The variety of self-help books on the market is overwhelming, but writer and speaker Susan Sohn takes a different tact in her debut True You.

A mix of biographical detail and research, Sohn explores what it means for women to embrace their infinite worth, all the while confronting the most tragic, hurt parts of ourselves to become who God called us to be.

Endorsed by everyone from Darlene Zschech, to Hillsong’s Bobbie Houston and Vicki Reddy of the Justice Conference, perhaps Sohn’s most notable endorsement comes from her daughter. It shows that for all the authority Sohn speaks with, she has also lived out the very pain she writes about. This adds fuel to a book that will help many women who live with the constant fear of not being enough.

Sohn began True You by spending a year interviewing women from around the world about their lives and struggles. She unearthed stories about abuse and trauma, marriage and adult children, to stories of perpetual loneliness in the wake of popularity. Mixed in are stories from her GetRealLive retreats, which she hosts from her home in New South Wales, that point to the fact that no one is ever alone in their feelings of pain and inadequacy.

Unpacking various elements of why women feel they are not enough, Sohn dives into fear, addiction, value, resilience and faith, using her story as a testimony to God’s healing power in an imperfect life. Sohn has a fair bit of life experience behind her – she is a mother of three and a wife, and details her journey through miscarriage and marriage difficulties. She has lived in four countries, talks candidly about her weekly counselling sessions, and details her own spiritual direction.

It makes for a disarming story, which causes you to breathe out and think, “It’s okay that I don’t have it all together.” Sohn reminds you that none of us do ‘have it all together’, even in a world where social media makes us all think there’s a better, more prettier, more accomplished woman, wife, mum and friend on the other side of the phone screen.

True You is a call to take off your mask, open up about your difficulties, and receive the help you need. All the while, Sohn is there, beckoning us back to the love of our Saviour who made us in his image, and loves us just as we are.

True You is available at Koorong.