Review of Keeping a Princess Heart in a Not-So-Fairy-Tale World

Keeping a Princess Heart in a Not-So-Fairy-Tale World by Nicole Johnson

My first review is going to be one of my favorite “Christian Living” books. I read it on the recommendation of a friend, who had used the book during a women’s retreat. The concept intrigued me, and I have to be honest when I say that I had some high expectations just based on the topic.

And Nicole Johnson delivered on them all!

From the beginning of the book, Johnson seamlessly weaves in a story of a girl/woman who could very well be any among us. Having spent a young life feeling like a little princess, the woman steadily grows disillusioned with “the real world.” It addresses the age-old question of what do we do when the dreams we had don’t meet the reality we live…and how can we still find a life of fulfillment in spite of our dashed hopes?

Johnson uses sound scriptural application to lay the framework for how those of us who have lost our “princess heart” somewhere between the mundane chores and the unexpected tragedies and struggles that often accompany adulthood. The author helps by pointing out the flaws in having a “Castles in the Air” mindset and the inevitable disappointment such a mindset brings. Johnson also cautions about consigning ourselves to “Dungeons in the Dark,” a place of self-reproach and guilt stemming from things we might have done…or had done to us. (My favorite line from the book comes from the “Dungeons” chapter: No act of injustice done to you has the right to destroy you).

As much as I could probably ramble on about the book, giving away all of the major points in the process, I’ll refrain. Mostly because I don’t want to spoil the impacting moments in the book for those of you who might add this to your reading list. And while I’d love to throw in some “cons” of the book, just so it seems like I’m not totally biased, I honestly can’t think of any. For someone who spent her childhood fascinated with storybook princesses, (and someone who, admittedly, might have fashioned herself a princess occasionally…), for me, this book was wonderful.

It was an excellent picture of a Heavenly King who loves us more than any charming prince ever could, and one who has promised us so much more than just a “happily ever after.”