Audio only
Braving the Truth
Essential Essays for Reckoning with and Reimagining FaithBy Rachel Held EvansNarrated by Sarah Bessey, Daniel Jonce Evans, Marni PenningLength11h 31m
About this audiobook
New York Times bestselling author Rachel Held Evans inspired a generation reckoning with their evangelical upbringing and what faith is meant to be (or not be). This book offers a collection of her most impactful essays that still speak prophetically and profoundly today.
The audiobook, read by Marni Penning, includes special appearances by Sarah Bessey and Daniel Jonce Evans.
For a generation finding their footing in life after evangelicalism, Rachel Held Evans was one of the most trusted and beloved voices of our time. Stubborn in her hope, courageous in her questions, and devoted to inclusivity, her online writing was a sanctuary to the millions who read her words daily. Her death to a sudden illness in 2019 invoked a global outpouring of stories of her legacy and influence. Today, her words still speak, and now for the first time, fans old and new can experience her most viral and enduring essays in print—from those tackling patriarchy, white supremacy, and religious nationalism to those offering new interpretations of Scripture, freeing perspectives on doubt, and a better way forward. Braving the Truth is an anthology and keepsake collection letting readers borrow the bravery Rachel was best known for. Edited by New York Times bestselling author and Rachel’s dear friend Sarah Bessey, this special volume is interspersed with reflections from:
Shauna Niequist on the practice of bravery
Glennon Doyle on the decision to "stay and complicate"
Jen Hatmaker on LGBTQ+ allyship and affirming theology
Lisa Sharon Harper on fighting white patriarchy in the church
Matthew Paul Turner on the freedom of the "slippery slope" of asking questions
Kaitlin B. Curtice on solidarity, kinship, and "tending the spiritual fire"
And more from Candice Marie Benbow, Micha Boyett, Cindy Wang Brandt, Alise Chaffins, Shane Claiborne, Monica A. Coleman, Shannon Dingle, Peter Enns, Kathy Escobar, Kathleen Gleason, Austen Hartke, Peter Held, Carol Howard, Kristen Howerton, Zack Hunt, Emmy Kegler, Kathy Khang, Mihee Kim-Kort, Rachel Kurtz, Tanya Marlow, Sarah McCammon, Mike McHargue, Scot McKnight, Brian D. McLaren, Mason Mennenga, Osheta Moore, Amanda Held Opelt, Matthias Roberts, Winnie Varghese, Matthew Vines, and Kelsey Hanson Woodruff
“If you want to understand the Church today, you need to understand Rachel Held Evans,” so writes Sarah Bessey. Thoughtful yet down-to-earth, immediate and timeless, this essay collection is a gift from the past to bring into the future—a treasury to revitalize, validate, embolden, and return to again and again.
Audiobook details
GenreSpirituality and Religion, Literary Classics, Psychology
Length11 hrs 31 mins
Narrated bySarah Bessey, Daniel Jonce Evans, Marni Penning
FormatAudiobook
Publish dateFeb 24, 2026
LanguageEnglish
More from Rachel Held Evans
31 Decrees of Blessing for Your LifePatricia King2h 38m$10 · $0.00
Walk With Me JesusMarie Chapian6h 4m$10 · $0.00
Prayers on Fire for WomenBrian Simmons, Candice Simmons8h 24m$10 · $0.00
Strong's Bible ConcordanceJames Strong136h 23m$2 · $0.00
365 Days of Hope and Healing for Your Body, Mind, and SoulJoan Hunter8h 48m$10 · $0.00
Rewrite the Mother CodeDr. Gertrude Lyons10h 55m$25
Loved BabySarah Philpott4h 51m$10 · $0.00
The QuranAllah23h 12m$1 · $0.00
The Holy Qur-an: Text, Translation and CommentaryAbdullah Yusuf Ali21h 14m$3 · $0.00
The Secret of the RosaryLouis de Montfort6h 7m$2 · $0.00
Jesus the ChristJames E. Talmage30h 50m$2 · $0.00
Defying JihadEsther Ahmad8h 50m$20
PsalmsKing James Bible4h 2m$10
The Two Swords of ChristRaymond Ibrahim15h 55m$30
Steps to ChristEllen G. White3h 12m$2 · $0.00
Praying Grace for MenDavid Holland3h 24m$10 · $0.00
C. S. LewisC. S. Lewis38h 55m$30
Swayam Ki AwaazPrem Rawat8h 34m$26 · $0.00
The Existence and Attributes of God (Vol. 1&2)Stephen Charnock69h 43m$2 · $0.00
Behind the BadgeAdam Davis10h 18m$10 · $0.00
MARK TWAIN: 12 Novels, 195 Short Stories, Autobiography, 10 Travel Books, 160+ Essays & Speeches (Illustrated)Mark Twain416h 24m5 (2)$2 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m$18 · $0.00
The Complete Works of TolstoyLeo Tolstoy412h 44m$1 · $0.00
Louisa May Alcott: 16 Novels in One Volume (Illustrated Edition)Louisa May Alcott141h 35m$2 · $0.00
The Fire Next TimeJames Baldwin2h 25m$15
The Complete Works of Oscar WildeOscar Wilde80h 38m$1 · $0.00
The Complete Books of F. Scott Fitzgerald (all his 5 novels + all 4 short story collections published during his lifetime)F. Scott Fitzgerald86h 48m$2 · $0.00
The Count of Monte Cristo (With Original Illustrations)Alexandre Dumas54h 7m$1 · $0.00
Richard Wagamese SelectedRichard Wagamese3h 14m$15
Shōgun, Part OneJames Clavell24h 19m$35
Henry V (The Play, Historical Background and Analysis of the Character in the Play)William Shakespeare, William Hazlitt8h 40m$1 · $0.00
Pathways to LightPrakash Amte7h 6m$8
The North American Indian (Illustrated Edition)Edward S. Curtis, Frederick Webb Hodge6h$2 · $0.00
The Holy BibleKing James99h 50m$12 · $0.00
The Complete Novels of the Brontë Sisters (8 Novels: Jane Eyre, Shirley, Villette, The Professor, Emma, Wuthering Heights, Agnes Grey and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall)Charlotte Brontë, Emily Brontë, Anne Brontë118h 9m$2 · $0.00
The Greatest Works of Jules VerneJules Verne247h 39m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of G. K. ChestertonG. K. Chesterton421h 4m$2 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 54m$2 · $0.00
The Brontë Sisters CollectionEmily Brontë, Anne Brontë, Charlotte Brontë39h 58m$12 · $0.00
EssaysGeorge Orwell1h 44m$2 · $0.00
Hour of the HeartIrvin D. Yalom, Benjamin Yalom8h 19m$26 · $0.00
The Thomas Sowell ReaderThomas Sowell14h 51m$25
So You Want to Talk about RaceIjeoma Oluo7h 41m$17
Level UpRob Dial7h 42m$26 · $0.00
As a JewSarah Hurwitz8h 36m$26 · $0.00
The North American Indian (Illustrated Edition)Edward S. Curtis, Frederick Webb Hodge6h$2 · $0.00
Burn the HaystackJennie Young, PhD9h 30m$29 · $0.00
Good InsideBecky Kennedy9h 55m$29 · $0.00
Du Bois: EssaysW.E.B. Du Bois6h 23m$1 · $0.00
Valley of the BirdtailAndrew Stobo Sniderman, Douglas Sanderson10h 1m$29 · $0.00
Lies My Therapist Told MeGreg E. Gifford9h 3m$29 · $0.00
Nobody Knows My NameJames Baldwin5h 49m$17
Start Here Start NowLiz Kleinrock4h 20m$20
The Collected Works of Sigmund FreudSigmund Freud112h 54m$2 · $0.00
Man's Search for MeaningViktor E. Frankl5h 44m$20
Abolition. Feminism. Now.Angela Y. Davis, Erica Meiners, Beth Richie, Gina Dent5h 4m$15
Becoming AbolitionistsDerecka Purnell14h 24m$23
Consent Laid BareChanel Contos7h 11m$24 · $0.00
Pastoral SongJames Rebanks8h 35m$26 · $0.00
The Streets of BaltimoreJoe Frantz6h 52m$17
You may also like
The Threefold CommonwealthRudolf Steiner3h 54m$2 · $0.00
RationalismJ. M. Robertson2h 35m$2 · $0.00
The Power CodeKatty Kay, Claire Shipman9h 26m$29 · $0.00
Divergent MindJenara Nerenberg6h 37m$24 · $0.00
F*ck HappinessAriel Gore6h 14m$17 · $0.00
In addition to Dale Carnegie´s MethodUnknown Author58m$17 · $0.00
Dismistifying the Subtle Art of Liging the F*-SeUnknown Author47m$17 · $0.00
The Period BrainSarah E. Hill, Ph.D8h 6m$26 · $0.00
Making Space for JusticeMichele Moody-Adams9h 42m$20
Say HelloCarly Findlay7h 58m$26 · $0.00
The Hands-Off ManagerSteve Chandler, Duane Black5h 48m$20 · $0.00
The Intermediate Sex, A Study Of Some Transitional Types Of Men And WomenEdward Carpenter3h 46m$2.30
The Progressive ParentKavin Senapathy9h 56m$29 · $0.00
Whitman: A StudyJohn Burroughs7h 56m$2 · $0.00
The higher education of womenEmily Davies3h 10m$1 · $0.00
The Dust of DeathOs Guinness16h 25m$25 · $0.00
Creative IntelligenceHorace Meyer Kallen, John Dewey, James Hayden Tufts, George H. Mead, Harold Chapman Brown, Henry Waldgrave Stuart, Addison Webster Moore, Boyd Henry Bode8h 29m$2 · $0.00
The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A F*ck (Gujarati)Mark Manson, Jatin Vora7h 29m$13 · $0.00
NiksenOlga Mecking5h 5m$24 · $0.00
#UsTooDebjani Mukherjee Biswas1h$20