After I began to read the first chapter from this book, I began to feel a lump in my throat. Emotions lay just under the surface. Perplexed, I wondered where these feeling were coming from. Then I realized that these feelings came because, for the first time in my life, I was reading about the best of once was--what should be a high standard for today's culture. Surely, this vision of the family is nothing more than a faint and burning memory on a firey ash-heap! Is there any hope left of resurrecting this vision for our families? If, one-by-one, American families began to hold on to this vision for their own families, hope exists! J.R. Miller wrote this book with extraordinary skill, using poetic and metaphorical prose to weave a dream that would have the staying power to mold and influence a family to work toward seeing the dream become a reality. It is a book that every family member should read: mother, wife, father, husband, brother, sister, child. It is a book that will utterly inspire you!

This book is a gem.

Written in the 1880's, this book illumines the poetic life of the family.

Would it be controversial, if published now? Absolutely. It devalues autonomy, assumes the existence of absolutes, and certainly leads the reader to think that real poetry in life is found through surrendering autonomy and embracing your husband, wife, children, brother, sister.

It's classic romance, but without fluff. The level of prose transcends anything published these days -- be ready to enjoy the english language at its finest.

And be ready for a truly refreshing introduction to life as we should know it. Less harried, less materialistic, less self-introspective, and more appreciative of the things that give life meaning -- the people directly around us.

This book teaches brothers how to care for sisters, and vice-versa. It teaches wives how to help their husbands become their best, and how men can bring out every facet of their wives' beauty. It even gives parents perspective in dealing with the loss of a child. This is not pop-psychology.

This is wisdom.