A review by shelfesteem
Keep It Shut: What to Say, How to Say It, and When to Say Nothing at All by Karen Ehman

5.0

To the outside world, strangers, and casual acquaintances, I am not a talkative person. The complete opposite is true with those whom I feel most comfortable with - my family, friends, and bible study ladies. Unfortunately, if you spend enough time in my inner circle you are bound to hear a few un-christian things spill from my lips. One such occasion happened three years ago and to this day that relationship has not fully recovered. If your words have ever bested you, if you've ever spoken without thinking, reacted out of anger, commented when you should have held your peace, or pounced on an opportunity to get a dig in (that should cover most of you)…then this book is for you.

In order to benefit fully from Karen Ehman's book Keep It Shut: What To Say, How To Say It, And When To Say Nothing At All, you must be willing to undergo a little self-examination. Karen tells of her own tongue-taming battle before sharing biblical lessons from Joseph, Daniel, and even King Herod. Each story lends itself to an invaluable piece of advice that we can apply to our own conversations. Readers are asked to evaluate their daily intake of the Word (Luke 6:45), our motives for speaking, and our skills as listeners. Some of her best advice pertains to when to hold our tongue, what to share and what is gossip, and how to defuse heated verbal exchanges.
My copy of Keep It Shut is full of post-it flags marking quotations and tips I want to return to. The advice is biblically based, socially relevant, and has the potential to prevent future speech faux pas when you put them into practice. Women speak more words in a day than men (that's a fact), so it stands to reason that women may need more help learning what to say, how to say it, and when to zip it! For this reason I highly recommend this book to Women's Ministry groups and book clubs to read and discuss together. Ladies (and gentlemen) this book may be just what you need to improve the emotional climate in your home, to open the lines of communication in your family, and to prevent future meltdowns. I give Keep It Shut 5/5 stars.

I received this book free as a member of the BookLookBloggers review 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 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”