The Secret of Life is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Gretchen Peters.

[1] Faith Hill covered the title track and took it to number 4 on the country chart in the States (while also scraping into the top 50 on the Billboard Hot 100).

Cloud" for her full-length Thinkin' About You (two years prior to the release of this album), while Martina McBride has recorded 3 songs: "This Uncivil War", "When You Are Old" and "Independence Day" which she took to number 12 on the U.S. country chart.

AllMusic gave the album three stars (out of a possible five), comparing her to fellow singer-songwriter Mary Chapin Carpenter, calling the songs "highly introspective, thoughtful and intelligent".

[2] An uncredited review in Billboard said that Peters "proves to be as satisfying a singer as she is a writer.