Brave Enough, by Nicole Unice

[Note: This book was provided free of charge by Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for an honest review.]

There is a mystery at the heart of this book. In speaking about the subject of courage, using both intriguing metaphors, useful categorization, and many insightful biblical quotations, the author says nothing about courage that is useful only for women. Yet the chapter headings and apparent aim of this book is specifically and seemingly almost only at women, despite the fact that what it says is of practical purpose for men, who need the sort of ordinary courage that allows for successfully coping with the ordinary and mundane decisions of life, including the need to apologize to others and to set proper boundaries and limits on behavior as well as seek God’s strength and wisdom through prayer and Bible study. Why, then, is this book directed so intently at women alone? Does the author (or the publisher) believe that the fact that she is a woman would lead her writings to be disregarded by men, that men would be unwilling to read and well-regard the thoughts of a well-spoken and obviously intelligent lady, and one whose anxious and overscheduled ways are not so different from many men, and thus easy to relate to?

In terms of its contents, this book is well-focused and a has a classic frame structure, with an introduction that talks about what it means to be brave enough to deal with life without the demand of a special type of heroism [1], and a conclusion that points to the need for bravery and courage in our normal daily life. In between these two chapters are seven chapters that talk about what brave enough women (and, even if the author does not say so, men as well) do in life: get in the race rather than sit on the sidelines, embrace spiritual survival skills like Bible study, worship, prayer, and fellowship, love grace, give grace by being quick to forgive and to apologize, and very reluctant to cut people off completely, don’t fear a fight but fight for a relationship rather than fighting against others, explore their territory by recognizing where they have been given gifts, where their experiences are leading them to serve, what talents others recognize, and what opportunities are present to use those gifts, while also knowing their limits and being able to set and enforce boundaries. While the author focuses on writing about brave-enough women, the contents of the book and the biblical and personal stories demonstrate that these lessons apply equally well to men, who may be turned off by the book’s focus on a female audience to apply the lessons of the book and the book’s relational and emotional approach to their own lives.

There are a lot of features of this book that are of interest to readers. In talking about the need to know and set limits and boundaries, the author speaks at some length about the Sabbath and the importance of a Sabbath rest, and while I do not endorse her interpretation of the Sabbath for Christians, it is clear she views the Sabbath rest as remaining important for believers because of its implications for liberty and freedom and restoration, and that recognition is a worthwhile one. Additionally, this book is full of humorous and self-effacing stories, which remove the distance between the author and her points. What could have come off as a demanding and harsh book instead comes off as easy to relate to, with a lot of delicate personal touches including the author’s humorous experiences in rugged camping with her son, as well as the story of an epic years-long struggle over vacuum cleaning with her husband. The book also contains some excellent memory verses/passages about courage from the Bible, which are widely relevant and worthy of thought and reflection. All in all, despite the book’s minor flaws, including some copy-editing issues, this is a very worthwhile book on a subject of interest to many people outside of the book’s target demographic of women alone.

[1] See, for example:

https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress.com/2011/02/20/on-moral-and-physical-courage/

https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress.com/2015/10/14/book-review-churchills-trial/

https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress.com/2015/09/08/they-say-a-hero-will-save-us/

https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress.com/2014/11/24/show-them-what-it-costs-to-be-friends-with-katniss-everdeen/