What was your favorite picture book as a kid?

My favorite children’s book wasn’t really a picture book. It was Robert Louis Stevenson’s A Child’s Garden of Verses—a hardback book that was fully illustrated. It’s interesting that a poetry book was my favorite as a child because later as a high school English teacher I initially was petrified of teaching poetry to students. No teacher had ever taught me poetry form—I had to teach myself—but I learned to love it and love teaching it still.

What was the first “real” book (with chapters and without pictures) you remember reading?

I read every single Nancy Drew book I could get my hands on. I remember one summer of walking to the library every other day to get the next ones. I love the mystery form and have even written a few myself.

What was your most favorite book in high school?

The novel that had the biggest impact on me in high school was Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. While it’s a sad story, the important takeaway for me was that a single individual can make a difference in the lives of others. That’s why I went into teaching.

What was your least favorite book in high school?

That’s easy: my chemistry textbook.

What was the last novel you read?

I’m reading the four books in the Sensible Shoes series by Sharon Garlough Brown. I recently finished the second in that series, Two Steps Forward, and now I’m reading Barefoot. I’m actually more of a nonfiction reader because I’m content driven, so I love how Brown teaches about spiritual formation through story form.

What was the last nonfiction book you read?

I recently finished Becoming Elisabeth Elliot by biographer Ellen Vaughn. It took me weeks to read that book because the story is so hard—I could only read a chapter at a time. I’m looking forward to reading the follow-up book, Being Elisabeth Elliot.

Which book lived up to the hype (from the past 1-2 years)?

Sacred Rest by Saundra Dalton-Smith is life changing. The subtitle is Recover Your Life, Renew Your Energy, Restore Your Sanity, and the author accomplishes those promises by teaching that there are seven different kinds of rest, how we can discover deficits, and how we can replenish them.

Which book do you love that needs more hype?

Walk It Out by Tricia Goyer is a fantastic book. She writes a compelling treatise on how we can live out our faith radically to draw others to Jesus. I read that book in a day and then I spent the next day sitting in a coffee house taking notes and praying about how I could live my life more radically for the kingdom.

What’s the next novel on your TBR?

I’m going to finish the last two in the Sensible Shoes series . . . and then read Paula Scott’s (Paul Bicknell) novel River of Mercy.

What’s next on your nonfiction TBR?

  • The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry: How to Stay Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in the Chaos of the Modern World by John Comer
  • The Portable Seminary (David Horton, editor),
  • Women and C. S. Lewis (Carolyn Curtis and Mary Pomroy Key, editors).

Tell us about your newest release/upcoming release.

My new book is Praying Personalities: Finding Your Natural Prayer Style (Kregel, Feb. 13, 2024). People tell us we should have a prayer closet and go there an hour every day to pray. Others say we should write out all our prayers or have a notebook to keep track of others’ requests. But none of those “shoulds” may seem to make sense to us, given our God-given personality.

I examine biblical people’s prayer lives, the spiritual gifts, eight different personality theories, learning styles, and generational praying practices to offer several praying styles—given our personality and lifestyle. I pray it gives others freedom to find their own rhythm of prayer that leads them to a praying-without-ceasing lifestyle.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

Those interested in learning how to write could check out my four-day Sierra Valley Writers Retreat, which I hold twice a year in my home/guesthouse: https://www.janetmchenry.com/about-3. I teach an intensive course on nonfiction books and love watching lightbulbs go on in the eyes of new writers.

Also, those interested in reading through the Bible in a year are invited to join my Bible Girls 2024 Facebook group. This coming year will be the eleventh year we’ve read through God’s Word together—which is life changing!

Janet McHenry is a national speaker and the author of 26 traditionally published books—seven on prayer, including the bestselling Prayer Walk and The Complete Guide to the Prayers of Jesus. She directs the prayer ministries at The Bridge Church in Reno, serves as a county leader for Pray California, is the creator of an online course called Prayer School, and serves on the California state leadership team for the National Day of Prayer. Janet and her husband Craig live in the Sierra Valley in northern California, where he is a cattle rancher and where they raised their four kids. Their favorite days are those kayaking on nearby mountain lakes.

Website: https://www.janetmchenry.com
Praying Personalities Quiz: https://prayingpersonalities.com
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