Win an autographed copy of Beautiful Ugly by Shelia Lipsey
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About Beautiful Ugly
Three friends with different struggles rely on God and each other to get by. Layla Hobbs has so much to offer, including a beautiful singing voice, but obesity and low self-esteem hold her back from life and finding true love. Envy Wilson has always been Layla’s backbone. But what about her own dark secrets? She won’t share them with anyone, and it’s starting to eat away at her from the inside. And then there’s Kacie Mayweather. Stricken with cerebral palsy, she’s had her share of men—five baby daddies for six children, in fact. But she’s never had one man to call her own. They’ll need plenty of faith and support from each other to see the real beauty that lies within each one of them and fulfill their deepest desires at last.
My Book Review by Linda D. Fegins
This heartfelt story chronicled in “Beautiful Ugly” reminded me of a song by one of my favorite male groups, the Temptations. “Beauty is only skin deep. Beauty is only skin deep. But ugly is to the bone. So if you looking for a lover, don’t judge her by her cover. She may be fine on the outside but….” I really paraphrased the words or may have misstated them. The essence of the song reminds me that we must be so careful not to allow the physical trappings of a person to determine or define the quality and content of their character and heart. Furthermore, one cannot hide behind one’s outward appearance and neglect addressing the inner woman or man when one’s actions and conduct result in negative and painful consequences that reveal that on the inside he or she is in a poor or “ugly” condition. Many times society places emphasis on the outer appearance while we dress up or neglect the development of our spiritual character. “Beautiful Ugly” by Shelia E. Lipsey is a unique name for a book that follows the lives and friendships of three women, each facing low self esteem, insecurities, and hurt from the past. Through these believable church going women characters, we see that it is possible to believe there is a God, yet fail to trust God and to truly believe His Word that He loves us and will forgive our sins and that through Him, not food , sex or a man ,we can be made whole.
Layla Hobbs use her angelic voice to sing praises to God at church ,but who due to her obesity she settles for less in a man and does not have the faith to do something about her weight.
Kacie Mayweather was born with cerebral palsy. She wants to believe that she can have a man to love her despite her disability, just like any woman without such a disability. She has six children and five babby daddies in her attempt to find love and a husband.
Envy Wilson is considered pretty and has a successful career. She may be pretty on the outside, but she felt ugly on the inside and suffered from guilt and rejection as result of a secret sin of the past. While she looks like an angel, she cannot cover up her past and she acts out by engaging in a secret life of sexual promiscuity.
Through their experiences each one of them comes to realize that they must confess their sin, cling to God and come to understand that each of them needed to be made whole and to have a spiritual beauty makeover to be delivered from the shackles of sin , shame and low self-esteem. This thought provoking book will serve as a good teaching tool to discuss issues of self –esteem and relationships for those who are battling these issues. The characters were believable and it will make an interesting read for those who would like to see how low esteem issues affect how respond to the every day life experiences.
Win an autographed copy of
Beautiful Ugly by Shelia Lipsey
Shelia Lipsey is the author of three other Christian Fiction novels. The trivia question below is from one of those novels. Leave your response to the trivia question below in the comment section.
Name Aisha Carlisle’s best friend in Sinsatiable.
About the Author
Author Shelia E. Lipsey is a multi-award winning author. Her novels are available at most bookstores nationwide as well as online. Lipsey’s books have been called gripping, life-altering, memorable and realistic. Lipsey was recently awarded the 2009 Top Shelf Award for Beautiful Ugly by Black Pearls Magazine. She also won 2009 Shades of Romance Readers’ Choice Awards for My Son’s Wife in the following categories: Author of the Year, Christian fiction Book of the Year, Christian Romance of the Year, Best Book Cover of the Year, Best Fiction Book of the Year, among several other awards for her novels, Into Each Life and Sinsatiable.
Lipsey is the proud mother of two sons and the grandmother of three blessed young men. She is president of UCHisGloryBookClub.net, founder of Living Your Dreams Now a non-profit organization and MAAW (Memphis African American Writers).
Read an excerpt and check the tour schedule at http://bit.ly/BeautifulUgly
For more information, visit www.shelialipsey.com.