Thursday, April 7, 2011

Regret Free Parenting by Catherine Hickem, LCSW


Regret Free Parenting is about the fears and challenges of motherhood and how we can correct some of our biggest mistakes before it is too late. In this book, Hickem teaches how to figure out what matters to you as a mother and how to instill that in your children in an effective way. She touches on subjects such as your purpose as a mother, knowing and affirming your child, and developing emotional intelligence. She also discusses children's respect for their mother, addressing your fears as a mother, and most importantly being dependent on God.

I found this book very interesting and helpful. It prompted me to thoughtfully consider how I'm parenting my pre-schoolers. Her biggest point was to be intentional, which is something I needed to hear. It caused me to stop and make a point to change how I raise my kids. She does a great job of getting her message across without being condescending or preachy. She fills the book with stories to help illustrate her points, which kept my attention. Typically, I have a difficult time reading non-fiction but this book was different from some others I have tried. I appreciate that she emphasizes the importance of a relationship with God as you parent your child and introducing them to God as well.

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from BookSneeze for this review.

Tandem - Runner Up to its prequel


Tandem is the sequel to Bateman's Thirsty, which I found to make an interesting parallel between an alcoholic addiction and the desire/need for human blood for a vampire. Normally, I wouldn't consider a book about vampires but Thirsty intrigued me. Since I enjoyed it so much I decided to check out Tandem.
While Bateman has proven herself a creative writer with a talent for creating deep and full characters, I was disappointed in this book. The storyline was interesting and entertaining to read. I enjoyed the characters and setting very much. My disappointment lies in the weakness of the analogy in this book. I think it was so strong and obvious to me in the first book that I just couldn't get past that in this one.

**I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.