Dwelling: Living Fully from the Space You Call Home

by Mary Beth Lagerborg

Countless TV shows, magazines, books, and websites that speak to some aspect of the concept of home. But women are looking for more than just storage solutions and trendy paint colors. They are looking for a place where they belong and where others can come for refuge from our hectic world. With warm, personal writing, Mary Beth Lagerborg helps modern women realize this dream. They can create a home that is both a haven and a starting point from which they can go out and face the world. Lagerborg has interviewed nearly seventy people who possess a healthy sense of home. She shows readers how they can make their dwellings safe and reengergizing places for themselves and those around them. Although Dwelling covers topics like decorating and dining, it doesn't stop there. Chapters on acceptance, making community, the changing dynamics of family, and even working from home make this book unique. Dwelling challenges readers to look beyond the superficial and into the true heart of home.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2007

Reviews

[Lanette · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was nothing new... somewhat of a disappointment.

[Elie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good reminder to be intentional in setting the tone and environment of the home. The importance of which is often overlooked.

[Adrienne · Rating 1 out of 5]

i managed to score a free copy of this book shortly after i moved into my first place of my own. around this time, hgtv.com, apartmenttherapy.com and kaboodle.com replaced email, this website and the other usual social networking sites as the online distractions of choice. judging from the cozy yet immaculate scene on the cover, i expected this book to complement the other reading on decorating and feng shui.

what i should have done was read the reviews the back cover - from the authors of holy habits, desperate women of the bible and faith-shaped kids - and maybe i would have realized this book is geared not toward a liberal, single, lapsed-catholic twentysomething who lives in an apartment in one of new jersey's "hip city" and more toward churchgoing parents of preschoolers.

there were some decent decorating tips at the beginning (group items in odd numbers, mix dull and shiny, add green plants) but nothing i hadn't read before, but the book was more about time with family (ideas for dinnertime conversations, keeping the sabbath, the interpretation of sunrise). if i was in the habit of stopping to read books i've started, i probably wouldn't have finished this one - but then i wouldn't have gotten to the story about the family who suspected their neighbors were druggie alcoholics and so they baked burritos, brought them to their home, everyone prayed together and then they all lived soberly, happily ever after.

perhaps this book would be useful for someone, but it was not for me.

[Keli Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like reading these short little "feel good self-help" type books my aunt gave me that she got for free somewhere.. it is like I can pick it up and read it quick and my perspective is brightened in the process..
I liked most of what she said.. but I only gave it four stars because it got repetitive and I didn't want to hear anymore about her settling into her cozy chair and drinking a nice cool glass of ice tea anymore.
I am glad I read it though and I am going to donate it to the library now.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is simple in message: home is important, here is how you can make it your own personal escape and space. The chapters are divided up by categories, things like how make your home welcoming, food, color patterns, and having company.

Favorite quote: "I told him that if a man is born in a dry place, then although he may dream of rain, he does not want too much, and that he will not mind the sun that beats down and down. So I never went with him to Zululand and I never saw the sea, ever: But that has not made me unhappy, not once."

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A MOPS recommended book that I got on ILL. I am looking forward to this one!

[Jenene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our MOPs book. It makes me feel normal to know that all mommies and families go thru similar crazy times. This book proves that it is ok!

[Amanda England · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good "mom/wife" book....this is the book that MOPS is using for this year.

[Mara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cozy little read on how to make your house a home, and what "home" means to you. Good for gals beginning to build their "home", or who have to move all the time (like me!).

[Janalyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I've been reading it over the last 18 months in short spurts. I'm sad for it to be over. Every time it refocused me on what matters most.... my family.

[Jessica Bukowinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick, readable, and provocative enough to be worth the time

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just OK. Be forewarned, iy didn't mention it on the back blurb, but there is a fair amount of Jesus stuff, including the last chapter about our final home in heaven. Yeah.