Book excerpt: In Pleading, Cursing, Praising, the renowned scholar, spiritual guide, and teacher Irene Nowell brings together her many gifts to offer Christians today a remarkable guide to praying with the psalms. Nowell maintains that the psalms teach us to tell our story, to cry out our pain, and to give praise to God. They also teach us to listen-to the voice of God, the voice of Christ, the voices of the people around us, and the voice of all creation. This book includes questions and exercises for personal reflection, brief prayers for praying along the way, and suggestions for composing one's own psalmprayers. It promises to enrich the spiritual life of everyone who reads it.