The Duggars: 20 and Counting!: Raising One of America's Largest Families - How They Do it
Written by Jim Bob Duggar and Michelle Duggar
Narrated by Michelle Duggar
3.5/5
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About this audiobook
The Duggars: 20 and Counting! is a behind-the-scenes look at the supersize family that fascinates millions of television viewers around the world. From Idaho to Istanbul, people want to know how Arkansas parents Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar efficiently and lovingly manage 19 happy, home-schooled children without going into debt — or losing their minds!
This is an entertaining and enlightening collection of stories, photos, recipes, tips, traditions, and practical ideas designed to answer the questions of the curious, such as: Why do you have so many children? How do you provide for your family financially? How do you handle mealtimes? Transportation? Laundry? Birthdays? How are your children so well behaved? Why do all your children have names that begin with J?
Since their first documentary broke viewership records on the Discovery Health Channel, the Duggars have appeared in American and international news media, sharing their rock-solid faith and their overriding belief that “children are a blessing from God”.
In this audiobook, Jim Bob and Michelle share their story, beginning with their own childhoods. They reveal how their growing-up years shaped their philosophy of parenting. It continues with tales of their big, busy family, whose televised documentaries and frequent appearances in news shows and newspapers have created an international following.
The Duggars share, with humility and humor, the family routines and guidelines they’ve learned through biblical study and trial and error—ideas that can help make your home a place of peace, love, and support: Financial lessons for debt-free living, organizing systems for a clutter-free home, home-schooling methods and schedules, training tips for little ones, relationship builders for older children, and favorite Duggar family resources.
©2009 Jim Bob Duggar, Michelle Duggar (P)2010 Oasis
Jim Bob Duggar
Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar married in 1984. Some time after the birth of their first child, they prayed that God would give them a love for children like his love for children and that he would bless them with as many children as he saw fit in his timing. Soon after, Michelle became pregnant with twins! The Duggars currently have ten boys and nine girls, and all their names begin with “J”—Joshua, Jana and John-David (twins), Jill, Jessa, Jinger, Joseph, Josiah, Joy-Anna, Jedidiah and Jeremiah (twins), Jason, James, Justin, Jackson, Johannah, Jennifer, Jordyn-Grace, and Josie. The Duggars are the #1 program on TLC/ Discovery Health / TLC documentaries and have appeared multiple times on national TV shows, such as The Today Show, Good Morning America, The View, Inside Edition, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Fox News Network, CNN, MSNBC, and others. Foreign television appearances include Italian Public Television, KBS (Korean Broadcasting System), and Discovery Home & Health (UK & Australia). They have been featured in magazine and newspaper articles in China, India, New Zealand, Australia, France, and Germany. As a family project, the Duggars built a seven-thousand-square-foot home. Both Jim Bob and Michelle are licensed real estate agents and conduct the Jim Sammon’s Financial Freedom Seminar in their community. They purpose to live completely debt-free—postponing purchases until they have the cash. Jim Bob served in the Arkansas House of Representatives from 1999 to 2003 and was a candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2002.
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Reviews for The Duggars
25 ratings10 reviews
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I will admit that I do find the Duggars fascinating. I know that their life isn't for me, but I don't think they do a bad job with it. While I like them, I do not like the way this book is written. I found the going back and forth between two writers to be confusing. The children's answers sprinkled throughout should have been in a seperate chapter. Certain parts of the story were repeated again and again, and didn't really need to be. I think it would have been much better with a heavy does of editing.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I was primarily interested in reading this book to find out exactly how Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar tackle the day-to-day logistics of parenting 18 children (I'm thinking naps, potty-training, etc.), and I found my answer. In simple terms, comparing this family to any other is like comparing apples to oranges. What really sets the Duggars apart from "normal" families is that the older children are available to care for the younger children, and that the entire family lives an extremely Christ-centred life. They are an interesting family to observe, but not really a practical example for me, a mother of two.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, the stars of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting, are raising one of America's largest families. This book is their story, how they met, how they live with a large family, and most importantly, how they have no debt (this is the part of the book that everyone should read). I found their lives to be fascinating. Sprinkled in their story are family recipes, homeschooling and organizing tips, and questions and answers with the children. Switching from Jim Bob's perspective to Michelle's made the book slightly confusing, and could have been edited.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I enjoy watching the Duggar family each week on television. They always provide some sort of insight and are very uplifting. This book answers some of the questions that viewers have. Jim Bob and Michelle are very open and frank in their writing, which I appreciate.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This was an interesting book.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Most of the ideas I'd heard before from the web but I found the story of how they chose their current lifestyle and manage their family quite interesting.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Though I watch the show, this book really opens up how they become to I would only recommended it to those really really interested in the family. If you are just an passer by of the show keep on going, I read it as I felt I needed to more about them as i find them fascinating, though I would not want that life as long as they are happy more power to them.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Their everyday life miracles are so encouraging. I like how they share about their finances and trials too.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5boring
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This book is better than the other one. I liked them answering the emails. I enjoyed this book because it was simple. It was really nice to not want to throw the book across the room.