book review: come to the family table

If you followed my last blog, you know that I occasionally do book reviews through Blogging for Books and Tyndale Publishers. Let me know if you ever want to borrow a book I've reviewed! :)

978-1-63146-366-2Come to the Family Table was just as much about hospitality and family togetherness as the table itself, and it had a lot of practical ways to make those things happen. However, I have to admit that overall I wasn't super impressed. The formatting was pretty choppy due to multiple authors and inclusion of a lot of extra material (family recipes, etc.) and while the different perspectives and "extras" were good, I personally prefer to read a book that is a book - not a collection of family ideas. I also feel like the entire book could have been summarized in a chapter or less, and that is always frustrating to me. The concepts were not new or novel... it was somewhat watered-down and surface-level.

To be fair, I might have found this book more relevant if we were in a different stage of life; it includes ideas for ways to make the family table a fun place to be, specifically for older children. At this point, my own children can't handle much more than eating at the table... we're lucky if we even get that accomplished. :)

To summarize, "Come to the Family Table" has a lot of encouragement about hospitality and taking time to eat together as a family, but it is just that - a collection of ideas. I don't feel that it was very biblically-based; I feel like the Bible references were kind of tacked on as an afterthought to justify certain concepts. And I also feel that the book could have been much shorter and still effective. You know how sometimes God teaches you a lot about something over the course of several years, and it's really big in your mind, and you feel like it's worth sharing with everyone? But everyone else hasn't had the same experience you've had, and it doesn't mean nearly as much to them. That's how I felt after I read this book... it didn't mean nearly as much to me, but it's obviously a topic dear to authors Ted & Amy's hearts.

All of that said, if you're still interested - if for no other reason than simply to get a free book on your doorstep - I have an extra copy to give away because reviewers were accidentally sent multiple copies. Get in touch with me if you'd like it. :)

I received a copy of this book from Tyndale in exchange for my review. 

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