cover image The Busy Mom's Guide to Wisdom

The Busy Mom's Guide to Wisdom

Lisa Whelchel. Howard Books, $12.99 (218pp) ISBN 978-1-58229-488-9

In the 1980s, Whelchel was best known for playing boarding school socialite Blair on the television sitcom The Facts of Life. (She even got to kiss George Clooney onscreen before he became famous.) Now she is best known as an author, motivational speaker, and-most important to her-mom to three sons. She offers advice to Christian moms on issues ranging from discipline and ""tough love"" to good financial habits and self-control. Her sources for this ""guide to wisdom"" are her own experiences and also the biblical book of Proverbs, which she says has been her favorite part of scripture since she was a little girl. She's drawn to it for its practicality, but also because many of the Proverbs were specifically written as advice to children. Since Whelchel knows mothers can be too busy to read, her 52 chapters are often only a couple of paragraphs long. The results can be superficial, with Whelchel skimming the surface of difficult issues like spanking, gossip or forbidden fantasies. However, if all readers want is a sensible and quick reminder of biblical values in child-rearing, this is an excellent resource.