'The Girl's Still Got It' by Liz Cirtis Higgs

I have a confession: I started this book with the wrong attitude. I have read the book of Ruth in the Bible numerous times, along with fictional accounts, non-fictional accounts, allegories...you name it. So I began this book thinking I would just make my way through. In my pride, I thought there was nothing more I could learn.

I'm so glad God knows more than I do! This book was fantastic, a delightfully refreshing view of Ruth that rocked my world, and taught me things I have never even thought about thinking (is that a phrase?). It is a true testament to the living, breathing word of God that you can read a passage or story over and over and never reach it's true depths.

This book took a long time for me to read. That sentence usually is a herald for how much I did not like a book. The exact opposite is true in this case; I couldn't hurry through this book because there were so many nuggets of wisdom and truth that swallowing it whole would have been like eating the most delicious desert in one bite, instead of savoring every morsel.

Much praise goes to the author, whose level of research and diligent leading of the Holy Spirit produced such a deep, thought provoking read. The author undertook a unique perspective in writing this book that I truly enjoyed: she takes us back in time as if we are standing on the fringes of Ruth and Naomi's lives, watching and feeling, but unable to hug them (which I wanted to do, numerous times). The author has done her homework, and being a perpetual student, it was a delight to learn so much in such a fun way. The book is sprinkled with Hebrew definitions of words, followed by humorous observation and applications to our own lives. The author breaks down the Book of Ruth verse by verse, showing us what a wealth of information and guidance are in every single word. I also LOVED that this author used many different translations in her book. One Hebrew word can translate into five similar words in our language, so to get the full body of any text when I am studying, I always read at least three translations. (insert applause for author)

I give this book 5 glowing stars. There are discussion questions and a study guide at the end, so I may even use this book as a group Bible study in the future. I would read anything else this author produces!

*I was provided a free copy of this book by the publisher, but as always, the opinions are unbiased and completely my own.