Book Review: Do Hard Things

As part of our summer reading list for our students, there is one book that serves as an all-school book for everyone to read. This year’s book I had heard about over the course of the last year and had wanted to pick up a copy, thus, I was happy to learn that we would be given a free copy. While I was stuck in the Chicago airport a few weeks ago, I took the opportunity to read Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations by Alex & Brett Harris the two younger brothers of Joshua Harris (yes, the author of I Kissed Dating Goodbye followed soon thereafter by a sequel Boy Meets Girl which softened his stance somewhat from his first book).

Anyway, for those of you with teenagers in your life, Do Hard Things, is a great book written by teenagers. Most of the book consists of anecdotes surrounding the brothers’ blog, http://www.therebelution.com/ and the basic premise of raising the bar for personal expectations. The language speaks in a conversational tone relevant to a teenage audience. Throughout the book, there are lots of questions, such as “We need to be honest with ourselves. Is how we’re spending our time right now preparing us for what we hope to become in the future? Are we doing things now that will equip us for the greater things God may have for us to do? These are the fundamental questions for this season of our lives” (p. 56). Even though they are speaking primarily to a teenage audience, the basic premises are applicable to anyone’s lives. Such as when they describe the five kinds of hard:

1. Things that are outside of your comfort zone
2. Things that go beyond what is expected or required
3. Things that are too big to accomplish alone
4. Things that don’t earn an immediate payoff
5. Things that challenge the cultural norm.

One of the more poignant portions of the book for me dealt with the myth of adolescence and the rise of the kidults, which is particularly relevant in our society today. The book consists of multiple lists in easy digestible formats for any Gen Y person. So why am I writing about this book, well, if you are a little late on the high school graduation present, this book would serve as a nice little send off piece – a call to action.

Alex & Brett Harris, Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations (Multnomah, Colorado Springs, CO: 2008)