Dazzling Darkness

Format: Paperback

ISBN-13: 9781849522410

Amazon UK: Dazzling Darkness

Language: English

Standpoint: 1 Fully inclusive and affirming

Genre(s): Memoir/autobiography and Spirituality

Topic(s): Disability, Discrimination against and hostility towards LGBT+ people, Gender identity, Illness, and Transgender people

Especially suitable for: Transgender people and Workers with young people

Dazzling Darkness is Rachel Mann’s honest and moving account of her search for her authentic self in the company of the Living God. She has had to face many painful struggles in that process, including transitioning, coming to terms with chronic illness and disability, and dealing with ignorance and prejudice.

Reviews/Comments

“Beautifully written, with insight humour and compassion, sharing a story of courage, pain and encouragement with a powerful poetry of life affirmation even in the brokenness and darkness.” — an Amazon customer

“At its heart Dazzling Darkness is a journey into honest self-discovery and, perhaps more importantly, learning to live with that self. It is a story of the dark places, of longing for wholeness of all kinds, and finding the hope within them. It is a struggle to find language to express what needs to be said. This is a book about the Living God, very much present in the darkness, but not always how we imagine it.

“I found this a powerful, honest and gritty book. It pulls no punches about the difficulties the author faced and continues to face, which is important. So often we only hear ‘nice’ stories about faith, we need to hear more real ones. Rachel Mann manages to bring hope and reality without saccharine-sweet answers. I found chapter 9 the most powerful thing I have read on the suffering of chronic illness – and I have read, and written, a lot! As someone for whom chronic illness has robbed me of much, it made a different kind of sense to me than that which is usually offered.

It is a painful book, a book of struggle, very much grounded in the reality of life. We may think our story is nothing like this one, but pain and struggle are all around us; if not currently in our own life, in the lives of those in our community every day. It also might make you look at God in a different, helpful way. You may not ‘get’ it all, but it is very much worth the challenge.” — pamjw