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Book Report: Living Easter: 50 Days to Practice Resurrection by Laura Kelly Fanucci

Laura Kelly Fanucci’s monograph is a thoughtful and beautifully written guide that invites Christians to inhabit the Easter season with far more depth than a single Sunday celebration allows. Fanucci’s central conviction is simple yet transformative: Easter is not an event to commemorate once a year but a way of life to be practiced daily. Through fifty days of reflections and simple, embodied practices, she encourages readers to let the reality of the resurrection shape their imagination, their habits, and their hope.

The structure of the book mirrors the liturgical season itself. Each day offers a short meditation paired with a concrete practice—something small enough to be achievable, yet meaningful enough to shift the reader’s posture toward God and the world. This rhythm of reflection and action is one of the book’s greatest strengths. Fanucci understands that spiritual transformation happens not only through ideas but through repeated, intentional choices that slowly reshape the heart. Her writing is warm, pastoral, and deeply human, making the book accessible to individuals, families, small groups, or congregations seeking to deepen their spiritual formation during Eastertide.

A major theme running through the book is the idea that resurrection is not merely a doctrine to affirm but a lens through which to view all of life. Fanucci invites readers to consider how resurrection might influence their relationships, their approach to suffering, their sense of purpose, and their engagement with the world’s brokenness. She draws on Scripture, personal experience, and the rhythms of the liturgical year to show that resurrection is not abstract. It is meant to be lived—expressed in acts of courage, forgiveness, generosity, and joy. In this way, the book echoes the early Christian understanding that Easter inaugurates a new creation, one in which believers are called to participate.

Fanucci’s reflections are grounded in the real textures of human experience. She writes honestly about grief, uncertainty, and the slow, often painful work of healing. Her meditations acknowledge that resurrection does not erase wounds; it transforms them. This is a deeply pastoral insight, especially for readers who carry losses or disappointments into the Easter season. By naming the tension between joy and sorrow, Fanucci creates space for readers to bring their whole selves—wounded, hopeful, weary, grateful—into the presence of the risen Christ.

Another notable strength of the book is its attention to the sacramentality of everyday life. Fanucci has a gift for noticing the holy in the ordinary: a shared meal, a quiet morning, a moment of unexpected kindness. She helps readers cultivate a posture of attentiveness, encouraging them to look for signs of resurrection in places they might otherwise overlook. This contemplative approach aligns with ancient Christian practices of gratitude, mindfulness, and wonder, yet it is presented in a way that feels fresh and accessible for modern readers.

The communal dimension of resurrection is also central to Fanucci’s vision. She reminds readers that Easter is not only about personal renewal but about belonging to a larger body—the church across time and space. Many of her suggested practices invite outward movement: acts of hospitality, reconciliation, justice, and service. In this way, Living Easter becomes not only a devotional resource but also a call to embody resurrection in tangible ways that bless the wider world. Fanucci challenges readers to consider how resurrection might shape their presence in their communities, their workplaces, and their relationships.

What makes the book particularly compelling is its blend of theological depth and practical wisdom. Fanucci writes with a contemplative voice, yet her insights are grounded in lived experience and pastoral sensitivity. She helps readers slow down, pay attention, and rediscover the sacredness woven into everyday life. Her reflections are neither sentimental nor simplistic; they are spacious, honest, and rooted in the conviction that God is at work in the ordinary as much as in the extraordinary.

By the end of the fifty days, readers are gently led toward Pentecost with a renewed sense of purpose and a clearer vision of what it means to live as resurrection people. Fanucci’s hope is that the practices cultivated during Eastertide will continue beyond the season, shaping a way of life marked by gratitude, courage, and hope. In this sense, the book is not only a guide for fifty days but a companion for the long journey of Christian discipleship.

Ultimately, Living Easter: 50 Days to Practice Resurrection is a nourishing and timely resource for anyone seeking to deepen their spiritual life. It offers a grace‑filled path through the Easter season, inviting believers to let the joy of the resurrection take root in their hearts and overflow into their actions. Fanucci’s reflections remind readers that resurrection is not only God’s gift but also God’s ongoing invitation—to live awake, grateful, courageous, and transformed.