Surprisingly good in the end!

Last Thursday I received a book in the mail and this weekend I was able to take the time read it. The book is: Katt’s in the Cradle by Ginger Kolbaba and Christy Scannell. It’s part of the ‘Secrets from Lulu’s Cafe’ series published by Howard Fiction.

Disclaimer: I am a man and this is a book for women. I do, however, read quite a lot of books which were written for women. I find they help me relate to my wife and other women better.

Most of the novels I read are either fantasy, crime or women’s romance. ‘Katt’s in the Cradle’ falls into none of those categories, it’s more of a soap-opera in book form and I have to admit I struggled with its style a little at first. Looking back, there were two reasons for my struggle:

1. The book tells the story of four Pastor’s wives (PW’s) and their daily struggles. The PW’s meet up occasionally for lunch but apart from that their stories hardly intersect. It’s like reading four books at once. Being male, as I am, I am fairly visual so interchanging between the four stories from chapter to chapter was hard without visual reminders as to who was who and which story I was reading. It would work well for me as a TV show but didn’t work so well in book form.
2. This is the third book in a series and, while the writers did an OK job of introducing the characters and setting the scene, I felt as if I was joining in part way through. It took me a few chapters to really become immersed in the story and grasp who the different characters were.

At about the half-way point I was beginning to dread having to write this review. The book was OK and I’m sure that if I was female I would have been enjoying it more but, apart from brief make-you-think-and-evaluate-your-own-relationships moments every now and then, it was really nothing to shout about.

Nothing, that is, until the stories all began to reach their climax at which point I LOVED the book. Really, I did.

It became a book that I just didn’t want to put down.

‘Katt’s in the Cradle’ teaches great lessons about mother-child relationships, father-child relationships, family dynamics, pastor-family relationships, church-pastor relationships… you get the drift. Basically, the book is packed full of great lessons if you just look for them and they are all delivered with both humor and deep emotion.

I would fully recommend ‘Katt’s in the Cradle’ to:

• Pastor’s wives – you’ll probably really empathise with the PW’s
• Pastors – it will probably help you understand your wife a little better
• Church members – it will give you a greater appreciation for your Pastor and his wife
• Everyone else – it’s a great book to read.

I am so glad that the book really improved from a weak start and therefore I can genuinely say I can recommend it. Women will probably appreciate it much more than men, but let me tell you guys, I think you’ll find it worth taking the time and effort to read ‘Katt’s in the Cradle‘.