The Struggle Bus by Josh Wood - 5 Stars

[Jeremiah]

The Struggle Bus by Josh Wood
5 Stars
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The Struggle Bus: The Van. The Myth. The Legend. is designed to take you, dear reader, on a ride with the Wood family in the van that became an Internet sensation.

This one-of-a-kind literary adventure you are about to embark on is about more than a viral van. It's about managing the wonderful chaos of a family of 11. It's about parenting. It's about marriage. It's about success. It's about failure. It's about faith. It's about fun. It's about a van becoming a metaphor for life as it is given a fun-filled beatdown for the ages.

Full disclosure -- I did receive this book as a gift from the author, but my review is an honest one. I doubted that the book would make me laugh, but after many hysterical sessions here is my review.

As a father of a large family, not as large as Josh Wood's family, but large enough I could relate to this book. As much as you try to stay on top of cleaning the house, cleaning out cars, doing laundry, etc. it is just impossible unless you refuse to allow your kids to be involved and make them do nothing but chores every night. It is not that we do not want to have the show house where everyone can come over or that we want trash to fall out of the car when we open the doors, it is just that there is not enough time in the day or energy in a parent to always manage those things. So yes, I relate to this book more so than maybe I wanted to admit.

The chapter that spoke to me the most though is Chapter 11 -- Oil Changes. This chapter is about the importance of regular maintenance and while it is premised on the need to get oil changes for a car, it is applied to the need for maintenance for ourselves, both inside and out. One of my favorite quotes from this chapter is:

"I think one of the most dangerous things Christians do to their kids is raise them in an isolated, socioeconomic, racial, and ideological bubble."

There were several other quotes in this chapter that I underlined, but I also want to point this one out:

Our advice to you is that regular maintenance is important. Without it, something is bound to catch on fire -- literally or figuratively."

Both of these quotes speak to the importance of the perspective we must maintain in our lives. On one hand, we must keep the perspective of seeing outside of our world. Our problems seem so small in comparison to what is happening around us when we take the time to look and listen. On the flip side though, no matter how small our problems might seem, they are still our problems and without addressing them they will lead to bigger issues. This balance is so important as we move from day to day.

Overall, the book is funny, insightful, and enlightening. It is a short read and a quick read, but one that will leave you thinking. I encourage you to pick up a copy.