Surprised! This is not a "chick book"

My wife wanted listen to this book due to the popularity of the TV show. I figured it was a "chick book" that I had little interest in. I recently got in to a situation where I had a long wait with no internet. All I had to kill the time was The Magnolia Story my wife previously downloaded. It turns out this is not a book about decorating & design targeting a female audience. It is about a hardworking couple raising a family and building a business telling their unique story. It is literally told from the ground up. To a discerning listener the timeline offers a long-term inside look that answers the question so often asked of successful people, "How did you do it?" There were several points made by both Chip & Joanna that caused me to stop, meditate and reflect. One of the strongest points they made is they idea that we never "arrive". That kind of thinking causes us to become complacent which is a real danger to our personal and professional success. But intentionally rearrange the state of thriving away from a destination and place it on the journey. That simple act will cause us to be intentional about the way we live naturally putting more focus on the everyday process of our lives instead of just the singular events.

84 people found this helpful

Super entertaining!

Really enjoyed this one, from the story to them telling of of their lives and how they landed the show. To anybody listening, it's pretty clear that this couple are a perfect match, balancing each other out. I definitely think it was far better to hear about the ups and downs in their own words, and loved when Chip would recall certain times and spontaneously chuckle about them, like buying that houseboat or being 90 minutes late for their first date and still managing to charm the pants off Joanna's sister and roommates. Good stuff... far more funny than a sit com. After finishing up this audiobook, two things were very obvious to me: that Chip and Joanna work hard and put family above all else. However, they also care about the community and have a strong faith in God. I should probably point out that before purchasing the book, I had no idea of who they were, despite being a big fan of reality TV. Yet, I kept seeing The Magnolia Story on Audible getting rave reviews, so jumped at the chance to purchase it as the daily deal. I should explain that the only reason for not watching their show is because I am completely blind and would no doubt miss out on much of the visuals throughout the program, but I still appreciate the beauty of a Home and the way it's maintained and decorated. Now, after listening to their book, I am interested in trying to watch the show and see what I can learn from it. Much success to Chip and Joanna! Worth the time and credit for sure! 😊👍🏼

52 people found this helpful

Above average

I'm not a huge fan of the show. My wife is and I'll watch with her. I'm a huge fan of Chip and Joanna. They seem like great people. This book starts great, especially through the dating stage of the two, but then it turns into a fairy tale. Fairy tales are great but boring. This book turns into a collection of "miracles" that happen at just the right time and provide huge things/money. That is great for Chip and Joanna. but it isn't a fun read. Again, the first half is great but the second half is boring.

38 people found this helpful

This story will make your heart happy

I absolutely LOVE Fixer Upper. The amount of "real" that is on that show compared to other shows on any network makes me smile. The way that Chip and Joanna are to each other and to other people just put a big smile on my face every time I watch them. So, when I saw that they had a book coming out I was hoping that it would be narrated by them. It is!

The stories that are in here basically take from when they first met until the present, sprinkling in some amazing stories that you won't find anywhere other than this book. If you love them on Fixer Upper, then I promise you will enjoy this book.

The amount of times that The Magnolia Story has made me laugh and cry was too many to count. It really was just a cute and enjoyable audiobook.

Both Chip and Joanna narrate the book, but it seems to be mostly Joanna with Chip just chiming in from time to time (unless the story is from his perspective). And his little additions made me laugh almost every time.

It's just so nice to have a story that can make your heart happy at the end of the day. Especially with all of the bad going on in the world. The Magnolia Story was my little reprise from all of the negativity around us. The same way that Fixer Upper is for me, too.

33 people found this helpful

Love!!

Everything about this couple sets the example of how a marriage could be. They are the epitome of "Faith, Love, Communication!". Their story reminds me of my own marriage and how faith has helped overcome obstacles. One sitting, one day, LOVE IT!

32 people found this helpful

Heartwarming!

What made the experience of listening to The Magnolia Story the most enjoyable?

The story, honestly. Chip and Joanna did such a great job on the book, and hearing them narrate it was a pleasure. Especially the times you heard Chip laugh, or the meaningful inflections in Joanna's voice.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes!

Any additional comments?

They are a family of faith. So if you watch the show, and you're interested in reading the book, but aren't religious, their belief in God is definitely a strong theme throughout the book.

31 people found this helpful

Wonderful!!

Just what you would expect from Chip and Joanna! These two are incredibly inspiring people. I highly recommend listening to this book. It's read by Chip and Joanna. It couldn't be any better.

23 people found this helpful

Nice people, bad book

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would have sent them to voice acting classes before having them read this. Very stilted, very unengaging. I would also tone down the excessive mentions of God just making their problems go away with nothing but a namedrop. It gets repetitive.

Would you recommend The Magnolia Story to your friends? Why or why not?

No. It seems like someone decided since they were famous they should have a biography, whether it was worthy of being written or not. There's no engaging narrative, highlighted with too many moral judgments and too many "I asked God to do this and he did it"s. Which just gets worse when it's undermined by (justifiably) amateur voice acting.

Would you be willing to try another one of Chip Gaines and Joanna Gaines ’s performances?

Nope.

Was The Magnolia Story worth the listening time?

If you're a huuuuuge fan of the show, like my wife? Mayyyybe. But this is nothing like the show. This is just stilted droning narration punctuated with God throwing miracles at them like spitballs. I wouldn't listen to it again.

Any additional comments?

This book can be a mediocre listen if you can overlook the following:

- Excessive miracle explanations. (e.g., "I was broke, I prayed to God. I found money! Thanks, God!")
- Humble bragging & moral judgments. According to Chip & JoJo, tv is bad, video games are bad, doing nothing is bad, and a relaxing comfortable life is bad. If you do those things, you're doing life wrong.
- Amateur voice acting. I get that these are normal people and not pro voice actors, but if they can't do better than this, hire some stand-ins. Narration was stilted and boring.

In conclusion, this book was boring the stuffing out of me. So I prayed to God that he could help make this go away. Just a few hours later, the book ended. God listened to me and made the book end! It was a miracle!

20 people found this helpful

Better than I'd hoped!

I was trying not to cry listening to this at work, but it's everything I wanted to hear. Sometimes, we just have to be reminded that things aren't perfect they will never be and to remember what's most important. I appreciate their stories so much. I think I'm gonna go get a hard copy!

20 people found this helpful

Beautiful feel good story!

I have a soft rule of not reading memoirs of anyone less than 60 years old because it seems to me that for anyone younger to write a memoir takes real audacity and excessive ego. Occasionally, I set the rule aside and read such a book. This is one case I'm happy that I did. I purchased The Magnolia Story because it was a $3.95 Audible Daily Deal with an average rating of 4.8 stars with over 10,000 listeners rating it. I've never seen Chip and Joanna Gaines' HGTV show and do not believe I had ever heard of them. The audio book is five hours in length and I had 5 hours to listen; the book has been in my Audible library for a while so I decided to give it a try not expecting to complete it. The book blew me away. It is an inspiring story! Very highly recommended!!

18 people found this helpful