Welcome to my weekly book update post where I share what books I read this past week + my honest thoughts and star ratings of them.
A Word on My Star Ratings
The star ratings I give the books I read are based on a 5-star rating system. I rarely will ever give a book a 1-star rating (maybe never?), because my philosophy is that if a book is only worthy of one star, I’m more than likely going to quit reading it. 🙂 In the same vein, you’ll also notice that I’ll rarely give a 5-star rating as I reserve those for only my very, very favorite books.
Want to see all of the books I’ve read so far this year? Check out my Good Reads page.
I had high hopes for this book… but it sort of fell flat for me. It wasn’t that there weren’t some nuggets of truth in it, I just didn’t find a lot that spoke to me in the season of motherhood I’m in. Or maybe it was the writing style? Or the layout?
I’m not sure, exactly. I just know that I usually underline and dog ear at least a few pages of all books that I read and I didn’t do either for this entire book.
Also, I realized that I got to the end of the book and still am not entirely sure what they mean by the phrase “Risen Motherhood”. It didn’t seem really clear or obvious to me in the book, so that kind of perplexed me. I think they were using the phrase to mean, “Gospel-Centered Motherhood”, but unless I totally missed this definition somewhere (and it’s possible that I did!), it didn’t seem to be explained well in the book.
I debated whether to give this book 2 or 3 stars. Ultimately, I decided on 3 stars just because it does have nuggets of truth and I think it would likely be an encouragement to other moms in other seasons. If you’ve read it and loved it, I’d love to hear a differing perspective! Please share in the comments.
Verdict: 3 stars
I was excited to read this book and I definitely did dog-ear and underline parts of it. If you need a shot in the arm to step out in faith, I think it will really encourage you!
Kristen’s faith and story has long encouraged me and this book chronicles more of her journey — the highs and lows, hardships and victories.
The one thing I didn’t love about this book was that it could definitely make some people feel guilty or that they need to follow in Kristen’s footsteps. I love her passion and heart for the work God has called her to, but I felt like some of it could make a reader feel like she needs to have the same passion and heart.
I know that wasn’t Kristen’s intent at all, but I wanted to mention this and just remind you that God has called all of us to different ministries, passions, and missions. We aren’t all called to be advocates for fair trade or fostering. We each have individual callings and it’s our job to see the Lord to how He would have us to use our giftings and abilities to make a difference in the world.
Verdict: 3 stars
What did you read this past week? Any books you think I really need to add to my long to-read list??
