Strong and Kind by Korie Robertson

So, confession time.

I've never actually watched Duck Dynasty. My knowledge has been limited to the fact that they live in the Southern US, do something with hunting and ducks, and have a reality tv show.

I do, however, have kids and have an eye open for any book that may help me better raise my ever curious, creative, and somewhat mischievous boys.

Enter Strong and Kind.

Written by Korie Robertson with her mother Chrys and husband Willie's assistance, Strong and Kind explores the foundation upon which Korie and Willie have raised their own family.

Things I liked:

I appreciate the genuineness Korie presents in her writing. Her stories of raising her family are filled with stories filled with emotions that any parent can relate too. I loved the openness with which she shared her love and hope for her family and her own hard won lessons throughout her children's growing up years. (any DD fans out there? Is this openness common to the show?)

I also loved the simplicity of her concepts. Choose two traits. Listing off all the character traits we want to install in our children can become an overwhelming list that paralyzes. Korie's advice to pick two, almost as a thesis, and explaining some of the more overarching traits, makes it a much more achievable  plan to begin.

Finally, I appreciated Korie's admittance that no tools are one size fits all for children. As a special needs mom it's so frustrating to read parenting books that claim all one needs to do is follow their advice and they will raise wonderful children, only lazy or inconsistent parents would fail. Korie's point that we can all have the same goal but may require different tools instantly soothed this Mama's heart and put the whole book into perspective for me. Korie is a generation above myself and at times I could feel that generational gap in her writing. We were on totally different wave lengths but, by the end of the chapter, I could see where our end goals had far more in common. Different tools same goal.

Things I didn't like:

There wasn't a lot of new information in this book, a fact Korie acknowledges.

Overall opinion, 

I enjoyed my introduction to the Duck Dynasty crew through Korie and Willie's stories. Their approach to parenting was strong in that it is simple to understand but requires hard work to reap the rewards and see through. For people who already have a full bookshelf when it comes to parenting advice this book would probably feel redundant and of little value. For parents looking to add a solid, easy to read book to their new or growing collection Kind and Strong is worth a second look.

4 out of 5 stars.

 Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”