Phyllis Tickle is a contributing religion editor for Publishers Weekly and is often quoted by national media such as The New York Times, Washington Post, Time, CNN and C-SPAN on matters involving religion. In her work, she reads countless books on the subject of God and faith and travels extensively listening to retailers, consumers and authors talk about their faith and view of God.

“God-talk” is what Tickle hears from the likes of you and me: our view of God, who He is and what He means to all those who believe in Him. This is not, mind you, Christian God-talk-but all God-talk—but all god-talk.

Within the renewed interest in spiritual matters in our nation these past few years, Tickle has observed a reemergence of things both of religion and of faith (she makes a right distinction between the two). “Whatever else it is,” writes Tickle, “god-talk is first and foremost a folk medley of hope in America, home of the hopeful.”

God-Talk in America is laid out in three interconnecting parts. There is the main body, written in narrative prose and taking readers on a cross-country trip to listen in on conversations regarding faith. Then there are the “interludes,” autobiographical snippets showing Tickle’s own faith journey. Finally, there are the endnotes that allow readers to dig deeper into many of the topics Tickle explores.

As Christians, we need to be aware of today’s resurgence in spiritual matters and be ready to offer the truth. God-Talk in America is useful as a resource to know what we are up against.