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Here are reviews of 4 great books I read this month:
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What Happened to You? by Dr. Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey
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Rating: 10/10
Review:
This book is outstanding! I listened to the audio book (SO GOOD) but now I want to get the hard copy and re-read it, underline, highlight, and take notes!
Dr. Perry discusses the effects of trauma on the brain. The book is filled with real-life stories of how a person’s childhood effects who they and how they act, as well as how people recover from trauma. I even discovered new things about myself and why I act or react in certain ways.
The book encourages us to stop asking “What’s wrong with you?” and start asking, “What happened to you?”
“What happened to you?” is not a faith-based book, but I love how Dr. Perry highlights the power of ‘faith’ and being a part of a ‘faith-community’ as one important step in recovering from all kinds of trauma.
I highly recommend this book to every teacher, counselor, law enforcement officer, nurse, and pastor.
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Let’s Roll by Lisa Beamer
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Rating: 10/10
Review:
The 20th anniversary of 9-11 got me thinking about the lives of those who were greatly impacted by that terrible event. I ordered this book last September and it’s been on my shelf for almost 10 months. I finally opened it up and read the ENTIRE book in ONE day.
The story is written by Lisa Beamer, the wife of Todd Beamer. Todd died on 9-11 when his plane went down in a field as he and a few others fought back against their plane’s hijackers.
As I read about Todd’s early life, he reminded me of my son Clark – and their mutual love for athletics and sales. I enjoyed getting to know what kind of man Todd was before 9-11, and what his wife’s life was like in the year after he died. I’d really love for her to write a follow up book about her life since writing this book. I wonder how she survived as a widow and single mom. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in 9-11.
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Waymaker: Finding the way to the life you’ve always wanted by Ann Voskamp
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Rating: 6/10
Review:
I had really high expectations for this book since Ann Voskamp’s first book, One Thousand Gifts, was my favorite of 2018. Unfortunately, I didn’t connect with this new one in the same way. In Waymaker, Ann shares the story of her marriage, her health, and about the adoption of their daughter. The stories aren’t told sequentially and she jumps around a lot. So that, plus her poetic-style of writing, made it hard for me to follow along and stay engaged.
In spite of that, there were some really powerful quotes in the book. Here are a few of my favorites:
- Detours are the way dreams and destinies actually come true.
- God delights in you, smiles over you, seeks to be with you, revives you with his kiss of Grace and can’t stop singing love songs because of you.
- Even when I don’t feel it, I am Father-held, His everlasting arms around all my needs.
- Lament can be tears that water new life.
- God signs his inconspicuous signature everywhere: everything is a sign post that points to his love.
- The purpose of reading scripture is not to become good, but to be with Goodness Himself. Not to get God to love you, but to fall in love with God.
- There is a reason why God is called The Way. He makes roads you wouldn’t have dreamed of, miracles happen exactly where you never would have imagined.
- Marriages are fragile things, not an accomplishment to be proud of, but a miracle to give thanks for.
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William Booth by Janet Benge
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Rating: 9/10
Review:
This is a biography of William Booth, the man who started the Salvation Army. William was born in England in the 1800s. He had to quit school at age 13 to help provide for his poor family. As he grew older, he had a strong desire to teach people about God. His heart was for the poorest of the poor. First he began meeting their spiritual needs, but also found ways to meet their physical needs.
William Booth opened factories to give work to the unemployed. Government leaders toured his facilities and created laws for ‘safer working conditions’ once they saw how well his factory was run compared to others. Booth published articles, books, and traveled the world to teach and inspire others to help the poor.
Thousands of people throughout the world, became part of the “Salvation Army” whose mission was to meet the spiritual and physical needs of the poor. Some of his work still continues to this day.
I was fascinated by how much resistance William Booth and the Salvation Army got, mostly because it was ‘un-conventional.’ They seemed to be buffered at every turn. However, they kept moving forward, trying to find more ways to help those in need. The challenges didn’t cause them to give up, but actually made them stronger, more resilient, and even more effective.
Though William Booth started with nothing, he earned an honorary doctorate from Oxford, was lauded by Winston Churchill, and had friendships with two US presidents.
I was inspired by this book and the positive impact that one person can make in the world. Click here to read a brief summary of the social impact his daughter had in the United States.
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What have you been reading? Leave a comment!
Click here to read a list of my top ten favorite books of 2021.