Book Review: Learning To Stay: The 12 Keys
by Stephanie Miller
Publication Date: Feb 17, 2010
List Price: $14.95
Format: Paperback, 208 pages
Classification: Nonfiction
ISBN13: 9781608444090
Imprint: Dog Ear Publishing
Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing
Parent Company: Dog Ear Publishing, LLC
Read a Description of Learning To Stay: The 12 Keys
Book Reviewed by Kam Williams
"Learning to Stay is a book of self-discovery,
change, growth and transitions. It’s intended to restore your mind and
relationships to wholeness, thus creating harmony and peace within your
soul…
Through personal development and mentorship, I’ve discovered ways to change
my limiting beliefs that manifested through undesirable behaviors. .. My
passion is to prove that anyone, no matter who you are, can change and be a
whole person."
— Excerpted from the Introduction (pgs. 1-3)
Book Review by Kam Williams
Over the past couple of years, I’ve literally been inundated with books
offering dating advice to the African-American community. I suppose this
cottage industry of love gurus has sprung up in response to a need for more
stable relationships, evidenced by the fact that over 80% of black kids are
currently being raised in single parent households. Some of the authors have
been credentialed therapists, others simply self-appointed survivors of the
battle-of-the-sexes now ready to recount how they found fulfillment in a
lurid tell-all.
Although I thought I’d sworn off this genre after reviewing umpteen such
titles, what I like about Learning to Stay is the fresh perspective it
brings to the table. First of all, it was written by a white woman with a
bachelor’s in psychology and a graduate degree in counseling. Still, the
book is not academic but mostly anecdotal in nature, as Stephanie Miller
narrates in engaging fashion an intimate tale about how infidelity almost
destroyed her marriage.
Thus, what we have here is a unique case of a shrink herself in crisis.
Furthermore, it was certainly novel to discover that her faithful husband,
Chris, is a black man, and that it was she, not him, who cheated. With
considerable regret, she recalls how, at the time prior to her affair, she
was constantly dogging the brother about being a failure as a breadwinner,
despite the fact that he was working his tail off at two different jobs.
Adding fuel to the fire was Chris’ equally-sassy mother-in-law who was
poisoning his wife’s mind by making destructive statements like, "He is
incapable of providing you with a good life."
Instead of taking the kids and moving in with her mom, Stephanie briefly
resorted to adultery. Fortunately, she soon found herself on the road to
redemption, this following an intervention by their minister who forced her
to confess everything to Chris. Ultimately, their marriage was saved not by
conventional counseling methods, but by following a faith-based path
featuring a dozen key steps which started with that intervention but also
included such spiritual elements as prayer and soul searching.
Today, the Millers are not only blissfully-married but are sharing their
secrets of nuptial bliss as certified Marriage Group Facilitators in
Colorado where they have a thriving practice. An optimistic opus putting
forth the proposition that sound relationships can be forged on the bedrock
of faith, introspection and unconditional love.