FIRST OFF, SOME STATS:

Find the book on: Amazon and Goodreads
Pages: 176
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Release Date: November 20, 2018
Title: Unexpected Blessings
Author: Sandra Peoples
Nonfiction

BACK COVER BLURB:

Unexpected Blessings helps special-needs families move past the pain and confusion of their circumstances and slowly, firmly face the future with hope. Speaking honestly about struggles that accompany a variety of disabilities, Sandra Peoples shows readers how to
· let go of false beliefs that hold them back
· work through the cycles of grief
· focus on self-care and healthy routines
· understand disability based on what the Bible says
· rebuild a strong faith foundation
· create support systems for themselves and others

Filled with real-life stories and hard-earned wisdom, this book shines a light on the possibilities and blessings that come when parents see their new purpose in life–which was God’s purpose for them all along.

WHY I CHOOSE THIS BOOK:

I have a family member with special needs and so the subject is one I find interesting. Also, the back cover blurb sounded pretty uplifting and interesting.

What I Thought about This Book

There were so many positives about this book – it takes you through an honest, but hope-filled look about what it’s like to have a special needs person enter your family. It talks about various things you have to work through, learning how to keep going, and also has a couple of chapters filled with very practical, everyday advice.

Several things I found particularly interesting/liked a lot were:
– Decision fatigue. Miss Sandra talks about how it can be so difficult taking care of special needs children during harder times in life (such as when facing medical issues), and that making even small decisions can be tiring. She then goes on to give tips on how your life/home can become more organized so you don’t feel as overwhelmed.
-How she dug into God’s word. When Miss Sandra’s son was diagnosed with Autism she really had to figure out what the Bible really said and what she had just believed because of her own experiences.
-How her family’s lives were changed when they found out James had Autism. The family became very involved with the special needs community around where they lived and even moved to be more involved with the special needs community. The experiences she shared in the book as a result of James having Autism were neat.
-How huge of a blessing children with special needs are. I think people sometimes don’t have a clue how special it can actually be to have a person in your life that lives on a whole different “level” of life than most people.

There were a few things I didn’t fully agree with. The main issue I had was that the subject of why there is suffering, etc… in the world in the first place never came up. Miss Sandra talks about how she had to work through why a loving God would allow bad things to happen (not her wording), but never bought up the fact that suffering is a result of sin being in the world. That is not to say that our sin causes children to be born with special needs, because that’s not what I mean at all – simply that sin in the first place is what brought suffering into the world.

CONCLUSION:

The book was a quick, easy read. I finished it in one day with no problem.

RATING:

I’m giving Unexpected Blessings four out of five stars, and recommend it to people with a special needs family member, or those who wish to better understand the special needs people/families in their lives.

This book was given to me from the publishers in exchange for me reviewing it on my blog.