Book Review: "The Secret Life of Becky Miller" by Sharon Hinck

It's Supermom to the Rescue!

When I'm facing a tough situation, I often use my overactive imagination to pretend I'm someone else. Maybe I'm Princess Leia taking on Darth Vader (what if??) or I'm a medieval princess disguised as a boy fighting in a battle. Then I worry that I'm too old to pretend these things. So to my delight, I was happy to read about a mom who does the exact same thing.

Becky Miller is SAHM (stay at home mom) with 3 kids and a loving husband. She wants to be the perfect wife and mother but things don't always turn out that way, causing her to picture herself in dire situations as a astronaut, gymnast or the next Mother Teresa. She's also juggling finishing up her degree and being in charge of the women's program at church, while meeting with her small group once a week. Then her life turns upside down when her husband loses his job, the church wants someone else to run HER program and a magazine wants to feature her as their woman of the month. It's time for Supermom to come to the rescue!

I liked this book a lot. The story feels like a Job parable as everything that could go wrong happens to Becky. She also realistically handles everything. I appreciated that she got mad and frustrated and even yelled at times. This was refreshing as opposed to other books where the characters just smile and thank God for making everything go wrong. I also liked Becky's final decision involving the church position. I feel that she made the right decision after what she had been through. I also liked her family. Her husband was supportive and the kids were normal and not annoying.

This book gave me a better understanding of what it means to be a mom. Many times we take them for granted (I know I'm guilty of that. Sorry Mom!) Hopefully next time when I have kids, I can be one like Becky Miller (while still taking time to use my imagination).

The Secret Life of Becky Miller by Sharon Hinck is published by Bethany House (2006)