Book Review: The House that Karen Built

You see, the author of this book has just married my surrogate father figure, Bill Eady. Her name is Karen McConnell. Now, to give you some history, Bill has been a friend of my wife and I for many years. My wife and I look up to Bill as a father figure and in fact we used to rent a house from him years ago. He has been with us through personal adversity and personal triumphs. He is near 80 years old, vibrant, and full of life experiences. Whenever I think of him, I think of a person who loves life and someone who is an adventurer. Sure, he has had his share of mistakes and misfortune but that's what makes him all the more enduring to us. Not too many years ago he went through a divorce of his own, the reasons for which I'm not so sure. I thought it would end him, but in true "Bill Fashion," he endured it and moved on. In the process of moving on, he met and married Karen McConnell.

Today, I had the great pleasure of meeting her. It was a brief meeting because they were just passing through. You see, we no longer live close together and we don't get to see him much anymore. During this brief meeting I was delighted to find out that his new wife Karen was an author. The title of her book is "The House That Karen Built." It was published by Barricade Books (March 25, 2005) and in hardcover format it is 192 pages long. Well, needless to say, I immediately read the book. The book, by the way, she was nice enough to give me and personally sign during our all-to-brief meeting.

This book is an autobiographical and philosophical book. It details her life, her seemingly overwhelming obstacles of sex abuse, abandonment, bad relationships with men, and ultimately, her personal, educational, and professional triumphs. Some of the book was hard for me to read because of the subject matter. However, to fully understand what this lady had been through it was necessary and courageous of her to fully divulge her experiences. It was also necessary to fully understand her journey through life, how precious her successes were, and why she can empathize with the struggles so many people face in life. It was necessary to fully understand the meaning of the tools she uses for betterment of herself and others.

Karen is a social worker with her MSW degree and she has vast experience working with orphan children, as well as with her other social work endeavors. Suffice to say, she has a solid background and vast experience with the subject matter. One of the concepts she uses, and one that I found most interesting, in her social work efforts is called "Prescription for Resiliency" and it is outlined in the following manner:

1. A sense of personal competence

2. Consistent emotional support from one or more caring adults

3. A sense of playfulness

4. A spiritual connection to something greater

5. A capacity for learning and creative expression

6. A willingness to work on problems with reasonable perseverance

7. The ability to positively reframe

If you want to understand how to apply these, and other theories she employs, you must read the book. Needless to say, I enjoyed the book very much. It surely gave me some inspiration and tools to use in my own life. Hopefully, this book might provide you with some much needed help and inspiration as well. It Was a "Good Read" and so "Good Reading To You All."