READ: Review, I’m Too Young to Be This Old by Poppy Smith
The seventeenth birthday of my youngest child seems like a good day to post this review. I can remember feeling old during my pregnancy with her. I seemed to hurt more, sleep less, and experience every ache and pain more than I had as I carried my previous four. But I know now that I had no clue what “feeling old” was like.
I’m starting to have a clue. And so is Poppy Smith, author of the best-selling I’m Too Young to Be This Old (Harvest House, 1997).
If you’ve ever seen a picture of yourself from a few years ago and realized how much different you look now, or wondered how that baby you rocked just the other day can be getting her driver’s license, or had your child look down from his now-towering height and call you his “little mother,” you’ll want to read this book. Written with faith, hope, and a large dose of humor, I’m Too Young to Be This Old offers encouragement and practical advice to help women through the midlife years.
So many of us in this season find ourselves feeling like a Panini sandwich: pressed hard on both sides. On one, we have teen and young adult children with their various needs and desires: navigating college, relationships, finances, and more. On the other, we have aging parents, so we face the issues of illness, caregiving, and important life decisions. Do we lose ourselves in the middle of the hard press? Or can God use it to create something delicious?
Poppy, a popular author and conference speaker, shares with transparency about her own midlife struggles and victories, including many stories of others as well. Twelve chapters chock-full of information and advice reflect the real feelings of real women, including “What’s Happening to Me?” (Chapter One); “If Only I Had . . . Or Hadn’t” (Chapter Seven); and “Where Do I Go From Here?” (Chapter Ten).
But the author does more than point out this age group’s concerns and problems. Her positive, humorous style allows her to combine biblical truth and practical tips in a way that leaves the reader feeling, “I can do this—with God’s help.”
“Reflections” (review questions) at the end of each chapter make this book a natural choice for either group or individual study. And Poppy’s constant admonishment to look beyond yourself and into God’s desires for your life make this book one I can recommend to women at any stage of life.
We can’t stop the aging process, so why not embrace it with grace? Allow Poppy Smith to show you how.
It’s October, and a great time for another book giveaway. What’s the biggest struggle you notice among midlife women (yourself or someone else)? Leave a comment including your contact information here before next Tuesday, October 22, and I’ll enter you to win my review copy plus a bonus book (I’ll send a choice of three). Blessings!
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FTC Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book free from the publisher. I was not required to post a review or a positive response.
My biggest struggle? graciously accepting the limitations and losses of aging, without succumbing to a fatalistic attitude.
Oooh, yes, yes, yes. Thanks for your comment, Judy!
Hi Marti! Since I’m not old yet, this might be a good time for me to start learning about the problems that may be ahead!! Bonnie’s impending marriage in December makes me wonder if I am getting old but just don’t realize it! Will be missing iGo again but Bonnie may be able to see Walker today. He’s at a conference in L’ville.
Haha, you’re describing some of the topics Poppy covers in her book, Barbara. I will miss you at iGO. I hope Walker and Bonnie can connect while he’s at D6. I know he would love to see her! We miss you all.
Sounds like a great book! Enter me in
I agree! Thanks for your comment/entry!
The struggle? There are lots, and not necessarily related to aging, lol. But some are related to those “Who am I?” questions from middle school rearing their ugly heads all over again. And sometimes I am caught by surprise by new worries and fears about the future–I don’t remember people talking about that as part of aging! (Or maybe I just wasn’t listening.) It’s new territory, but at a time when I am still in the old territory of parenting younger kids. Complicated.
Ah yes. YOU are in a unique situation in many ways, Joan (including the fact that, if you win, I may have to send the books to your adult children). I think you’ll find that this book addresses many of the more common concerns, though–even the ones we didn’t know we’d still face at this stage of life. Hugs!
Marti, I had to laugh when I read the title of the book….my saying is “I’m a young person trapped in an old person’s body”! I’m definitely past mid-life, being a senior, and as of tomorrow, into a new decade, but I thank the Lord for every day and every blessing!
Marianne, I still remember my grandma telling me “Inside, I feel just the same as I did as a young girl” (I’m sure she was in her eighties at the time). You are beautifully young, and I’m glad the title made you laugh. Blessings–and thanks for the sweet comment!