What Falls from the Sky

In this modern rendition of Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, Emery (The Homestead Wife), playwright, theater director, and blogger, abandons the stresses of city life by cutting off internet for a year. After struggling in a troubled marriage with a world of problems to navigate, she made the decision to simplify her life and return to a more organic way of living by walking away from social media, Google, e-mail, and anything else associated with the Internet. Emery describes how she had to relearn an appreciation for an Internet-free world in which she needs to work a little harder to find information, think a little deeper on issues without the input of those on social media, and reach out a little further to embrace her Christian faith, which had been on the back burner for many years. Emery’s difficulties dealing without the Internet will likely resonate more strongly with the millennial generation than with older readers who lived the majority of their lives without computers. However, her drive to simplify her life, get her marriage back on track, and immerse herself more deeply in her faith will strike a chord with any reader feeling the need to disconnect in order to live more wholly. (Dec.)