Review: Girls’ Club

Kathy Hillman reviews "Girls' Club" by Sarah, Sally and Joy Clarkson.

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Girls’ Club: Cultivating Lasting Friendship in a Lonely World

By Sarah, Sally and Joy Clarkson (Tyndale)

Sally Clarkson—author, speaker and co-founder of Whole Heart Ministries—joins with her adult daughters Sarah and Joy to invite women to “discover the gift of friendship” through the pages of Girls’ Club: Cultivating Lasting Friendship in a Lonely World.

The Clarksons moved 17 times, six of them internationally, as their family grew. Sally Clarkson began weekly Girls’ Club meetings to ease loneliness and to have fun, share spiritually and develop lasting friendships with her daughters. In the introduction, each woman provides her perspective on the club and its impact on “the goodness and power of women’s friendship” that helps “make light in the darkness.”

In what could be disjointed but instead flows seamlessly, Sally, Sarah and Joy Clarkson take turns penning the chapters. Each begins with a friendship quote or Scripture. The women fill the pages with poignant memories, personal stories and pertinent advice—Sally as the wise mother, Sarah as a new mom and recent Oxford graduate, and Joy as a 20-something doctoral student at St. Andrews University.

Topics encourage seeking and developing Girls’ Club-type relationships and include commitment, faithfulness, hospitality, embracing “the capaciousness of womanhood” and “dating your friends.” Sally notes the “deepest friendships are formed through … serving others side by side,” citing Jesus and his disciples. Joy shares about mean-girl drama and the “comparison trap” that creates winners and losers rather than companions. Sarah illustrates qualities of friendship with women she admires.

Although Girls’ Club contains general principles, the Clarkson women write the book for women and offer real-world advice on cultivating female friendships rooted in God’s love. The volume closes with powerful words every woman needs to hear: “You are beloved. Now go love someone else.”

Kathy Robinson Hillman, former president

Baptist General Convention of Texas

Waco


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