Review: The Temperament God Gave You

A few months ago the folks at Sophia Institute Press sent me a copy of a book entitled  The Temperament God Gave You: The Classic Key to Knowing Yourself  &c.  Interestingly enough, my temperament successfully manifested itself through my slow-moving-ness to complete this review in a timely manner.  Yet, perhaps there is a little bit of laziness to keep up the blog mixed in there as well.   I’ve finally finished digesting the book, and now will not delay to give my review.  My apologies to the folks at Sophia Institute Press for being out to lunch for so long on this review.

This book is hard to place because although it has an understandable progression it seems to be slightly disjointed throughout. Starting strongly, the book clearly describes its aim to describe the four temperaments (temperament being the sum of our natural preferences) in light of Catholic friendly psychological and spiritual terms.  In fact, the book executes its aim quite well insofar is giving the reader what it promises in the early pages.

After the book sets up the idea of temperament as a concept, it flows into the descriptions of the four temperaments (Choleric, Melancholic, Sanguine, and Phlegmatic) and how to identify them in you. Then the book makes a foray into understanding spousal temperaments (of which there is another volume of this type of book offered by SIP), temperament combinations in marriage, understanding temperaments in offspring, and child/parent temperament combinations.  After those things are discussed the book concludes with issues of motivating people of various temperaments, and alas how temperament affects spiritual life.

Art and Laraine Bennett, the authors of this book, pack a lot of information into the volume to the extent where the information given seems like it is underdeveloped at times, or at worst too anecdotal.  There are many places within the book where there would be benefit in expanding the information into a new volume.  As mentioned above, this has already occurred with the newer book from Art and Laraine Bennett entitled  The Temperament God Gave Your Spouse. Nevertheless, they could probably expand many of the sections into focused volumes.  But what does that make of this book?

The Temperament God Gave You should be best understood as a guidebook–not just something that you read once and put down.  In fact, the book does not benefit from that type of reading.  Most of the temperament specific information is something that can and should (if you’re interested or curious) be looked at when such information is needed. For example,  I’m willing to yield to the book’s expertise rather than memorizing every facet of each temperament combination.  In addition, the book has a feeling of an anatomy as it builds and branches out to various workings of the temperament in our lives.

I was expecting the  entire book to be more like its last chapter, which focuses on how temperament affects spiritual life. Although the book does grapple with that spirituality throughout, it waits until the last chapter to deepen the conversation as if it needs to end on such a strong note.

For what it is worth, The Temperament God Gave You is a thought-provoking and utilitarian volume that expresses a difficult subject in a very controlled atmosphere, and for that it succeeds.   And if you are thinking that a book that claims to blend “classical wisdom, modern counseling science, and Catholic spirituality” has got to be a unique book, you are correct.

Oh, and if you want to take the temperament indicator “quiz” you can do so here.