Customer Reviews

The Courage To Be A Single Mother

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read this book a few years ago, not too long after my own separation and divorce. It inspired me and I also had a chance to be a member on the forum that Sheila had for single moms at the time. She asked for volunteers to be interviewed for her second book "The courage to love again". Of course I offered and she called me at home to interview me! What a thrill! I had a chance to speak with her personally and share some of my own experiences. Not too long after that, she mailed me a copy of her newly published book, signed. She is as wonderful in real life and she is in the words of her books!

Any woman that is still undecided to get divorced should read this book!

This book helped me get through my own divorce experience and realize the things I was going through (fear, frustration, uncertainty, numbness...), others had also gone through; and made it! The book offers an uncomplicated look at the process of healing after one's dreams are forever changed, and offers hope for a fine future after the trauma of a divorce. I would recommend this book to anyone seriously contemplating, in the midst of, or having survived the divorce process.

This book was my constant companion for 6 months, during my divorce. Sheila tells it like it was for her, eloquently, and powerfully. It makes you feel like you have a friend beside you during this hard process.

They say the best writing comes from life experience and that rings true with this book. Sheila Ellison does a wonderful job explaining her experience with divorce and single motherhood. The emotions she described were right on the nose of what you go through during the process of leaving, of legal issues, of trying to heal and discover the new you when its all said and done. By the time I got to the fourth sentence in the book I had pen in hand and was underlining like crazy. I've NEVER found a book that has inspired me to do so.

Every woman going through or even thinking seriously about going through a divorce should pick up a copy of this book. It DOES take COURAGE to step out and make the move to a new life but with this book as your guide you'll know you're not alone and YOU WILL BE OK.

No matter how much your family and friends love you, they cannot completely understand how you feel when going through a divorce, unless they also have had this experience. Even then, we are all prone to giving our own personal histories and painful memories.
Finding this book was truly amazing. It became my new best
friend; she was there when I put out the light and there again in the morning. Sheila tells her own story with so much grace and honesty. Lone mums can all find something uplifting here, something we recognize in ourselves and in our children. There are so many self-help books but this book is just a simple, inspiring story.
IF YOU KNOW A LONE MUM, POINT HER TOWARDS THIS BOOK OR GIVE IT TO HER AS A GIFT.

I heard about Sheila's book as she was featured on Oprah. Oprah advertised the show as a "must see" for anyone going through a divorce. My mother taped the show and bugged me until I watched it. After watching, I went out and bought the book, but I couldn't afford it, so I was going to read it and then return it. As I read the book I got out my highlighter and began highlighting sections, then when that wasn't good enough, got out my post-it notes to mark pages. I have since bought 14 copies of the book to give to friends going through a divorce.

Sheila's book became my "Bible" as I went through the "journey" of my separation/divorce and single parenthood. She has been in the trenches with us, knows what it is like to stay up all night worrying about money and how it feels when your ex is too busy with his life to have time for the beautiful children you have brought into this world.

I have never had a book that I felt was a friend. When I was down or had a question, I could find support and guidance in this book. The sections are clearly marked and the words are written by someone who really cares.

This is a must have book for anyone going through single motherhood.

This book is very insightful and comforting at a time when you feel your most lost and alone. In Ms. Ellison's book she thoroughly examines the many emotions you are feeling as you best prepare yourself for single motherhood. The many stories of the other women helped me to see the various phases you go through in the divorce process, but also helped me to see that although each situation is different the fears and challenges we all face are the same. This book helped me get through some very rough times by giving me hope, comfort, calm, and perspective. As new situations come up or old ones play out over and over again I often find myself pulling this book out and rereading sections that I find helpful. This book is a must have for anyone going through a divorce.

This is a wonderful book that I fully believe can help any mother who is going through a divorce. While I count my Blessings for having not gone through a divorce myself, in fact I don't even have children yet either, but I'm still praying that maybe one day I can, someone very close to me recently has suffered through the pain of a divorce and now she faces life as a single mother of three children. So when I heard about this book, I just had to check it out because I so wanted to be better able to understand what she is going through so I could then help her better. Now that I've read the book, the best compliment I can give Sheila's beautiful and insightful book is that I want to give a copy to my friend. You know, we all have sisters and girlfriends in this very situation and it is so important for us all to be there for one another, so please read this book and then share what you've learned. I know the book has certainly helped me and I pray that it can help my friend too.

Lily of the Valley Carnie, author, Chi Gung: Chinese Healing, Energy, and Natural Magick

If I read one more article about how some big celebrity couple is having an amicable divorce, but the wife and kids are doing great, I think I'm going to scream! No normal woman or child can go through divorce without some Emotional trauma. More importantly, THESE CELEBRITIES DON'T HAVE MONEY ISSUES TO DEAL WITH. When you don't know how you can keep up the payments on your house (or if you will have to relocate your kids to another town or at least another school system) there's a sense of urgency that I never see celebrities discuss in People magazine. When going through a divorce I discovered that there is a laundry list of money matters that I had to work out for my kids at a time when I was least emotinally prepared to do it. My therapist and several women in my support group urged me to read a book called "SIMPLE MONEY SOLUTIONS: 10 WAYS YOU CAN STOP FEELING OVERWHELMED BY MONEY AND START MAKING IT WORK FOR YOU" by Family Circle Columnist, Nancy Lloyd. Her eye-opening chapter on dealing with the financial aspects of divorce and how to go about finding the best lawyer, financial planner and tax and pension experts made the difference between my kids having a financially secure future and not. Nancy includes lots of other important advice on money matters but this chapter was the one I (and my kids) would have lived to regret had I not been told about it. And Sheila Ellison's book has helped me deal with many emotional aspects of the divorce that took me months to even realize my kids and I were going through (the shock of the divorce lasts much longer than I ever would have thought). Both books are written in a warm and supportive way. What Sheila and Nancy write will spare you and your kids a lot of unneeded suffering. Both books got my kids and me through the worst time of our lives.