Little Black Sheep

A Memoir

by Ashley Cleveland

This title was previously available on NetGalley and is now archived.

Buy on Amazon Buy on BN.com Buy on Bookshop.org

*This page contains affiliate links, so we may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links on our site at no additional cost to you.

Pub Date Sep 01 2013 | Archive Date Oct 31 2013

David C Cook | David C. Cook

Biographies & Memoirs | Christian

Description

“This is the story of the groundwork that paved the way to my faith. It is not an easy story to tell….” This powerful memoir from Grammy Award winner Ashley Cleveland reminds us that even in the lowest times of our lives, beauty can shine through. As a young woman from a deeply flawed family, Ashley had little hope she would amount to anything. If there was trouble, near or far, she found it. Yet, in her destructive days of drugs, alcohol, and sex, she encountered a forgiving God who was relentlessly faithful. Change did not come quickly. The brokenness did not disappear. But little by little, Ashley allowed God to heal her, to transform her desires, to bring courage to others through her journey. Little by little, she saw that it was her brokenness itself that God wanted to use. This beautifully told story will take you from the back rooms of Nashville to the churches of the San Francisco Bay area to a tender new life where one woman discovers that God can work in broken places.

A Note From the Publisher

Songwriter and musician Ashley Cleveland has released nine critically acclaimed albums and received two Dove Awards and three Grammy Awards. She lives in Nashville with her husband, Kenny Greenberg, and their three children, Rebecca, Henry, and Lily.

Advance Praise

“Every book I have written and each and every major undertaking in my ministry has been accompanied by the musical lyricism, passion, and perspicuity of Ashley Cleveland. There is a kind of gospel for those who know little of the jagged, haunting edge of the margins. And there is the same but different taste of the gospel for those who know the dark shadows, grandiose dreams, and squalor of self-incriminating sabotage. This gospel is not merely true but also wantonly excessive and unexpectedly beautiful. In my brokenness, I need a jagged and extravagant gospel, and this rare, stunningly beautiful, and broken woman sings what I suspect is the truest gospel I have ever heard. This book, like her music, delivers me face-to-face with a God who just might be good news. To say that I enjoyed the book is far from the truth. I devoured it. Wept. Raged. Swore. And said yes again to Jesus.”

Dan B. Allender, PhD, professor of Counseling Psychology

and founding president of the Seattle School of Theology and Psychology

“Ashley Cleveland is one of my favorite singer-songwriters. Her life and music are deeply rooted in her faith and nurtured by the love of God. In Little Black Sheep, she honestly shares her own human vulnerabilities and joyfully offers her amazing gifts. Ashley’s music is always moving, and her story is deeply inspiring. Ashley’s hymn singing has been church for me on many Sundays! In script and song, Ashley shows us how God works in one life at a time and through us to the whole world. Don’t miss this.”

Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners

“I had barely started the first chapter of Little Black Sheep, and I already knew that the lump in my throat and the teary laughter that oddly accompanied it would be with me for the entire read. They were. I laughed and cried the whole way through, so grateful for Ashley’s honesty and for God’s hold on her. I’m glad we are family. And for what it’s worth, Ashley spoke a lot of truth into my life during those rag-legged years before her sobriety. Thank you, Ashley, for writing all of this down. Your narrative voice is compelling, and your story begs for the answer we are all asking: can we be loved … and if so, will we be changed by it?”

Amy Grant, singer and songwriter

“Ashley Cleveland—singer of sensitive, honest songs—has a way with words, and the plain story of sin and mercy she tells here is hauntingly powerful. Some readers will undoubtedly find her to be broken bread for their starving souls.”

J. I. Packer, author of Knowing God

“Funny, smart, tender, honest—Ashley’s memoir, Little Black Sheep, is a wonderful story of redemption. It will fill your heart with hope.”

Sally Lloyd-Jones, author of the bestselling and

Christian Book Award-winning Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing

“Little Black Sheep is a remarkable story of redemption that Ashley tells with both honesty and reverence. It is neither neat nor tidy, but it is altogether hopeful. Through her brilliantly crafted memoir, you will be entertained, you will discover shades of your own story, and ultimately, you will find yourself drawn to the Savior who was with

her the whole way.”

Kelly Minter, author of the Bible study Nehemiah and The Fitting Room

“Though it is an autobiography, Little Black Sheep is not really about my friend Ashley in the end. It is not about her life as much as it is about the One who gave her life and redeemed its brokenness. That she could tell such a complete and compelling story in so few pages is a testimony to a gifted writer.”

Michael Card, Bible teacher, songwriter, and author of

A Sacred Sorrow and The Biblical Imagination Series

“Little Black Sheep roars with a powerful message of redemption that will grip your heart and keep you captivated from cover to cover. With a voice as strong on the page as on the stage, Ashley Cleveland unveils a complex and compelling life filled with triumph and fear, accolades and addictions, and the true compassion of a heavenly Father who saw her through it all.”

Matt Bronleewe, award-winning songwriter, producer, and author