Present Over Perfect by Shauna Niequist

This book is an invitation to remake our life. Maybe we feel disconnected from our soul and the people we care about. Maybe our life is full, too full. Niequist dares us to be present over pretending to be perfect, to allow others to love us in all our imperfection.

Niequist has given us a collection of stories to illustrate her journey from exhaustion to peace, from multitasking to presence. She invites us to take the same journey, to remake our life from the inside out, to know God and His love for us in a way that reorders everything.

This book is full of insight. I loved her chapter on disappointing people. When we start saying “no,” it will happen. People will be disappointed in us. She reminds us of the importance of knowing God's deep unconditional love for us and our having a deep sense of purpose. That's something I needed to hear.

I loved her encouragement to face the temptation to accomplish some great achievement or performance, striving for perfection. Instead, we are to dwell deeply in life as it presents itself each moment. What makes life meaningful, she reminds us, is not what we accomplish but how honestly and deeply we connect with the people in our lives.

I highly recommend this book to those who are ready to reconnect with yourself, the self God created you to be, the self you were meant to be. I recommend it to those who long for a well-tended spirit and a peaceful soul. It is a journey, she says, and there is no finish line. You will find here a great deal of encouragement and insight to help you along the way.

Food for thought: “You can get this right. It's not too late. You can start again, right now.”

My rating: 5/5 stars.

Shauna Niequist is the popular author of several books. She and her husband live in Chicago and have two sons. You can find out more at http://www.shaunaniequist.com/.

Zondervan, 240 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of an independent and honest review.