one of seven concepts: Food (sticking to eating only seven foods for the month), Clothing (wearing only seven pieces of clothing during the month and not purchasing any extra), Possessions (give away seven things they own each day), Media (shutting down seven forms of media and shutting down all u...
I loved Jen Hatmaker’s book “7” so much that my husband and I went through the downsizing, minimalist, less-is-more experiment for ourselves. So when I saw there was going to be a new edition called “Simple and Free,” I was excited but imagined it would be the same and didn’t expect too many revisions. But, man, did I love reading these new notes Jen has added. She is funny, she is honest, she scolds herself when she deems necessary, she tells us where she’s changed and grown. She laughs at hers...
I've been meaning to read Jen Hatmaker's book "7" for years, so I was glad to see it was available on Net Galley a while back. It took me a long time to read it, but it's the sort of book that makes you want to stop and think about what you've just read.The book follows Hatmaker and her family during a year when she chose seven big areas where she wanted to make changes and remove the excess of contemporary life. The areas she focused on are: food, clothes, spending, media, possessions, waste, s...
Books like this are simultaneously so inspiring and so paralyzing to me. I *want* to be more conscious of my everyday choices, purchases, time spent, and impact, and yet it's all so much to balance that I often don't know where to start. I appreciate Jen's humor and honesty both in the original writing and the 2021 updates, and I hope to grasp on to even just a few ideas that she champions. I'd recommend this book, as intimidating as it can seem, to anyone who would like to live even a bit more
I loved the original book 7, but so loved the 2021 update even more. Jen does not shy away from her mistakes and growth. Over the last 10 years she has become an advocate for social justice and equality and this is present in her updates.
This book will change your life.Whether you think you need it or not, buy it. Let it sit on your shelf and when you are ready walk your family through it. You will hate it, you will love it, you will be transformed! I read it in its original form as 7. It changed my life: especially in regards to food and shopping. I love the commentary in this book, and seeing how she feels about her experiences and the changes looking back is fun. This is a good book. It's not my fave Jen Hatmaker book, but it...
This book basically is 7. For context, Jen Hatmaker wrote a book called 7 ten years ago. Then she became vocal about her support for the LGBT community so the publisher pulled her book. Now ten years later she republished the book with a different publisher and a new name. Honestly this book is basically the same as 7. If you've read 7 you don't need to read this. She calls her expirement "simple and free" instead of "7" so all instances of 7 are replaced with simple and free. This sometimes cau...
You can read all of my book reviews at: https://www.kimberlyreadon.comI am going to be transparent and say that I am a little biased in this review. I have been a huge fan of Jen Hatmaker’s for about 6 or 7 years. She is a Christian humorist writer who balances both not taking herself too seriously, and having care and concern for the world and others in it. Hatmaker has a heart for the poor and disenfranchised. The first book of hers I read was “For the Love”, and then I read the subsequently p...
I originally read Jen Hatmaker’s “7” several years ago. It came at a time when I was struggling with all the ways that I was contributing to the larger issues we are facing globally (climate change, global warming, waste), as well as my own struggle to reign in our spending, pare down what we already had, and use all of our resources more wisely. “Simple & Free” is the same book, re-released under a new title, but with some added commentary, updates, data, and insights from a 2020 perspective (1...
Pros: The first pro is that this is a Jen Hatmaker book! She has a way with words, and I enjoy following her on Instagram and reading her books. This is one of her backlist books that I had not read before, and it has been updated in this new edition. The themes in this book—excess, consumerism, waste, etc—are still extremely relevant, ten years after she first wrote the book. The timing of reading this book (a few days after being without water for a week due to a snowstorm) made it even more r...
“Simple & Free” by Jen Hatmaker revisits “7” ten years later. While the content is the same, Hatmaker annotates with updates and thoughts looking back on who she was and the things she said, so as to better help people. The book follows Hatmaker through seven months of fasting from various things like clothing, stuff, foods, and more. This refresh gives more clarity and perspective to the hard act of fasting.This book was crazy-guilt-inducing for me. I’m looking at you, Jen Hatmaker. Just kiddin...
Finished my 120th book of the year: #SimpleAndFree by @jenhatmaker. I got the book from the library and bought the audiobook on Audible. I mostly listened to the audiobook which is read by the author and I 10/10 recommend. This book is an updated version of her book “7” previously released ten years ago. I never read that one, but I liked reading this one with her 2021 asides and updates. It’s interesting how our mindsets and ideas change over a decade later. I know mine have!I didn’t care for t...