A Full House of Growing Pains: a Hollywood mother's journey...

by Barbara Cameron with Lissa Halls Johnson,
Bridge-Logos, 2006

Penned a couple of years before son Kirk's autobiography, this tells the story of Barbara Cameron, mother, wife, and entrepreneur.

Growing up in a loving but rather strict environment, Barb had self-esteem issues from a young age. She met her future husband when she was eighteen and married him within about a year. Several years older, Robert had a university education and a career as a teacher. He also had loads of confidence. It wasn't long before Barb's low self-regard plummeted even further.

Four children came along in quick succession and Barb was busy with all the duties of motherhood. When Kirk was nine years old, he and his siblings auditioned for one of the best Hollywood agents. The three youngest went on to have success in commercials and/or television at one time or another, and from the outside everything looked rosy. But eventually, terribly unhappy in her marriage, Barb surprised everyone by leaving her husband and beginning a new life on her own. Her story is largely about the events that led up to that decision and about what happened afterward.

Although Barb's book was written before his, I actually found it quite helpful to read Kirk's book first. Without having read Kirk's, I'm not sure I would have had the same interest in his mother.

I recommend this book for anyone interested in women's biography or books about women of faith.

Devotionals for Women: 101 daily devotions to comfort, encourage, and inspire women

compiled by Susan Heim and Karen Talcott,
Chicken Soup for the Soul Publications, 2009

This is a little different from the traditional Chicken Soup style. As a collection of stories designed to "comfort, encourage, and inspire women," each devotional opens with a Bible verse, includes a story that connects with the verse, and concludes with a prayer. Several cartoon illustrations are scattered throughout the book as well.

While I initially found it difficult to wrap my head around the fact that this was a Chicken Soup book, and thought, "I could write this," as I continued reading, I found many of the stories quite touching. I can't say I'd read it as a daily devotional, but with only 101 stories, it clearly isn't intended to be read that way, despite the book's subtitle.

Convenient to pick up and read when you only have five minutes to spare.

Grown-up girlfriends : finding and keeping real friends in the real world

by Erin Smalley and Carrie Oliver,
Tyndale House, 2007

Now this is a book worth reading on the subject of female friendship. Much better than the book I reviewed last August. Co-written by friends, Erin and Carrie, the book tackles a variety of subjects, including:

• levels of intimacy
• self-knowledge
• boundaries
• differences
• communication
• forgiveness
• letting go, and
• growing up

Along the way, each author shares personal stories of friendship successes, challenges, and failures, and each chapter concludes with questions for reflection.

A few highlights:

• I found it helpful to think of the "basket system" of friendship - not all friendships are of equal depth, and once one determines which "basket" a particular friendship belongs in, one better understands its limitations and/ or the expectations one can reasonably have within it.
• Most women have fears, and we all certainly have buttons that others can push. The authors show us how the fear dance works, our own roles within it, and how participating in the dance is unhelpful if we truly want to make and keep our friends.
• The section on conflict and confrontation is particularly helpful for those of us who prefer to avoid either at all costs. Successfully working through conflicts strengthens friendships and enables them to grow deeper.

I highly recommend this book to all women, but especially those who may feel lonely or friendless. It is possible to find friends, keep them, and be enriched through them. Smalley and Oliver show us how.

Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman's Soul

by John and Stasi Eldredge,
Thomas Nelson, 2007

After reading Wild at Heart last year, I thought I would enjoy the companion book for women. Alas, not so.

The premise of the book is that every woman has three common desires: to be romanced, to play a role in her own adventures, and to display beauty. Sadly, many women do not get these desires met and end up depressed, angry, isolated, and tired. The authors believe that if women see God as the ultimate lover, look to Eve as their model of ideal womanhood, and form close, intimate friendships with one another, they will better get their needs met. This is not new material, and not every woman will agree with the foundational concepts on which the authors build their argument.

Not recommended. The writing style was challenging, and it took me about six weeks to plod through. You would spend your time more wisely with a book like Completely His: Loving Jesus without Limits by Shannon Ethridge.