He Calls You Beautiful -- book review

Let's be honest, the Song of Songs (or Song of Solomon) is not my go to book of the Bible to read very often. In fact the only time I usually read the SOS is when I am reading through the whole Bible. So, a book that is based on the SOS intrigued me from the start; just cause I wanted to know how the author would interprets the SOS. The SOS is one of those books in the Bible that we don't often hear preached or taught on. When it is talked about, it often either focuses on being a representation of Christ and the church or as a love story with the focus on marriage. There is nothing wrong with those applications, but it can cause some confusion when you hear both sides and don't know which is right. I appreciate Dee Brestin, the author of He Calls You Beautiful, because she takes the approach that it is both. The SOS is a book of poetry, and just like all poetry it can have multiple applications.

It is obvious that Brestin has done her research and studied the SOS. With that said, this book doesn't come across as just facts and information, i.e. textbook style. Brestin does a descent job intertwining information and personal story. I will say, at times I felt there could have been more written on the explanation or information side of things. There were definitely points where I thought this was lacking. Although, she does recommend reading the SOS along with the book. I did not do that and it may have helped some things make more sense. If you are wanting a deep theological study of the SOS then this is probably not the book for that. If you are wanting a book directed toward women with a focus on the SOS then this book is a good choice.

A benefit of this book is that it is designed to have a study and reflection part built into the book. There is a Q&A section at the end o each chapter. You can certainly do this on your own for a personal study, or you could use it in a small group setting. There are some additional guides at the back of the book for someone to use to facilitate a small group setting. Brestin also has some additional resources available on her website to use along with the study portions. There are video clips to correspond with each chapter in the book.