These are spiritual reflections based primarily on the Gospels and Sacred Scripture. The objective is to reflect on how, in the Virgin Mary, God fell in love with humanity. She never placed conditions on love. The Mother of God is like a "reed" that waits for the music of the Holy Spirit to sound through her and communicate to the world the beauty of His love. The entire book represents an itinerary towards holiness, as it affirms that in all people and things, we can find God, just as Mary did.
The style reflects the time in which the book was written and the author's particular artistic sensitivity (1901-1954). Its depth, beauty, and creativity stand out. It focuses especially on Mary's Advent, her waiting for the Redeemer, filled with the joy of a mother. It speaks more briefly about the Visitation and then expands on the Nativity of Jesus. Later, it meditates on the meaning of the lost Child. It dwells on the life of the Virgin alongside Joseph, then with John, and finally on her preparation to go to Heaven.
Houselander is one of the most popular British spiritual writers of her time. Her books are profound in theology, despite her lack of formal studies in the field. She saw Christ in others and particularly enjoyed transmitting joy and good humor. Like the reed, she was deeply empathetic with those who suffered, and as seen in the text reviewed, she possessed a keen ability to understand the human spirit and communicate it in a passionate, intense, and poetically charged prose.