Book Review - Breathe Again, How To Live Well When Life Falls Apart

\ABOUT THE BOOK:

You can thrive, not just survive, no matter what life throws at you.

No one gets to skip the tough stuff. Niki Hardy knows. After losing both her mother and sister to cancer, she too was diagnosed. Eventually she discovered that it was possible to find hope, peace, trust, joy, and even laughter in the midst of it all and that life doesn't have to be pain-free to be full.

With plenty of her British humor and loads of practical advice, Niki shows you how to

· replace soul-destroying myths of suffering with the hope-building truths of God
· escape the suffocating mire of survival mode by learning God's life-giving practices for thriving
· uncover more joy, peace, comfort, and connection, despite your circumstances
· laugh when all you want to do is cry, scream, or dive headfirst into a gallon of ice cream

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Niki Hardy is a speaker and writer who, alongside her husband, Al, founded CityChurch in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they now live with their three kids and two crazy Goldendoodles. A cancer survivor, tea drinker, and teller of bad jokes, she'd love to connect with you at www.nikihardy.com if she can't hug you in person.

MY REVIEW:

The greatest thing about this book is that Niki teaches us how to thrive rather than survive. I had always thought that if you survived the hard things, you were doing well, but she shows us how we don't have to just survive but we can actually live abundantly through Christ during the difficult things that life throws at us.

This was not always an easy book for me to read as she went through having an ostomy, bag the same as I did and that was one of the absolute hardest things I've ever been through. It brought those hard times slamming into my head again and I had to really not get too caught up in those memories. However, having said this, her encouragement far outweighed any uncomfortable feelings I had reading about this.

I really like how she gives us questions throughout the book for us to ponder and answer as we focus on thriving. She encourages us to grieve the hard things but also to embrace the lovely things that are also a part of our life even when things are hard.

The fact that she opens her heart and truly shares her life and feelings makes this a book that's easy to read. You really feel like you're sitting down with your best friend over tea and having them share their heart with you. I found myself in tears and also laughing with joy while reading this book.  It's real and straight from her heart.

I can highly recommend this book and give it 5 stars.

*This book was provided to me by Revell. I received a copy of this book to review but I was not financially compensated in any way. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my observations while reading this book.

Blessings - Julie