Official Review: God Gave Us Wings by Connie Rankin

[LivreAmour217]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "God Gave Us Wings" by Connie Rankin.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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God Gave Us Wings is an inspiring collection of true stories for women that demonstrate how faith in God can transform lives. In this book, author Connie Rankin shares the stories of ten women whose faith in God allowed them to overcome tremendous hardships. These stories are told from a Judeo-Christian perspective, but the depth of each story transcends beyond religious beliefs. The women featured within this book comes from very diverse backgrounds, and can be related to by people from all walks of life.

Ms. Rankin opens her book with a bang by sharing the story of Oprah Winfrey. The reader is given a detailed account of Oprah's life, starting with her ancestors and moving through her childhood to her eventual status as media royalty. This was a fascinating chapter on a remarkable woman, and I was impressed by the sheer amount of research that was put into sharing her story. Oprah's professional success was made even more impactful by what she overcame in her childhood, and her celebrity status made her story a fitting choice for the opening chapter.

While most of the other stories in this book are not about celebrities, they are no less impressive. The women within these chapters have overcome poverty, abusive relationships, drug use, debilitating injuries, and many other obstacles. Furthermore, each woman has found ways to use her adversity to help others. This book has been compared to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, which I believe is an accurate description.

Overall, the writing within this book is good, although I did find a few typographical errors. Fortunately, these errors were not significant enough to have an impact on my reading, but I do have some complaints about the way the author chose to end each chapter. Immediately following each story, the author provided a few blank lines underneath the heading "Write Your Five Action Items." However, she did not explain what an "action item" is or how to go about creating one. Additionally, there is a similar space in each chapter for readers to brainstorm ways they can help others, presumably based upon the struggle(s) within that specific story. While this isn't a bad idea, I think that it's a little too repetitive. My suggestion to the author would be to replace these exercises with specific questions to engage readers in critical thinking.

Despite the aforementioned flaws, I enjoyed reading God Gave Us Wings and award it 3 out of 4 stars. The stories within this book are worth reading and could be comforting to readers who are working through personal struggles. Although this is a faith-based book for women, I believe that both women and men could benefit from reading it, and I would especially encourage non-Christians to give it a chance as well. These stories are powerful, and anyone can draw inspiration from them.

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God Gave Us Wings
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Like LivreAmour217's review? Post a comment saying so!

[peprica21]

Thank you for a detailed review on the story. Sounds like a wonderful collection of empowering tales. I think your suggestion to the “Five Action Items” is a great addition to the book.

[LivreAmour217]

Thank you for a detailed review on the story. Sounds like a wonderful collection of empowering tales. I think your suggestion to the “Five Action Items” is a great addition to the book.

Thank you!

[Kdonegan91]

I enjoy faith-based books and this one sounds like a winner. I agree that ending all the chapters in the same way could become repetive and boring. I love the Chicken Soup for the soul series. Great review!

[LivreAmour217]

I enjoy faith-based books and this one sounds like a winner. I agree that ending all the chapters in the same way could become repetive and boring. I love the Chicken Soup for the soul series. Great review!

Thanks! This is a very enjoyable book, and I hope that you get to read it!

[Rachaelamb1]

Sounds very inspirational! I agree with what you mentioned about putting questions at the end that would promote critical thinking.

[kimmyschemy06]

Sounds like a great read and putting Oprah Winfrey's story in the first chapter is a brilliant idea since almost everybody knows who Oprah is and how successful she is. Great job on the review.

[LivreAmour217]

@ Rachellamb and Kimmy: Thank you both very much!

[Pookabooks]

This book sounds like exactly what I needed this morning! I follow the same belief system that it sounds like the author was coming from and could always use a little empowerment. Thank you for pointing me there.

[LivreAmour217]

This book sounds like exactly what I needed this morning! I follow the same belief system that it sounds like the author was coming from and could always use a little empowerment. Thank you for pointing me there.

You are welcome! And thanks for reading my review!

[kodabear]

I just found this site and didn't show my interest in reading until today. I really thing this site will devourer my time over the next few weeks or so!

[LivreAmour217]

I just found this site and didn't show my interest in reading until today. I really thing this site will devourer my time over the next few weeks or so!

Wonderful! Welcome to OBC, and thank you for taking the time to read this review!