Book Review: Navigating the Friendship Maze by Michele Howe

Product Description from Publisher:

Navigating the Friendship Maze is beloved author Michele Howe’s newest book. It will help women of all ages make thoughtful, prayerful choices about the friends they develop and nurture through life. In the Bible, the book of Proverbs makes frequent reference to the invaluable influence of godly individuals upon one’s life—In short, we become like those we spend the most time with! So Michele’s book will help women make wise decisions and cultivate the best friendships that they can.

Navigating the Friendship Maze contains stories of real women who have chosen wisely as well as some who have not; and will include discussions of the principles outlined. Each chapter explores various facets of friendship, such as the three types of friends every woman needs and practical ways to be a good friend. Each chapter also includes a Scripture reading, a brief prayer, and practical suggestions for women to follow.

Sample Chapters Include:
• Why Biblical Friendships Are Essential
• Frenemies or Friends?
• What to Look For in a Real Friend
• Knowing When to Let a Friendship Go
• Older, Wiser Mentor Friends
• Different Friends for Different Seasons
• Make Me Laugh, Let’s Have Fun Friends
• Exhort and Encourage (Speak the Word of Truth Out Loud and Often)
• Love Unconditionally (Accept Each Other’s Differences with Grace)
• Forgive Generously (Forgive Because We’ve Been Forgiven)

My Review:

Michele Howe’s book Navigating the Friendship Maze. Michele Howe’s book Navigating the Friendship Maze is a 30-chapter book helping women in their search for authentic friendship. There is an acknowledgements page and a three-page introduction and then the chapters are split up into three parts: Defining Biblical Friendship (Why They are Essential), The Kind of friendship Every Woman Needs, and How to Become a Friend Who Stays the Distance. The first ten chapters explains what biblical friendship is and what to look for and what to avoid when searching. The second part of the book explains what a woman needs in friendship. Michele describes different seasons and purposes of friendship. The third part of the book is about long-term friendships and how to sustain friendships through prayer, love, forgiveness, encouragement, vision, support, serving, celebration, healing and covenants. The book ends with a source section for quotations that the author used throughout the book. Each chapter includes a scripture verse, a quote from well known authors like Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth, Sheila Walsh, Lou Priolo, Paula Rinehart, Tim Lane, Max Lucado, David Jeremiah, Sarah Beckman, randy Alcorn and Oswald Chambers. The main part of the chapter is a three to four-page story most often about her own life experiences. Then there is a Take-away Action Thought section to encourage the reader by giving them simple advice. After the Take-away Action Thought section, each chapter has a prayer (My Heart’s Cry to You, O Lord) to engage the Lord in the readers friendship search and finishes with questions in the Focus on Friendship section.

Michele Howe’s book Navigating the Friendship Maze would be great for a small group setting or help for anyone teaching about biblical friendship. It would be a perfect addition to a church library. This book could also be used as a devotional. It has lots of wisdom for teenagers and young adults that can take advice from the authors experiences and hopefully avoid many bad friendship experiences in their own lives. The questions at the end of the chapter leaves the reader thinking about many points of friendship in their own lives and how the Lord is leading them.

I would suggest this book to anyone looking to improve their friendships or anyone helping others in their friendships. This book is essential in learning the biblical attributes of friendship and becoming a better person because we are most influenced by the people that are around us. Friendships have a big part of our lives.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Hendrickson Review Program. http://www.hendrickson.com/content/hendrickson-review-program/  I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”