Smile--Jesus loves you????

In my opinion, Captivating is a 220-pages-too-long version of Smile--Jesus loves you. It has poor biblical references, as has been noted below, and atrocious choices in other references, as well as poor research. They cannot even take the time to be sure to spell properly the names of the characters whom they hold up as examples, even, as with Toula from Greek Wedding, when the name is on the back of the dvd case! In addition, whether deliberately or through ignorance, the Eldredges neglect to point out that many of the movies they cite as such perfect examples (Sense and Sensibility, Little Women, Lord of the Rings) are, in fact, BOOKS, real books, written by people who understood human nature; clearly the Eldredges do not. For instance, I agree heartily with those reviewers who make the point that all women do not, of necessity, share the "fairy princess" longings the E's propose. Jo March never had the slightest notion that her life should revolve around waiting for her "prince" to come some day--if she had, she'd have found Friedrich exceedingly disappointing! I think that there are many books, both religious and secular self-help books, and many GOOD novels, such as those the Eldredges didn't read, favoring videos instead, which could give a woman a clearer and healthier view of herself and her place in creation.

Utterly inane.

The mystery of a woman's soul is mysterious. ^M

A Woman's Heart

Here at last is a book that seeks to give women spiritual guidance without any trite "how to be a good Christian lady" instructions. John Elderedge's wife took over the writing of this book for the most part (and rightly so) and the result is a truly moving work. Let me tell you, I am a feminist Christian and I can be EXTREMELY picky about Christian guidebooks (particularly ones aimed at women) because so many of them are written by well-meaning but misguided people who fill the books with unrealistic portrayals of angelic women, not to mention a good dose of the old "obey your husbands" tripe. Not only does this book have nothing of the sort, but it addresses these sorts of messages directly and reminds us of how beloved we are by God instead of telling us how short we fall of His expectations. When I first read the dust jacket, it alone made me feel as though the author had seen directly into my heart and was answering my unspoken prayers! Eldredge addresses women's many different needs accurately and encourages us to be strong rather than telling us to hide behind our husbands or give up our dreams. I realize that there are some negative reviews about this book, but I noticed a strange contrast between the reviewer's reasons for disliking it: some of them are feminists claiming the book puts women down, whereas others are claiming it boosts women's egos too much! Well gee, it can't be doing both, can it? For those of you feminists who were offended by the book, please don't misunderstand it. Eldredge is NOT trying to describe women as fairytale-loving children; she is simply trying to address the need to be loved. Remember the passages in the book where Eldredge discusses female warriors? This should be proof enough that she does NOT consider women as dainty princesses. As to the people who claim this book boosts the female ego too much...well, I'm not sure what they're thinking, but I can't say that I'm pleased with their faulty comments. I personally don't see a thing wrong with trying to uplift women by telling us how Christ loves us and I cannot understand why some reviewers put down this book for doing so, particularly the ninny who wrote an essay length review and claimed to be from a group called "ladies against feminism" (the name says it all, doesn't it?) If these reviewers are disturbed at the idea of encouraging women to be strong, I guess they're the ones with spiritual faults and skewed doctrines, not Eldredge. There's also a misunderstanding about the book passage that mentions a scene from "Titanic" (the one with Jack and Rose at the ship's front) and tells the reader to picture herself as Rose and Jesus as Jack standing behind her. Eldredge is talking about the symbolism of Jack supporting Rose and showing her a brand new world; this was NOT meant to be a romantic image of Jesus, as many reviewers seem to think. Remember also that Jack died for Rose in the movie and encouraged her to persevere in life no matter how hard it got; sounds Christlike to me! There probably are a few passages which you will find to be overgeneralizing women, but these are few and I strongly believe that this gem of a book has something to offer every woman. Whether you are a romantic wanting to marry or an independent feminist (nothing wrong with either!) I recommend you read this and rejoice in Christ's perfect love for you!