This month I received two selections from the Chicken Soup for the Soul folks. I suspect it’s because I didn’t follow directions and chose to give my copy of last month’s book to one of you lovely folks 
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The first book I received was a copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inspiration for the Young at Heart, which I also received last month. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I’ve found that it was a mixed bags of stories for me. I suspect that had something to do with the fact that they are aimed at older folks and I’m not ‘older folk.’.
I admit that many were very inspiring stories about doing things you’ve always wanted to do. Others, I wasn’t very fond of. At times, the tone seemed very selfish to me. I’m not saying that you should never do things for you. I just didn’t like the tone they were written in–too modern & “me me me.” There were also some hysterical stories about retirement that I can SO visualize in my house. Overall, they are (mostly) enjoyable stories typical of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books and could be enjoyed by all ages.
The second book, Devotional Stories for Tough Times, was fabulous and much more what I would expect from the Chicken Soup for the Soul folks. This November has been a little rough, probably due (in part) to a lack of grace from not receiving the Eucharist in six weeks. Normally, I’d be blogging and doing the 30 day giving challenge and I just didn’t do it this year. I could not make myself be grateful. Then I opened this book. It’s filled with bite-sized beautiful & heartwrenching stories of what tough REALLY is.
It is not my selfish little temper tantrums. It is people wanting to die. People who have loved ones who are ill. People who are abused and hurt. And they all find God in unexpected ways. Each short (2-3 page) story is followed by a short, yet heartfelt prayer. If you are going through a tough time, whether real or perceived (like mine), this book will lift your spirits and show you a glimpse of the love that God has for each of us. It’s a fabulous book and has earned a permanent spot on my bookshelf.
Thank you to Chicken Soup for the Soul for sending these items for review, in spite of my failure to follow instructions . As always, all opinions are my own.
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