Sandpaper People: Dealing with the Ones Who Rub You the Wrong Way

by Mary Southerland

Everybody deals with them—people who rub you the wrong way, often leaving abrasions behind! Mary Southerland goes beyond just giving good advice on how to handle tough relationships. Using examples from her own painful experiences, a readily applicable format—and a dusting of humor and intriguing "Sandpaper Facts" throughout—she frames key principles of relating to rub-you-the-wrong-way types such as... Readers will see how God, using the difficult people in their lives, is reshaping them into men and women who can express His forgiveness, mercy, and tender affection.

Genres: Mental Health

256 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2005

Reviews

[Des · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read.

The author gives good insight into the complex issues hidden within the heart of difficult people. She also does a good job of identifying some of the manipulative and provoking tactics of difficult people. I do recommend this book as a good guide for Christians to respond in love to unkind individuals. The thing I disliked most about the book is the random sandpaper facts at the end of each chapter. Time is valuable and there was no need to bulk up the page count of the book with off topic and distracting sandpaper facts.

[Amy Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This may be the most highlighted book I own! I have recommended it to so many people who struggle with loving difficult people in their lives. And EVERY person I have recommended it to told me they loved it, that it was very helpful.

[Di · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was an excellent book on how to deal with people who irritate you from a Christian perspective. I disagree with the author's take on the devil, but it doesn't detract from the overall message and form. It also helped me to see how to some people I am their very own sandpaper person! Also it shows how our sandpaper person is there to file away the bits God doesn't like and they too are working on His vessel. I would recommend this to anyone.

[Susie]

Perhaps the most important thing I gleaned from the book is that you might be wanting help in dealing with the sandpaper person in your life, but you might realize that you're indeed a sandpaper person to someone else. We all have to give and receive mercy in our relationships. Southerland does a good job of using scripture to identify attributes that we are to extend to our sandpaper people. I think that if we were to act in these ways we might just find that we're the ones God is changing.

[Jill Morrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this now - teaching me alot.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! Great understanding!

[Karina · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sandpaper person helped me see the "sandpaper" in myself and how I should handle that within me and the sandpaper people in my life. It gave me instruction on how to better deal with both.

[Elisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that I go back to and review, it's a great reminder of why God places those difficult people in our lives and what my attitude should be towards them.