Book Review - A Million Miles in a Thousand Years

I was lucky enough to be asked to review a copy of Donald Miller's new book. Not being familiar with Mr. Miller in the past, I did not have any clue what to expect in regards to this particular book.

In reviewing this book, I have to say that I was very impressed. The author brings you on a journey of discovery, that the author himself is on, but that you too soon find yourself on as you work your way through the experiences and life challenges that Donald finds himself being challenged with.

I was particularly intrigued at the idea of going into my own life and editing it to better the "story" that my own life is unveiling daily. This concept is one that Donald discovers for himself, and by doing so, it opens his life to the many wonders and opportunities that lay in the background previously.

I also was intrigued by the individuals that as a reader you are introduced to within the story. One such individual was Bob Goff. Bob is an amazing individual and one that I hope to learn more about and from in the future. At the end of reading this book, I searched for more information on Bob and his company and I found that Bob is on Facebook. Finding this, I became his Facebook friend and began an email correspondence with him that I hope will continue into the future. Bob's life is one that I can only hope for with my own family.

I was glad that the book itself did come to some type of conclusion at the end, as I came to want to see Donald succeed. So much so that I now am following Donald's blog to keep up with what he is up to with his life and to see how his continued story unfurls.

I would completely recommend this book to anyone looking to edit their own life. If you want to read a few chapters to see what this book has in store take a look at the following.



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Book Review - The Well-Behaved Child

I will admit it, we have a challenging 5 year old. We have read many books, and tried many things, but we still have problems with her behavior. J-Mom and I work hard to remain consistent, but overall, consistency with Diva-J does not always seem to work. When I was asked to review this book, I was definitely excited and hopeful for a chance to find some new answers, tactics and techniques that may allow J-Mom and I to be a bit less frustrated and allow the whole family to be having fun together at all times!

In reading this book, I was not disappointed. The author lays out his methodology first (even though you want to skip to the meat of the book), which was good, as it truly debunks many of the parenting skills that we think we should do to go back to some of the skills that we more in place back in the 1950's. Further into the book is where the authors lays out his system. Through practical and real life examples he allows parents to see how easy it can be to take control of their parenting as well as allowing the child to take control of their behavior.

Some of the sections in this book include:

* Essential Discipline Principles
* Essential Discipline Tools
* Perplexing Problems and Simple Solutions
* Not Your Everyday Problems
* General Questions and Answers  

Does this work, I am not totally for certain, but I will admit that I look forward to trying to skills learned in this "workshop in a book."

I would recommend this book to anyone with a strong willed child, whether 3 or 11. You will not be disappointed! You can find this on both Amazon and at the Thomas Nelson site.


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Book Review - Eli Gold: From Peanuts to the Pressbox

Being a person that enjoys sports but is not a fanatic I did not know what to expect when I read this book. I will say that before I received this book, I can say that I had heard of the announcer/author of this book but really knew nothing of his back story.

This book is a great tribute to the hard work and dedication that one person has to achieve his goals. It is an inspirational tale about what one person can do to overcome obstacles and achieve all that one hopes to achieve.

With over 25 years of experience in the sports industry, one can only imagine the experiences and life that he has had througout his career. I truly enjoyed Gold's stories of other announcers and sports stars and what it was like to work with them. This book is a great read for the sports and non-sport enthusiast. The books flows well and is an easy read for all people.

I found that this book could have easily been expanded to add much more depth into the backstory, but I am not complaining at all, as the story was very enjoyable and one that I would definitely recommend to others!

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Book Review - Fearless

Max Lucado is knows for his books of down to earth practical advice of living your life based on a spiritual journey and this book follows a similar path. Fearless allows the reader to envision a life lived without fear of anything. As Lucado explains clearly, it is giving yourself up to the will of God and knowing that through him all your fears are taken away.

This is not always an easy thing to accept, and Lucado freely writes about this struggle that all humans have. Whether it be our own job, our family, our health or the health of others, we tend to be a fear driven people, so this book takes a fresh approach to moving down another path that we do not always take, the road toward fearless living.

I enjoyed this book and with its continuous link to scripture, there is no reason why even the most casual reader of the Bible could not find meaning in the references, not only to the past, but more over their own day-to-day life.

I enjoyed the fact that Lucado (as is usually his case) places himself into the story using examples form his own life to draw the reader into the story. This made the book a very easy read and one that went very quickly.

The chapters within the book cover a litany of fears that many of us hold including:

* Fear of not mattering
* Fear of disappointing God
* Fear of being in need
* Fear of issues around our children
* Fear of overwhelming challenges
* Fear of the worst-case scenarios
* Fear of violence
* Fear of money issues
* Fear of death
* Fear of tomorrow
* Fear of religious doubt
* Fear of global calamity
* Fear of really trusting God with your life

I think Lucado says it best as he states:

Imagine your life, wholly untouched by angst. What if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats? If you could hover a fear magnet over your heart and extract every last shaving of dread, insecurity, or doubt, what would remain? Envision a day, just one day, where you could trust more and fear less.

I can only hope that one day I will be able to live my own life in such a fashion and I believe that through the words that Lucado shares this is possible.

I encourage this book to anyone who lives with fear within their life, it is a quick read and is made to be easy to understand and practical. If you have an interest to read more, check out a few pages of the book for yourself!


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Book Review - She Still Calls Me Daddy

As a father of two girls I definitely do not want to rush anything! My girls are still quite young and I have a lot of time until I have to deal with the issues that are brought up in Robert Wolgemuth's book She Still Calls Me Daddy.

Though this is true I will cherish the concepts in this book and know that down the road I will definitely come back and review it (it is not a one time read for me). The book covers seven main areas: Protection, Conversation, Affection, Discipline, Laughter, Faith, and Conduct, and takes a building up approach to raising and letting go of your daughters.

I enjoyed the way that the author intertwined his own experience with advice to other fathers as it made the read not only enjoyable but also fast. Some of the tips that he gives on dating are ones that I know that I will have to revisit in the years to come (though I am not thinking about that just yet - I'm in denial). I also enjoyed the builders checklist at the end of each chapter as it made the chapters tangible and provided me with some great hands on ideas for helping my girls as they get to be a bit older. Most dads will also enjoy the analogy that the author uses in relation to home renovation, it makes the topics relevant to any type of dad out there!

Overall, I would recommend this book for anyone who is either getting ready to let his daughters go, or will someday have to give his daughters away. It also can be a great gift for a father of daughters as well. It is a book worth reading!

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