Category: relationships

Christian, marriage, relationships

Love Lock

Bergers Book Reviews


Authors: Rich Rollins and Marty Trammell
Publisher: Crosslink Publishing
Genre: Marriage / Christian
ISBN: 978-1-63357-158-7
Pages: 159
Price: $11.95

Authors’ website
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Marriage needs good communication to thrive, but we’re all flawed human beings, incapable of perfect behavior all the time. Love Lock helps couples correct some of the wrong patterns they’ve fallen into, as they navigate life together.

Eighteen chapters touch on specific problems in the categories of: I need to feel understood, I need to feel valued, I need to feel a part of you, I need to feel appreciated and cherished, I need to trust you, and I need more resolution, less conflict. Each short chapter addresses a problem and ends with an exercise to be completed together. The authors write from a Christian perspective, and Bible verses are provided to support their viewpoints on creating a happy marriage.

Maybe you’ve noticed the locks couples leave on bridges, declaring their unending devotion to each other, and you want a marriage like that for yourself. If so, Love Lock would be a great guide for both you and your spouse to follow.

Reviewer: Alice Berger

Jewish, marriage, relationships, romance, spirituality

The Joy of Intimacy

Bergers Book Reviews


Author: Manis Friedman with Ricardo Adler
Publisher: It’s Good to Know Publishing
Genre: Relationships / Spirituality
ISBN: 978-0-9862770-0-9
Pages: 216
Price: $14.00

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Today’s marriages are failing at an alarming rate. But what if we discovered the way to experience true intimacy with our life partner? In The Joy of Intimacy, Manis Friedman shares timeless Jewish wisdom in creating a meaningful and lasting relationship with our spouse.

Much of Friedman’s advice is based on orthodox Jewish teaching on marriage. These include proper modesty, relations only at certain times of the month, and an emphasis on creating a baby as a result of the marriage act. But Christians (and especially Catholics) would also relate to many of these concepts. God gifted the married couple with these pleasures, and He wants our marriage to be alive, fresh, and fulfilling. Following this advice would be the perfect start in growing closer to each other.

The Joy of Intimacy would be a great resource for all couples starting out in their marriages, as well as those who may have hit some snags along the way. I highly recommend it.

Reviewer: Alice Berger

relationships, self improvement

How to Forgive: A Practical Guide

Bergers Book Reviews

How to Forgive
Author: Lynda Bevan
Publisher: Loving Healing Press
Genre: Self-help
ISBN: 978-1-61599-030-6
Pages: 110
Price: $14.95

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Do you have trouble forgiving others? Does your relationship need help in working through some difficult issues? If so, you may want to explore how to forgive. Lynda Bevan has offered her thoughts on improving relationships through the process of forgiveness.

As part of her 10-step series, Bevan focuses on the steps required in healing and restoring relationships hurting due to lack of forgiveness. In these steps, she provides many ideas on what to forgive, how to forgive, and how to change yourself in the hopes of improving communication and harmony between two people, usually a couple.

There is a lot of really good information in How to Forgive. Bevan has obviously studied this subject extensively and knows it well. Unfortunately, this self-help book reads more like a dissertation with a lot of lists and no examples of real-life scenarios to develop the concepts presented. The nuggets of wisdom are lost. If read in very small bite-size chunks, with strong attention to the details presented, I’m sure the reader would gain a lot of knowledge. But if read cover to cover quickly, most of these suggestions will simply fade away with nothing to anchor them.

Reviewer: Alice Berger

relationships, self improvement

The Compliment Quotient

Bergers Book Reviews


Author: Monica Strobel
Publisher: Wise Roads Press
Genre: Self-help / Motivation
ISBN: 978-1-936214-37-2
Pages: 164
Price: $14.95

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Are you looking for a simple but effective way to change the dynamics of an important relationship? A compliment may be just what you need. In The Compliment Quotient, Monica Strobel shows us how and why compliments can be so powerful in our interactions with others.

Compliments don’t just help others. They can help us just as much, since giving a compliment also makes us happy. But giving the right kinds of compliments makes a huge difference. Avoiding flattery and pinpointing something specific to compliment are important. And sometimes the hardest thing we can do is accept a compliment from others gracefully.

Strobel provides helpful information on proper complimentology techniques in a well-organized fashion, relying on detailed bullet-point lists to explain her ideas. She also shows us great examples of how — and how NOT — to compliment others. If you’re looking to improve relationships with friends, family and co-workers, give compliments a try, and be sure to pick up The Compliment Quotient for guidance.

Reviewer: Alice Berger