Lisa Whelchel

If you can get past the Christians slant and the ridiculous terms such as "prayer warriors" that keep interrupting the text, you will find some value in these composite interviews of 15 homeschooling parents. Although the descriptions of the various homeschooling methods don't go into as much detail as I would like, these stories will help you arrive at a decision as to whether or not homeschooling is right for your child. The stories do you identify pros and cons of homeschooling such as show more allowing your child to proceed to his or her own pace and keeping them away from the pressure of their peers which might lead them to do such things as actually feel like they need to be listening to Justin Bieber or Selena Gomez. Another virtue of this book is that it is quite short and can easily be read in an afternoon. show less

Like many women my age, I grew up envying the relationships between Blair, Jo, Natalie and Tootie on The Facts of Life. I thought the relationships between the girls epitomized everything that a friendship between girls should be ~ loving, supportive and genuine. In my child’s mind, I didn’t realize that the friendships were fictional. Lisa Whelchel, who played Blair, writes: ”I think there is a certain irony in the fact that the television show I was on was all about female show more friendships, and yet in real life I had very little experience with close relationships.” This book is her exploration of what impeded her ability to develop close relationships and how she found healing and acceptance.

Written in a casual tone, Friendship for Grown~Ups is part diary and part self~help book. Lisa asks challenging questions and provides thoughtful insight into a topic that can be overlooked in the day~to~day lives of “real” women: friendship. As busy moms, we know how important it is for our children to develop relationships with their peers but we often forget how important it is for us as adults too. Or, as in my case, we spend so much time focusing on our children that we forget how to develop/maintain friendships.

I appreciated the honesty with which Lisa wrote the book. It had to have been difficult to be so vulnerable and expose past hurts. I believe that is one of the key points of Lisa’s book: It’s ok to be vulnerable. In order to develop and maintain friendships as adults, it involves a certain amount of vulnerability and trust. Like Lisa, I struggle with making and maintaining relationships because of a fear of rejection and thinking that I’m bothering people when I call (or text). Lisa offers a look at friendship from a Christian perspective and asserts that God allows us to be put into places of vulnerability to open our hearts not only to Him but to other women around us. Lisa encourages us to step out on faith and believe that God will place the right people in our lives at the right time.

Disclosure: This is a Thomas Nelson Review. I received this book free through Booksneeze.com in exchange for a review. I am not required to write a positive review, just an honest one. This did not influence my opinion of the book. show less

The author's personal experience, or lack of experience, with close friendship. It was a feel good book about friendships, the hurt one experiences when we assume things or when a trusted friends burns us, and how to reconcile or when to cut the friendship forever.
I liked the sweeping of the bricks topic; how to deal with something that could build a wall between friends and tear it down immediately and how to approach it delicately.

Great introduction to studying the Bible without a guidebook. I highly recommend it to even busy, working mothers as well as to us older folks who have more time. The techniques she introduces (like highlighting, praying Scripture, looking for repeated words, asking the 5 W's and 1 H) are simple, but can form a solid foundation for those wanting to study Scripture without being told what God wants them to learn from it.