A dating guide that will enlighten, encourage, and instruct Christian readers.
Debut author Johnson explores the history of courtship and romance, condemns modern dating culture, and offers a Christian alternative.
Dating can be a complicated and often brutal affair. According to Johnson, a self-described “scientist by profession and…philosopher at heart,” one reason for this is because of rampant selfishness on the parts of many of the participants: “We shop around for relationships in…a ‘meet market,’ with one eye on what we want and the other on what we think we can realistically get.” The author paints a grim picture of contemporary dating, offering well-supported, annotated criticisms and drawing on the research of social scientists, such as Dorothy Holland and Margaret Eisenhart. He then takes a step back and explores the history of romance in the Bible and through the last several centuries. Finally, the book wraps up with the author’s practical advice on how to date in a way that’s consistent with Christian principles, including how to stay “Sexually Pure.” Johnson’s main premise is that romantic relationships, like platonic ones, should follow two great commandments of the New Testament: “We are to love God, and we are to love our neighbor.” So instead of being caught up in the fickleness of romance, he asserts, couples should seek to build their relationships on a solid foundation of friendship. By doing so, they may avoid many pitfalls of the dominant dating culture. Johnson’s prose is polished, powerful, and to-the-point. His observations about the defects of the current dating scene are spot-on, and his faith-based ideas on how to mitigate them are clear and well defined. The historical section, however, doesn’t fit as neatly into the book; although it’s engaging and educational, it seems more suited to history buffs or social science students than to young Christian readers eager to thrive in the dating realm. For the latter, the author includes thought-provoking reflection questions at the end of each chapter, which adds great value to the book.
A dating guide that will enlighten, encourage, and instruct Christian readers.Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-73250-840-8
Page Count: 176
Publisher: FaithReasonCulture Press
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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