[.ca] The Knot Guide to Wedding Vows and Traditions: Readings, ... (ISBN 0767902483)

From Amazon.com:
When planning for the big day, it's very easy to get caught up in beaded white dresses, boutonnieres, and how many platters of mini crab cakes to order, but the most important part of the wedding is the most-often overlooked--the ceremony itself. A wedding ceremony can vary hugely depending on the religious (or not) beliefs of the couple, their cultural backgrounds, and their personal preferences. The Knot Guide to Wedding Vows and Traditions can help you sort through all the choices and come up with just the right vows and music for you and your intended. Do you want the traditional "I, so and so, take thee, so and so, to be my lawfully wedding husband/wife before God" or do you want a looser style: "I love you. And I look forward to being your friend and companion, your wife/husband and lover for life"? Carley Roney, author and editor-in-chief of The Knot (www.theknot.com), strongly suggests taking a stab at writing your own vows, but if that's just too much, cull what you like from the many different styles--from Buddhist to Quaker--offered. Readings can be from the Bible or other spiritual writings, from poetry or even song lyrics. A diverse selection of writings and excerpts are included as are a lengthy lists of songs and music for before the ceremony, the processional, the recessional, and the first dance (everything from Bach's "Brandenberg Concerto No. 4" to Martina McBride's "I Love You"). Also included here are chapters on the wedding program, ring exchanges, and speeches and toasts. Interspersed are stories and pictures of real couples and how they arranged their wedding day. Meant as a jolt to your imagination, The Knot Guide to Wedding Vows and Traditions helps you to put a very personal touch on an age-old ceremony. --Dana Van Nest

not just for the bride and groom:
I am the romantic type and have been dreaming about my wedding since forever, but I bought this book, because there are so many great verses/poems/quotations about love. I like to include them in love letters to my boyfriend. Also has a great section on toasts if you are looking for just the right thing to say at an up and coming wedding.

Unoriginal:
Unfortunately, I found this book to be as unoriginal as it's blan cover. The most stimulating parts were already discovered and passed on in the original personalized wedding book "With These Words...I Thee Wed"--secular & religious vows, and vows for all occasions and settings. "With These Words" was even the first book to introduce a questionnaire that aids in creating your own vows. So I'm not only disappointed that this book obviously has more marketing bucks than original ideas, it proves that you can't improve upon perfection.

Not Impressed:
I was hoping since "The Knot" had it's name tied to this book it would be exceptional. I found it to be marginal - reiterating a lot of the same information found in every other book about weddings. There were a few ideas for toasts that were really nice - and some of the vows were interesting, but overall - not what I was expecting at all considering the good review some of the other readers gave it.

Excellent Advice & Ideas:
Loved this book -- it was very helpful, especially to couples who are writing their own vows. There were many suggested passages that are inspirational, and the book is loaded with interesting ceremony ideas.

A good resource if you don't know where to start.:
Although much of the information contained in this book is available through other sources--The Knot's own web site, for example--it is likely to be useful for someone in the beginning stages of planning their wedding and reception. In particular, there are plenty of examples of vows from various religious backgrounds as well as nice descriptions of various ethnic traditions (eg, the Afrocentric "Jumping the Broom"). There are a lot of ideas for those who wish to take a more non-traditional approach as well, as the book makes suggestions for incorporating songs, poetry, and the like into your celebration. The music section breaks the songs down into categories (eg, "first dance," "parents dances") and then further subdivides the categories based on type of music; the section on speeches and toasts is similarly divided based on who is doing the toast. One note of caution: there is less content in the book than its large size would suggest, as a significant number of pages are taken up by examples (eg, page after page of song titles) as well as a resource and bibliography list, both of which I viewed as unnecessary. However, if what you are looking for is plenty of examples so that you can make preliminary decisions about your wedding day, this book would work well.