Good Books Big Questions

Why Some Books Stay With Us Forever | Caitlyn Carlson, Olivia Eldredge

In our last episode of Season 2, we take you to the 2026 Festival of Faith and Writing at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In amongst the book tables and hubbub, host Karen Stiller sat down with NavPress editors Caitlyn Carlson and Olivia Eldredge to talk about how book ideas are selected (Spoiler: it’s not about platform); why NavPress leans into the harder questions of faith; and what makes a book successful. And the answer to that question might surprise you.  Caitlyn Carlson is a senior acquisitions editor at NavPress. Olivia Eldredge is the editor for Eugene H. Peterson’s Message Bible line at NavPress. For US orders on all the books featured in Season 2, use the discount code GOOD20 to get 20% off at NavPress.com [http://navpress.com] until June 1, 2026. Visit GoodBooksBigQuestions.com [https://www.navpress.com/podcast] to catch up on all our episodes. Please let us know what you think of the show. Our email address is goodbooksbigquestions@gmail.com And don’t forget to follow, rate and review us. The views and opinions expressed in this recording do not necessarily reflect the positions of NavPress or The Navigators.

You Can’t Just ‘Move On’ From Trauma | Mary DeMuth

“An untold story never heals. It just festers.” That’s one of the big motivations Mary DeMuth [https://www.marydemuth.com/] offers us for reexamining and then sharing our life stories with each other. In her 2026 book Restory Your Life: How Jesus Reframes Your Past, Rewrites Your Present, and Redefines Your Future [https://www.navpress.com/p/restory-your-life/27901/audio-download], DeMuth invites readers to use storytelling techniques, such as conflict, climax, and denouement – a fancy word for conclusion – to help us sort through the past and find God in the midst of it all. In sharing our stories, she says, we end up helping each other and deepening our friendships. Mary DeMuth is the author of more than 50 books. She is a literary agent, international speaker, and host of the Pray Every Day [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pray-every-day/id1341945281]podcast. For US orders, use code GOOD20 to get 20% off Restory Your Life: How Jesus Reframes Your Past, Rewrites Your Present, and Redefines Your Future [https://www.navpress.com/p/restory-your-life/27901/audio-download] at NavPress.com [http://navpress.com]. It’s available in audiobook, eBook, and softcover. Visit GoodBooksBigQuestions.com [https://www.navpress.com/podcast] to catch up on all our episodes. Please let us know what you think of the show. Our email address is goodbooksbigquestions@gmail.com And don’t forget to follow, rate and review the show. The views and opinions expressed in this recording do not necessarily reflect the positions of NavPress or The Navigators.

Can You Question Your Faith Without Losing It? | Marty Solomon

There are all kinds of negative terms to describe the process of re-examining what it means to be a Christian: Deconstruction. Exvangelical. A crisis of faith. What if we approached this more positively? Marty Solomon [https://www.martysolomon.com/] says deconstruction can be a vibrant, beautiful, and compelling reconstruction process. Solomon and Reed Dent’s 2026 book The Gospel of Being Human: How Asking Better Questions of the Bible Reveals Who We Are [https://www.navpress.com/search?keyword=the+gospel+of+being+human&_gl=1*1cr6zzr*_ga*ZjdjYjRiMjctMzE2NC00M2NiLWI4MDEtOGI1NTE2MTNlOGIz*_up*MQ..*_ga_7MJ17T9HMN*czE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkbzEkZzAkdDE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkajYwJGwwJGgw*_ga_9J1HGDX817*czE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkbzEkZzAkdDE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkajYwJGwwJGgw] invites readers on a journey of curiosity. In this conversation, host Karen Stiller and Solomon discuss things like how curiosity makes us better; what the Bible says about life before death and not just life after death; why Jesus had to die; and, of course, how to respond to the deconstructors we know and love. Marty Solomon is the President of Impact Campus Ministries [https://www.impacttheu.com/] and the host of the BEMA podcast [https://www.bemadiscipleship.com/]. For US orders, use discount code GOOD20 to get 20% off The Gospel of Being Human [https://www.navpress.com/search?keyword=the+gospel+of+being+human&_gl=1*1cr6zzr*_ga*ZjdjYjRiMjctMzE2NC00M2NiLWI4MDEtOGI1NTE2MTNlOGIz*_up*MQ..*_ga_7MJ17T9HMN*czE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkbzEkZzAkdDE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkajYwJGwwJGgw*_ga_9J1HGDX817*czE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkbzEkZzAkdDE3NzQ3MTQ2MDkkajYwJGwwJGgw] at navpress.com [http://navpress.com]. It’s available in paperback, audiobook and eBook. Visit GoodBooksBigQuestions.com [https://www.navpress.com/podcast] to catch up on all our episodes. Please let us know what you think of the show. Our email address is goodbooksbigquestions@gmail.com And don’t forget to follow, rate and review the show. The views and opinions expressed in this recording do not necessarily reflect the positions of NavPress or The Navigators.

Christian Burnout Is Real—Now What? | Ben Espinoza

Self-care sometimes gets a bad rap. It sounds entitled. But seriously bad things can happen when we don’t take care of ourselves. Ben Espinoza [https://benespinoza.com/]’s new book Good News about Self-Care: How Nurturing Your Soul, Your Self and Your Sanity Honors God [https://www.navpress.com/p/good-news-about-self-care/9781641589802] is meant for a general audience. Everyone can benefit. But this is a conversation about what happens when pastors ignore self-care. The consequences can be devastating, not just for pastors and their families, but for congregations and the wider Church. Ben Espinoza [https://benespinoza.com/] is the Lead Pastor of Riverstone Church in western New York. For US orders, use discount code GOOD20 to get 20% off Good News About Self-Care [https://www.navpress.com/p/good-news-about-self-care/9781641589802]at navpress.com [http://navpress.com]. It’s available in Softcover, Audiobook or eBook.  Visit GoodBooksBigQuestions.com [https://www.navpress.com/podcast] to catch up on all episodes. Let us know what you think of the show. Our email address is goodbooksbigquestions@gmail.com And don’t forget to follow, rate and review the show. The views and opinions expressed in this recording do not necessarily reflect the positions of NavPress or The Navigators.

The Secret to Better Conflict Conversations | Heather Thompson Day

If you’ve ever been bullied you know how crippling it can be. After it happened to her daughter London, Heather Thompson Day [https://www.heatherthompsonday.com/about] and London wrote a children’s book called Can I Sit Here? [https://www.navpress.com/p/can-i-sit-here/9781641589192] They wanted to give other kids the words to name bullying for what it is and encourage adults to take it more seriously. But this conversation quickly moves into how to identify and respond to bullying whether you’re a child or an adult; how to communicate with people who may hate you; and how to truly pray for our enemies. For US orders, use discount code GOOD20 to get 20% off Can I Sit Here? [https://www.navpress.com/p/can-i-sit-here/9781641589192] at navpress.com [http://navpress.com]. It’s available in hardcover and eBook. Visit GoodBooksBigQuestions.com [https://www.navpress.com/podcast] to catch up on all episodes. Let us know what you think of the show. Our email address is goodbooksbigquestions@gmail.com And don’t forget to follow, rate and review the show. The views and opinions expressed in this recording do not necessarily reflect the positions of NavPress or The Navigators.