Book review: Reshaping it all

My new Year's resolution was to read 100 books this year....and because that isn't challenge enough, I decided that I should incorporate as many new(as in, I haven't read before) books as possible, specifically non-fiction, which has never been of much interest to me. The book I'm going to be reviewing today, "Reshaping it all" by Candace Cameron Bure, is a non-fiction book, and my first, actually, since starting my resolution.

alright, let's do this thang!

This book was not recommended to me, I didn't read anything about it, nor had it been something I'd been wanting to read for any amount of time. I literally was in my library, wandering around, saw this on a shelf, grabbed it, and checked it out. For those who may not know, Candace Cameron Bure(Bure is her married name) is an actress, wife, mother, and Christian. She played DJ Tanner on the show "Full House" in the 80s, and her brother, Kirk Cameron, is also an actor, first on "Growing pains" in the 80s, and more recently the "Left Behind" series, among like a hundred other things. Candace is also currently a contestant on "Dancing with the Stars", which is why I think her book was even on display. I already knew these things about her, and I really like her a lot, so I figured her book would be a good place to start in my journey through the realm of non-fiction, so, I checked it out.

Before I get into the details of the book, I should let you know that "Reshaping it all" is a book geared toward helping people obtain physical and spiritual fitness(remember, Candace is a Christian, so of course it's going to be about God!) In general, it's about her story of weight struggle and eventual weight loss, and how, through hard work and strength in God, she managed to keep off the weight and beat her addiction.

Sound interesting? Yeah, I did to. And guess what! It was really interesting. I wouldn't say I'm on some health kick or anything, but I feel like I have been finding myself gravitating toward more health related talk shows, cooking shows, etc lately, and I'm always open to learning new things that I can apply to myself, and then pass on to you guys, my wonderful readers!

Now down to business. I think the most important thing about a book is how it's written. The content is important, but no one's going to get to the content if the format is bad. Not so with Candace's book. It's written in the typical non-fiction first person, and it's easy to read, without being dumbed down or condescending to those like myself that are used to a little higher level of literature.(I had just finished reading Lord of the Ring, so you can imagine the shock my brain went through reading "Reshaping it all" lol) Also the chapters are short, which makes getting through them much more enjoyable...because nothing is more overwhelming than thumbing through a book and realizing each chapter is like 47 pages long.

While we're on the topic of chapters and writing format, I'll let you know that at the end of each chapter, Candace has a summary of what she talked about, a fan letter with a health or spiritual question, her answer to that letter, all the Bible verses she used in that chapter, simple tips on how to apply that chapter to your life, an inspirational quote, and then a healthy recipe that she makes for her own family. WHEW! That's a lot packed into a few pages, huh?!

Because Candace is a Christian(and not afraid to proclaim it to the world, thank you very much) she does scatter bible verses throughout her book as they apply to what she's talking about, and many of her tips on motivation and staying strong revolve around prayer and staying strong in God, which is something a lot of people don't think about when it comes to their physical health. But think about it. God calls us to take care of our bodies, because they are a temple for Him, so it makes sense that we would need Him to help make us new. Genius.

She also talks a lot about how a healthy lifestyle is necessary, rather than optional. Basically she's saying that, once you've committed to living a healthier lifestyle, you have to stick with it, and not just live healthy when it's convenient for you. She also discourages diets. She doesn't discredit them, but going "on" a diet implies you will one day go "off" the diet, and the only way to stay healthy is to....get this....stay healthy. Candace encourages a lifestyle change, which is what she did, and what I did, and it, frankly, works.

Candace has MANY tips and tricks on how to make that lifestyle change, and how to make it so habitual that you eventually don't even have to work at it. One of the things she suggested was to write down your reasons for losing weight, whatever they may be, and read them whenever you get discouraged. Keep the list somewhere you can see it, like by your bed or on your mirror or fridge, so you never forget WHY you're doing this.

I don't want to give away too much information, because I want you to read this book, but I'll leave you with a quote that really impacted me, and will hopefully speak to you and give you the push you need to get yourself healthy....for the right reasons!

"You are beautiful, interesting, accepted, and loved by the most high God. Be content with both the woman you are today and the woman you'll be tomorrow."
-Candace Cameron Bure

Two books that totally changed my life!

Everyone has gone through something that has changed them. For some, it could be a relationship. For others, it might be a sermon or particularly moving conference. For many, however, something as unassuming as a book can force them to rethink their entire way of life!

“Be as careful of the books you read, as of the company you keep; for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as the latter.”

-Paxton Hood

Just like in life, the words you put into your brain can and will define you. I was blessed enough to have many God-fearing book lovers in my life, and they pointed me towards two books that I can now say have changed my life.

The first book is “The Hiding Place” by Corrie Ten-Boom. I first read this in the 8^th grade, right around the time I was learning about World War II in history. For those who don’t know, “The Hiding Place” is an auto-biography about Corrie Ten-Boom, a watchmaker’s daughter and Christian living in Poland at the start of the German invasion that started World War II. She and her family risk their lives hiding Jews and becoming an underground railroad for people attempting to flee the country. Through many circumstances, including some first class double spy betrayal, Corrie and her family are discovered and sent to concentration camps.

Normally, I have a really hard time with stories like this, that deal with racial hatred and plain evil. It just really frustrates me to no end, and I just can’t enjoy the story knowing these things really happened and real people were forced to go through such awful things. The thing that really stood out in this book for me, though, was Corrie’s strong faith, and the solid faith of her family through all that hardship. The story is full of trials that would break so many people, but, because she had God, she was able to survive, and, in the end, she survived the whole war.

I was pretty young when I read “The Hiding Place”, and, even though I have been a Christian for most of my life, it really hit me how strong Corrie’s faith was, and how God never left her, even in the concentration camps, and eventually got her out all together. It made me evaluate my own faith, and I had no choice but come to the conclusion that God is good, and that I have a great life, which, at the angst-ridden age of 13 was something I sorely needed.

Even now, “The Hiding Place” is still one of my favorite books, and I have read it several times. Apart from the faith punch in the face it gave me in 8^th grade, it’s also a very good read, being very well written and telling an interesting story.

Some people may think this book is too mature for their young readers, but it’s a great story of God’s power over the evil of this world, and it may just give them the kick in the pants they need to realize how awesome God really is!

“A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading.”
― William Styron

The second book was also one I read for school, but later….in my senior year of high school. “The Pilgrim’s Progress” was written by John Bunyan and is considered a religious allegory.

I’m sure most of you have heard of this book, but if not, I’m sure you’re wondering what’s so wonderful about it. “the Pilgrim’s Progress” follows the journey of Christian who, on discovering that his life of sin would soon bring his death, left his evil ways and went looking for God and the Celestial city. Along the way, he meets many characters, some on the same journey as he is and very willing to go it together…some, not so much.

On my first read-through, “The Pilgrim’s Progress” seemed like a simplified telling of the Christian walk of life. It even included some of the bible verses turned into characters and places, such as the “Valley of the shadow of death” found in Psalms. On my second time through, though, I began to realize just how deep this book was! Honestly, I can’t even explain it properly. All I can really do is advise you to read it more than once, and, if possible, listen to it instead of reading it. That’s what I had to do. I have heard it said that “The Pilgrim’s Progress” is the best work of fiction ever written….but it isn’t really fiction. It’s like dragnet. The names and faces have been changed to protect the innocent…but the story will ring true every time!

I’d have to say that “The Pilgrim’s Progress” changed me because it was the first time I had really been able to understand the concepts shared in the Bible. I’ve read the Bible, sure, but I often struggled to fully grasp what they were trying to say. “The Pilgrim’s Progress” gives all the major(and a few minor) lessons from the Bible, but in story form…and it sure helped that all the characters had names like Evangelist, Mr. Worldly Wiseman, and Talkative. It made it easier to keep track of what was going on!

“Life is too short to read books that I'm not enjoying”

-Melissa Marr

Even though I first read these books as a school project, I have since re-read them several times simply because these are two great books that get me thinking! January is a time of making goals and resolutions, and if reading more is one of yours, I definitely recommend these two!