Book Review: One Call Away

Title:  One Call Away Author:  Brenda Warner       This is a memoir taking us from 1967 thru the present time in the life of the author.     Brenda Warner is a speaker, philanthropist, and New York Times best=selling author.  She is the mother of seven children, a registered nurse, and a Marine.  But most of all, she is a storyteller who candidly shares her struggles in hopes that her life experiences can help other women.  Brenda is also Vice President of the First Things First Foundation, an organization she co-founded with her husband, NFL player Kurt Warner.     At the early age of twenty-two, she found herself living through any woman's nightmare, a healthy baby tragically injured in the bathtub, a sudden end to a career she loved; betrayal and divorce; poverty; public humiliation; a deadly natural disaster that destroyed her foundation and shook her to her core.  One shattering phone call at a time.  Brenda Warner's life came to resemble little of her dream.     Her story provides encouragement for anyone facing life's challenges and shows us that our circustances don't tell us who we are, nor are they a measure of God's love.  We all have choices to make when our plans fall apart--we can collapse in the face of tragedy or press forward and survive.  God has a plan for us, even when our plans fail.  Brenda hopes that when we get to know her, they find that they share a lot in common.  Sometimes they can relate to the adversities she has faced, the mistakes she has made, or the dreams she has for her children.  Maybe they're in a dark place and wondering if there is hope.  Maybe they're feeling weak and vulnerable and badly in need of strength.  She hopes her experiences will help them understand their own experiences, inspire them to take a next step, and give them strength to make the hard choices in their lives.     Most of all, Brenda wants us to know that we don't have to be who people say we are. . . or who we were yesterday.  We all have the ability to change and grow past our expectations and the limitations others try to impose on us.     This was a "fast" read and I could not put it down.  I give this book 5 stars.