Book Recommendation: Katharina and Martin Luther

Michelle DeRusha, Katharina and Martin Luther: The Radical Marriage of a Runaway Nun and a Renegade Monk. Baker Books, 2017. 315 pages. 

2017 marks the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. The major Christian publishers have released several strong titles commemorating this monumental anniversary. Michelle DeRusha's Katharina and Martin Luther is one of these works. 

Katharina and Martin Luther consists of eighteen chapters and an appendix:
1--To the Cloister School
2--A Nun without a Choice
3--A Family Rift
4--The Good Monk
5--The Road to Damascus and Nail in the Door
6--Hear This, O Pope!
7--The Risks of Freedom
8--Escape
9--Marriage Makeover
10--Tying the Knot
11--Backlash
12--Hausfrau Extraordinaire
13--Two Pigtails on the Pillow
14--A Family Affair
15--The Noblest, Most Precious Work
16--In the Valley of the Shadow of Death
17--'Til Death Did Them Part
18--A Chancy Thing

Appendix 

Much has been written about the thunderous reformer, Martin Luther. Some has been written about his wife Katharina. There have been almost no books written about their radical marriage. Michelle DeRusha's purpose in writing Katharina and Martin Luther is to fill this void. 

This book is an excellent resource to learn more about the Luthers, especially Katharina. The book begins by tracing her origins and story. How she was raised and some of her personality is seen in these chapters. What becomes clear is just how perfect of a fit she was for Martin Luther. Next, Martin Luther's well known journey from the monastery to the church door in Wittenburg, to his mantle of reformer is rehashed. Finally, DeRusha gives us a portrait of their marriage. Along the way we are instructed on broader historical developments and given cultural insights. The book concludes with an appendix that is a collection of three letters from the Luthers. The finished product is a great, one volume resource on the Luthers and their marriage. 

DeRusha's purpose was to write about Katharina Luther and Luther's marriage. She has succeeded. This is a well written history of a marriage against the backdrop of the monumental Protestant Reformation. 

 I received this book free from Baker Books through the Baker Books Bloggers Program. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review.