Book Review: Find Your Strongest Life by Marcus Buckingham

Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently
Marcus Buckingham
Thomas Nelson
2009
288 Pages

Marcus Buckingham is a consultant that specializes in strengths-based solutions. His newest book, Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently, grew out of a workshop he did for The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Mr. Buckingham and his team counseled thirty women to help them rediscover the passion they were missing in their work. They followed them for six months and then came back together to see what changes had been made.

It was what happened after the show aired that caused him to write this book. After the show aired, over a million (mostly) women downloaded the workshop from Oprah.com and then lit up the message boards.

Mr. Buckingham has created a test called The Strong Life Test. It asks you 23 questions and then tells you what your lead role and supporting role is based on your strengths. In chapter 7, he defines what each of the nine roles are. The nine roles are: Advisor, Caretaker, Creator, Equalizer, Influencer, Motivator, Pioneer, Teacher and Weaver.

I was very interested in reading this book. I am in the midst of a transition and have been trying to decide what type of work I should look for. For me, the best advice that Mr. Buckingham gives is to examine the times in your past that were strong moments. What excited you. What made you look forward to going to work. You must pay attention to those moments and apply what you learn to the decisions you make about the future.

I took The Strong Life Test. It said that my lead role is Teacher and my supporting role is Influencer. These are not the roles that I would have thought described me. I am not saying that it is wrong but I am going to have to think about it more and see where those roles might lead me.

I would recommend this book for any woman who is not satisfied with her work.

Reviewed for Thomas Nelson's Book Review Blogger Program. http://brb.thomasnelson.com/

You can take The Strong Life Test here.

Review: Next Generation New Testament Audio Bible

I received the Word of Promise Next Generation - New Testament: Dramatized Audio Bible through the Thomas Nelson Book Review Blogger program. It includes 3 MP3 CDs and a behind the scenes DVD. It features an all-star cast. It uses the International Children's Version of the Bible.

From the publisher's website:

Now the entire New Testament is ready for the Wired Generation.

Today's youth ingest media at a faster rate than any previous generation. And they can't get enough! The Word of Promise: Next Generation - New Testament is the perfect way for young multi-taskers to absorb Scripture. This ambitious recording makes the Word accessible to more kids than ever before.

Starring a Hollywood-level cast of young talent including Cody Linley (Hanna Montana, Dancing with the Stars) as Jesus, AnnaSophia Robb (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) as Mary Magdalene, Jordin Sparks (American Idol Winner) as Elizabeth, Cobin Bleu (High School Musical) as Peter, Alyson Stoner (Cheaper by the Dozen) as Martha, and narrated by Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings). The project includes informative book introductions by author Max Lucado and his daughter, Jenna Lucado, who is a speaker on the Revolve^® Tour.

My children were excited to be able to listen to the Bible. They put the audio files on their mp3 players. They both thought it was a good way to learn what the Bible says. They liked recognizing the voices of some of their favorite actors and actresses.

I thought that the readings were good. The readings weren't as polished as they would be if adult voice artists were used. The translation, International Children's Version, does a good job of modernizing the dialogue.

I would recommend this for children 8-13.

Book Review: Fearless by Max Lucado

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear
Max Lucado
Thomas Nelson
2009
224 Pages

Fear confronts us everywhere we look. We are reminded of our fears when we watch the news or read the newspaper. We are afraid of what will happen at our child's school. We are afraid when we go to the doctor. We are afraid when we look at our finances.

In Max Lucado's latest book, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear, he brings our fears into the light so that we can face them and overcome them. He devotes a chapter each to 13 of the most common fears we face. He uses scripture and anecdotes to illustrate how to overcome fear through faith.

I found this book to be very easy to read. It is not a deep theological discussion. It is written so that anyone can understand and apply this to their life. It includes a comprehensive study guide that would be good for personal or small group study.

If you need some help overcoming fear in your life or know someone who does, this would be a good book to read.

If you would like more information about this book, you can click Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fearto go to Amazon or click on The Fearless Times.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Reviewed for Thomas Nelson's Book Review Blogger Program. http://brb.thomasnelson.com/

Book Review: The Great Eight by Scott Hamilton

The Great Eight
Scott Hamilton with Ken Baker
Thomas Nelson Publishers
224 pages
2009

I was very excited to receive a copy of The Great Eight to review from Thomas Nelson. I have been a fan of Scott Hamilton's figure skating for a long time. I was intrigued by the subtitle: The Great Eight: How to Be Happy (even when you have every reason to be miserable). He has certainly had reasons to be miserable.

From the back cover:

From Gold Medalist to cancer and brain tumor survivor, Scott Hamilton has experienced the heights of accomplishment to the depths of disease. But through his successes, struggles, and setbacks, Hamilton has never lost his trademark humor and honesty. But more important, he has never lost his faith and optimism. Hoe does he keep smiling?

In The Great Eight, Scott uses stories from his international career and personal life to describe the eight secrets that - through commitment and repetition - have helped him "clear the ice," get back up, and "smile like Kristi Yamaguchi".

Most of Scott's eight secrets are common sense, but very few people try to do all eight of these things. We know that when we fall (or fail), that we need to get up and keep going. Reading about Scott's approach to each of these secrets makes it a little easier to see how to apply them to my own life.

Number four on the list, keeping the ice clear, is a difficult one for me. He says that trying to please others all the time is a recipe for unhappiness. He had to learn how to have open and honest communication about what he felt and needed. Many times in my life I have felt unhappy because I didn't communicate what I needed and was left out.

Another good one is learn a new routine. Don't fight the changes that life brings. Use change as an opportunity to grow.

This book is filled with stories from Scott's life that illustrate the point that he is trying to make. The only thing that bothered me was that the life stories kept going back and forth and some were repeated several times. But then again this is not an autobiography.

It is a good book to remind us of options that we have to live happier lives.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Book Review: Cast of Characters by Max Lucado

Cast of Characters: Common People in the Hands of an Uncommon God by Max Lucado. Thomas Nelson Publishers. 2008

Max Lucado is a pastor and has written over 75 books. I find his books easy to understand and I always find plenty of nuggets of wisdom to ponder. He is very good at taking a familiar verse or story and showing it to me in a new way. This book is no different.

Each of the 23 chapters examines someone in the Bible that would have been considered "common" by the people who knew them. These people were not perfect. Some were rich and some were poor. They all put themselves in the hands of an uncommon God.

The chapter that most resonated with me was Chapter 6: Mary, Martha and Lazarus. The chapter's subtitle is Your Place in God's Band. He compares people in the church with marching band musicians and uses Mary, Martha and Lazarus to illustrate the point.

Some people like Martha play the drums. Martha served. She was the beat that kept everything moving. Like Mary, some play the flute. Mary worshiped. She was gifted with praise. And like Lazarus, some are the trumpets. Lazarus had a story to tell and he told it often.

I can highly recommend this book. I think that everyone who reads this book will find someone they can identify with. I found that I identified with Martha. By reading how God used her, I can see how God can use me.

5 out of 5 stars.