BOOK REVIEW: "Love At Last Sight: 30 Days To Deepen Your Closest Relationships" by Kerry & Chris Shook

"Everything you’ve been taught about relationships is wrong."
This tagline grabs your attention when you read the writeup on the back cover of "Love At Last Sight: 30 Days To Deepen Your Closest Relationships" by Kerry & Chris Shook.

The Good:
I thought this book has some really good things to say. It makes no excuses for the fact that relationships really do take commitment and hard work to maintain, just like anything else worthwhile in this world.

The Bad:
The content of this book could have been clearly edited into a few chapters. The whole dragging it out into a 30-day study thing really sucked the momentum out of my reading.
The Biblical connections could have been stronger- I felt that the connection between God/the Bible and successful relationships sometimes felt forced, and in places where I could and would have been able to smoothly show a clear link if I had been the writer, there was none mentioned in the book. This made the book feel very "baby Christian-ish" to me. I wanted to see some spiritual tools, some real meat; I didn't want to have to slog through milk for a month to get to it.

The Bottom Line:
For me, the bottom line is that this could have been a great book for those who are young in body or young in Christ but I think that the long drawn out nature of the book would be a real turn-off for those whom it would help the most. I've been a believer since 1985, happily married to my one-and-only beloved since 2002, a mother (and loving it) since 2006, and I'm blessed to be able to say that much of what my parents taught me about love and relationships was in fact, NOT wrong.

**I have received a free copy of this book from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for review purposes. The opinions expressed herein are my own and have not been influenced by the publisher.

BOOK REVIEW: "Unto The Hills; A daily devotional" by Billy Graham

TITLE: Unto The Hills; A Daily Devotional
AUTHOR: Billy Graham
GENRE: Christian devotional
ISBN: 978-0-8499-4621-9
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: "For peace, for strength, for courage and inspiration, look UNTO THE HILLS. Day by day, you can join the nation's most beloved spiritual leader for a moment of quiet and reflection - a Scripture, a thought, and a prayer. The author draws from his lifetime of study and ministry to offer this devotional classic, featuring 365 meditations to calm you and point you toward the One who can always help."

First off I want to say that the summary from the back cover is just awful. It makes it sound like some pious guide to religion by some religious leader who is worshipped as God Himself is. Really unappealing.
The first few days of this devotional were equally unappealing to me. They were generic, spiritual babyfood. I wanted some meat to chew over, not platitudes I learned in Sunday School when I was 6. If I flipped this devotional open in a store and read the first few days, I would most definately not buy it.
BUT after a few weeks of readings I felt like the topics got more and more thought-provoking. A little more meat to chew on for those who are more spiritually mature. Granted, the book never got to the depth I would have liked, but it did get much more interesting and thought-provoking as the readings went on. Topics focused on angels, marriage, persecution, suffering, and more. I think this would be a good devotional for a new-ish Christian. I think I will use it as a conversation starter for our family devotions. My kids are 4, 2 and newborn and my oldest could understand some of the concepts in this simply worded devotional. Perhaps this would make a good family devotional for some families with younger children, although some topics may not be appropriate and may require simplifying or substituting a more age-appropriate lesson for that day's reading.
Cons: Not enough meat. Not deep enough.
Pros: Easy to understand. Short readings. Seems doctrinally sound.
Bottom line? I'd give it 3.5 out of 5. Not something that I would buy for me or my family, but I would recommend it to others for whom it may be more appropriate.

*This book was reviewed for Thomas Nelson's BookSneeze blogger review program. I received a free copy of this book for review purposes. My opinions are my own and have not been edited or influenced by the publisher in any way.

Book Review: "This is Your Brain in Love" by Dr. Earl Henslin

Book Review:
"This is Your Brain in Love
New Scientific Breakthroughs for a More Passionate and Emotionally Healthy Marriage"
By Dr. Earl Henslin

MY REVIEW:

I flip flopped back and forth while reading this book. First I thought,
"Well, yeah great intimacy is all well and good to talk about how we should have it, but are you gonna give any helpful info?"
Then I was thinking, "Uh oh, is he going to be shoving drugs down all our throats? Please tell me this book doesn't imply that most people need prescription drugs to have a happy marriage!"
THEN I was thinking, "Uh-oh, it looks like he's excusing people's bad behavior saying that if you've had a brain injury it's not your fault if you act like a total jerk!"
But, by the end, instead of reading with furrowed eyebrows, I was nodding with a smile! He wrapped up my wonderings, did not excuse people from taking responsibility for their actions, and provided ideas for diet and natural supplements to help balance the most important organ in your body- the brain.
I also wondered how a brain/intimacy book could be a Christian book. Usually scientific minded authors who claim Christianity seem to put God in as an afterthought. I appreciated that Dr. Henslin did not crowd God out with "science." I did not find the religious references to feel out of place or awkward.
This book does talk about intimate relations and is therefore not appropriate for all readers.
A surprisingly helpful and very informative book for married couples.
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This book was reviewed for Thomas Nelson.

I was provided a free copy of the book for review purposes. I was not paid or told what to say. My opinion is my own and may not be the same as yours or the author's or publisher's.