Reviews

The Confessions of Saint Augustine by Saint Augustine

mayajoelle's review against another edition

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5.0

I have a few *very* mild theological issues with this, but otherwise it is a marvelous masterpiece that everyone should read. I am very excited to read it in Latin (so excited that I might just do it this summer even though I could wait for a class sometime in the next couple of years... I can tell this book will be better in Latin.)

Will be back to add quotes!

(I read books 1-9 for my literature class. I plan to read 10-13 over spring or summer break, but even if I don't I am counting this for my reading challenge because that's basically a whole book, right?)

(My rules for what counts as "reading" a book have relaxed this semester as I've realized that if I didn't count reading most of a book, I would have read four or five less books than Goodreads says I have. And we cannot have that. Because I certainly did read most of those books. So I'm saying they count.)

khlochette's review against another edition

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4.0

Livre VII
Chapitre XVI : Que toutes les choses naturelles sont bonnes ; et ce que c'est que le péché.

"[...] Je recherchais ensuite ce qu'était le mal et le péché ; et je trouvais que ce n'était point une substance, mais seulement un dérèglement de la volonté qui, en s'éloignant de vous, mon Dieu, qui êtes là souveraine substance, se porte dans l'affection de ce qui est au-dessous de vous, et qui en rejetant ce qu'elle a de plus précieux et de plus caché en elle-même, s'enfle d'orgueil et se répand toute par sa vanité dans les choses extérieures."

adelevarley's review against another edition

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4.0

I have been pretty absent on Goodreads recently, and this book is one of the main reasons why. As you can tell, I have gone from digesting stupid romance novels that I can read in about a day to reading Christian sort-of-not-really autobiographies that take weeks. Three cheers for college!

When I tell you this is a doozy, believe me! The first 9 chapters consist of St. Augustine apologizing for all the stupid stuff he did as a child, and then the last few are all filled with philosophical/theological/conceptual things that pretty much went over my head.

All that being said, I really loved reading this book. I felt like I got a lot out of Augustine's experience, and I loved the way that he described his mother, St. Monica.
Spoiler When he described Monica's death I started sobbing in the law library like a complete fool.
Also, Augustine is a beautiful writer, and although I did fall asleep in the library while reading this, it was a lot more digestible than I was expecting. Some parts of it are definitely still relatable to this day.

Overall, I would recommend this one if you like reading books about Catholicism/Religion! 4/5 stars

mattstauser's review against another edition

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slow-paced

4.0

dabina's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I think this was one of my most formative books I've read, incredibly convicting, vulnerable, and raw; speaks to a spiritual experience I've only ever seen represented in a book like this. An honest and timeless autobiography

vlphildreth's review against another edition

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5.0

This is so book-marked it's ridiculous. Even now that I've read the religious texts of the big three, I still prefer books about them rather than actually reading the sources. Augustine is just so quotable. I'm definitely going to put him in the wedding somehow. I highly recommend this book.

vklyle99's review against another edition

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Boring!

catherinemohs's review against another edition

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5.0

Amazing book. St. Augustine's logic is so clear and concise. HIs conversion story is incredible.

caleb_karnosh22's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0