I love women, but reading books written by men helped me grow and understand myself better

Christian writer Sarah Jane Souther explains the value she finds in focusing her reading on books written by men. 

August. I’d gone hiking with some friends in upstate New York. I was tired, heartbroken over some boy who didn’t love me back. My mind spun with disappointment, my body with too much sun. When I got home to my apartment, I checked the post: a book. Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton.

Inside my apartment, I kicked off my shoes, laid down on the hardwood floor and started to read. I’ve always found books to be the best solace for a broken heart. A paragraph in, and I was smiling. It was that hushed, holy feeling coming over me, the same one I always get when I read something I know is going to change my life. Goosebumps jump onto my skin, my mind goes absolutely quiet. All that’s left are the words in front of me. It’s why I read books about the history books, philosophy books, theology books and fiction books. To find those reads that will sculpt my very soul.