My husband and I use Dream Dinners, a fix-and-freeze supper service, and we love it. It is one of our wiser decisions. This book was given to all the members recently, and since I love the company so much, I was happy to give it a read. I discovered that the authors are actually established relationship counselors, and the two owners of Dream Dinners just shared some of their ideas and recipes.

The book focuses on sharing a dinner time as an entire family. It begins with research that highlights the benefits of a family dinner night, moves on to discussing basics for setting up a dinner, suggestions for creating positive communication around the dinner table, and ends with several chapters on passing on values to your children and counting your blessings. Each chapter ends with a short anecdote from Stephanie or Tina, the Dream Dinners founders, and a recipe that ties in with the story. The authors emphasize the idea that shared dinner times coexist with happier families, with children who trust their parents, have better grades, and get in less trouble, and with less stressed homes.

I appreciate much of the information in the book. I agree that sharing a supper with your loved ones is a great idea to help forge bonds between relations. I like some of their practical tips - for instance, the special supper place mat that is given to family members for accomplishing something or reaching a milestone - and the recipes in each section. One irritation I had while reading was that the authors pushed the idea that family dinners cause all of these benefits, whereas the research only seemed to support that family dinners are positively correlated with other beneficial results. Nevertheless, for a person seeking to create healthy habits in their family on all fronts, this book is a handy resource for establishing a family dinner time. Also, I promote supporting such a fantastic program as Dream Dinners, so buy the book. ( )

NCLA Review: I knew while raising our two children that for some reason I had a deep desire and would strive for us all to be together for at least one meal a day, generally the evening meal. This book confirms the reason why. Even though now having read this book I wish there were some things that we had done differently, the proof is in the fact that “the family that eats together stays together.” That really is a quote to live by and our family is still together bringing now to our table our children’s spouses and grandchildren. This is a book about relationships and healthy connections. Included are comments from Stephanie Allen and Tina Kuna who are the founders of DREAM DINNERS, as well as recipes and other tips on how to make dinner time meaningful and memorable. There are also examples of conversation starters to get your kids talking around the table. I wonder how much America would change if every home had one of these books and put into action its message. Rating: 4 —ARG ( )