Book Review

The Louder Song : Listening for Hope in the Midst of Lament

by Aubrey Sampson

NavPress 2019

Reviewed by Diane Busch

I highly recommend this book, especially to all Christ followers.  It is eye opening and comforting.  Part of the human experience is grief, suffering, sadness, disappointment, etc. and sometimes we don’t know how to reconcile all that with the good God we love and serve.  Sampson teaches us about “lament”, possibly a forgotten word in our vocabularies.

Through Sampson’s own experiences and what Jesus has taught her, she can speak into our lives with raw emotion and honesty.   She gently shares what she has learned so that we too may find hope and joy not just at the end of our journey but along our crazy path as well. She validates our questions and our fears.  She gives us permission to cry, to complain, to be mad at God--to lament.  God is not afraid of lament so we should not be either.  There are more lament prayers than praise prayers in the Bible.  “Lament, above all, is a dialogue between us and God, and he has given us a beautiful picture of what that looks like throughout Scripture.”  

As one may express grief in various ways, lament also emerges “through a variety of mediums and expressions”.  Sampson goes into more detail about four types of lament.  She helps us handle our pain, anger, disbelief, fear, disappointment, and sadness by guiding us in our thoughts and prayers.  “Lament is the art of trusting God no matter what he gives, no matter what he takes.”  

After you read this book for yourself, I suggest buying it as a gift for those in your life who are struggling or questioning or need help navigating grief, suffering, or disappointment.  

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for review.