Enjoyable book 2009 Book #9: The Great Eight

I remember watching Scott Hamilton skate on television in my younger years. I looked forward to reading his new book The Great Eight How to be Happy (even when you have every reason to be miserable) from Thomas Nelson Publishers.

The Great Eight has eight chapters, each focusing on a different tip for happiness in life. Scott Hamilton applies lessons he’s learned on the ice to other aspects of his life and encourages readers to do the same. These tips can be applied to relationships, financial struggles, health issues, job situations, etc.

Hamilton is known as an Olympic gold medal world champion figure skater. He has experience in practicing these tips for happiness while he’s battled both cancer and a brain tumor in recent years. Through facing some rough times, he has remained optimistic in his outlook. By following his example with these eight tips the reader can be optimistic too. These tips include putting others first, letting go of grudges, trusting God, and turning losses into wins.

Here is a line that stuck out to me: “Every stage of life has something different to offer…..But you’ve got to let go of your twenties to enjoy your thirties, to let go of your thirties to be satisfied in your forties….” We face changes in life and need to learn to accept changes instead of trying to hold on to how things used to be.

At first it was hard at first for me to get into this book. Parts of it didn’t seem to flow well to me as I was reading. Overall, I did enjoy this book though.