First Impressions: Off-Screen Conversations with a Bachelor on Race, Family, and Forgiveness by Matt James with Cole Brown Book Review

In First Impressions, Matt James opened up about his personal life story and how he became the first Black Bachelor on the hit reality tv show, The Bachelor after two decades of it being on air. He explained how he led a prayer to God at the start of the first episode and this led to controversies. In the book, he shared how his mother accepted Jesus as her Savior. Most of it was because she saw her coworker life and how joyful she was. He explained how his mother married his dad and how unfaithful he was in their marriage. She stated how she never trashed him in front of her two children. She chose forgiveness towards him and Matt revealed his personal struggle with forgiveness and seeing it as a weakness. He explained how he grew in his own personal faith and how his brother stopped believing later on after he went to prison a few times. In the book, he also opened up about being half white and how people viewed him differently when they learned that his mother was white. He opened up about his experiences growing up and how his own grandfather treated him differently. He also discussed the topic of racism, the wrongful death of George Floyd, and the protests that occurred. In the book, he also shared how he became an NFL athlete and the experiences he faced during that. 

 

 

 

I would recommend this awesome book to anyone who enjoyed watching him on the Bachelor. I don’t watch this show personally but I enjoyed reading about his personal life and how he is a Christian trying to assist others through his nonprofit, ABC Food Tours. I loved how in his Bachelor book he focused more on his roots and Christian values. I was deeply touched by his story of his grandfather and how he refused to tell his brother, John and him that he loved them. He also shared how he wouldn’t help John with his math homework and judged him for his grades. Even though he has a degree in chemical engineering. He would show the other grandchildren more love and attention then John and Mark. I also love reading about how all that changed when his grandfather needed help after falling down. This story is a wonderful example of forgiveness and change.

 

 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Hachette Book Group/Faithwords for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/First-Impressions-Conversations-Bachelor-Forgiveness/dp/1546002081/

The Good, the Bad, and the Grace of God What Honesty and Pain Taught Us about Faith, Family, and Forgiveness By Jep and Jessica Robertson, with Susy Flory Book Review

In The Good, the Bad, and the Grace of God, Jep and Jessica Robertson open up about their personal life and shared their triumphs and struggles and how God saw them through it all. A little background about Jep, he is the youngest brother of the Robertson family and he has three other brothers. He is also a part of the popular TV show, Duck Dynasty. He works for Duck Commander and his family live in West Monroe, Louisiana.

 

Jep Robertson grew up in household that strongly believed in Christian principles and teachings. Phil Robertson (Jep’s father) would teach others God’s word from his own home and he would baptize them in the river. He witnessed his parents reaching out to others and loving them like Christ would. Jep also shared some stories about how his dad taught him how to hunt ducks, squirrels, deer, and turkey. Jep played basketball in high school and was a pretty good player until his junior year, he broke his ankle and was unable to play again. He lost his identity and got wrapped up in worshiping his girlfriend and he let her become the center of his whole world. He also began to hang out with the wrong crowd and he started drinking and eventually he tried drugs. His family found out and his dad gave him two choices either to turn his life around or to get out and leave and they would pray for him and hope he would one day be set free. His dad and his brother, Alan struggled with alcohol addictions when they were younger so they knew the power it can have over someone. He decided to get the help, he needed and he turned his life around. The book goes into detail about how he did just that.

 

Jessica shared about how she grew up loving sports such as cheerleading, track, softball, basketball, and gymnastics. When she was a freshman in high school, everything changed. She fell for a football player and he ended up cheating on her. She felt rejected and she believed that she wasn’t good enough. She began to withdraw from sports and from her family and friends. She also started counting her calories and being obsessed about her weight. She began to have an eating disorder. At around this time, a youth pastor at her church instigated and pursued her. He told her to keep it a secret between them until she was eighteen and out of high school. He eventually proposed and she agreed to marry him. She struggled with feelings that she was making a mistake but everyone around her told her she was just getting cold feet. They finally did get married and she tries to make the marriage work but ultimately it fails.

 

I only touched on the surface about some of the things discussed in this book. The book also covered how Jep and Jessica met and fell in love. It also shared the struggles they have experienced in marriage and secrets they have told no one and how God help them repair their marriage.

 

I would recommend this life changing book to anyone who is a huge fan of Duck Dynasty and Duck Commander. I have only recently became a fan of the TV show and the Robertson family. Before reading this book, I haven’t heard most of the topics and stories Jep and Jessica presented in this book about their life. I liked how Jep and Jessica switched from each other throughout the different chapters of the book. The book was easy to follow and keep up with. I especially liked how open they was in revealing their personal struggles in life and in their marriage. I appreciated the courage it took for Jep to disclose the childhood sexual abuse he experienced on the school bus by a female. I was completely shocked that no one ever reported the instance to the proper authority figures like the bus driver and no one stood up for him and tried to stop it from occurring again and again. I was bullied by two females in elementary school so I connected with his story. I also liked how they included colorful photos from their childhood and their life. If you’re looking for an excellent book about how God can use your pain and make you whole again and even restore a marriage, then read this book!

 

"I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program."  

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of The Good, The Bad, and the Grace of God, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

http://www.amazon.com/The-Good-Bad-Grace-God/dp/0718031482