Get Up and Walk, by Jewels Staiger

Throughout her life, Julie has been a woman on tremendous faith.  As a child, she felt called to marriage, and felt sure she was meant to be a pastor's wife, as well as a mother.  Time and again in her life, Julie has seen God work in powerful and real ways.  He helped her realize her dream of being a wife and mother, and helped carry her through the toughest times in her life.  And each time life knocked her down, He helped her get up and walk.

I just cannot say enough great things about this book.  As I have mentioned in the past, memoirs are some of my favorite books to read, and this is a memoir with a message.  The message is one of hope and inspiration, and one I think could benefit so many readers.

Julie, aka Jewels, has a way of writing that is so down to earth and real.  While she makes no secret of the fact that she is a Christian, she also brings such humanity to her story.  It helps to reinforce the fact that Christians can have doubts, or setbacks, or be angry, and it does not make them any less Christian.  In fact, it makes them open to even more growth and even deeper faith.

I loved reading about some of the poignant moments in Julie's life, particularly when she discussed the heartbreak of being single; I found myself able to relate to a lot of the things she talked about in the book, even if her life circumstances were different from mine.  And I loved that her expressions of faith were genuine, yet not pushy or over evangelical.  Each chapter has a segment at the end called Faith Walk which allows readers to apply some of that chapter's themes and ideas to a specific Bible passage.

All in all, I just thought this was a tremendous book.  While it will obviously appeal to Christian readers, I think it has to potential to be empowering and inspiring to mainstream readers as well.  It would make a great gift for someone who is struggling with life circumstances.  It would also make a perfect book for a small group or church book club.



I received a review copy of the book courtesy of the publisher.