Up till now, my favorite Ann Gabhart book was Angel Sister. But just a few minutes ago, I finished Small Town Girl and it gives Angel Sister a run for its money.
Evie marries Mike, the preacher in Rosey Corner, Victoria is in love with Sammy, Lorena is only ten years old and doesn't like boys yet, and Kate is not in any rush until she meets Jay at Evie's wedding.
Jay has been a drifter most of his life, but after meeting Kate he decides to stay around in Rosey Corner. Kate sees something in Jay she's never seen before in any of the men in Rosey Corner. Her family welcomes Jay in a way he's never experienced before, but it's Kate who has captured his heart and he does all he can to capture hers, including giving Lorena a puppy named Trouble.
As I finished reading this book, I was struck by some similarities to Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. The four sisters, the setting during war time, the giving nature of the March and Merritt families. Ann has written a series that will endure.
Five stars, two thumbs up, and a new puppy.
Thursday, September 26, 2013
I'm Jo!!!!!!!!!!!
Which Little Woman Are you?
Your Result: Jo(sephine)
You're Jo! The feistiest of all the March sisters, Jo is a spunky tomboy who dreams only of getting her writing published. She doesn't care about money or marriage. In the end, the only man who can tame her is a man who truly understands and respects, even shares, her dreams. Jo's main fault is her temper--she loses her patience easily and can't always hold her tongue. But her wonderful creative talents make up for all that.
Monday, September 23, 2013
For Love or Loyalty
I have never read a book by Jennifer Hudson Taylor before, but this book was a great introduction to her writing. Malcolm MacGregor comes home to find that Duncan Campbell has come demanding the rents payment, beaten his brother Graham, killed his brother William, and kidnapped his mother Iona and his sister Carleen. Malcolm doesn't take things lying down and goes to exact revenge on Duncan by taking his daughter Lauren, and after finding out that Glenn has sold his mother and sister into indentured servitude in the colonies, takes Lauren with him on a voyage to the colonies in order to sell her into indenture so he could redeem his mother and his sister.
There are a couple of things that bug me about the book. One is that the ship taking Malcolm's mother and sister left only a day before Malcolm's ship, yet when he goes to redeem his mother, she's been in indenture for at least a month. I am not familiar with how long voyages took sailing across the Atlantic, but I am not convinced that it would have taken a month's difference in the length of the voyage with departures so close together. The other issue I have is that in a couple of places the story seems to drag, but it's not worth walking away from the story.
I say this because as the story goes on, the pace picks up. I read while riding my stationary bicycle. As the pace picked up in =)the story, I pedaled faster, and I got in quite a workout. =)
Four and a half stars, very definitely.
There are a couple of things that bug me about the book. One is that the ship taking Malcolm's mother and sister left only a day before Malcolm's ship, yet when he goes to redeem his mother, she's been in indenture for at least a month. I am not familiar with how long voyages took sailing across the Atlantic, but I am not convinced that it would have taken a month's difference in the length of the voyage with departures so close together. The other issue I have is that in a couple of places the story seems to drag, but it's not worth walking away from the story.
I say this because as the story goes on, the pace picks up. I read while riding my stationary bicycle. As the pace picked up in =)the story, I pedaled faster, and I got in quite a workout. =)
Four and a half stars, very definitely.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Unveil Your True Beauty
This afternoon I finished reading one of the most compelling books I've read in a while. Paula K Parker has written a story that catches the reader's attention with the first word and doesn't let go until after the "Author's Notes." She has brought a new perspective to a Biblical family and what their possible story could have been. Paula seems to have done her research on the customs and culture of the times. Sisters of Lazarus: Beauty Unveiled tells a story of two fairly famous Bible sisters--Martha and Mary--and their lives with their brother Lazarus. Of course, this story is incomplete without the inclusion of Jesus and His impact on this family's life.
I am also reading an Ann Spangler/Lois Tverberg book: Sitting at the Feet of Jesus: How the Jewishness of Jesus Can Transform Your Faith. So while I am reading one book that explains the spiritual life of Jesus, and the spiritual customs of His time, I also read a book that through the vehicle of a novel also delves into some of the same things. The perspectives of the two authors give me a greater vision of the life lived two thousand years ago.
At the opening of this book, Lazarus is betrothed to marry Abigail bat Nicodemus; Martha's betrothed is for all intents and purposes, dead; and Mary is a young girl with stars in her eyes. I have really appreciated how the definition of the courting customs of the day were woven seamlessly into the story and added to the delight it brings the reader. From Mary learning to bake Martha's honey date cakes to Martha changing her heavy veils to lighter ones, from page one to the glossary at the end, this book does not fail to satisfy the reader.
Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a honey date cake.
I am also reading an Ann Spangler/Lois Tverberg book: Sitting at the Feet of Jesus: How the Jewishness of Jesus Can Transform Your Faith. So while I am reading one book that explains the spiritual life of Jesus, and the spiritual customs of His time, I also read a book that through the vehicle of a novel also delves into some of the same things. The perspectives of the two authors give me a greater vision of the life lived two thousand years ago.
At the opening of this book, Lazarus is betrothed to marry Abigail bat Nicodemus; Martha's betrothed is for all intents and purposes, dead; and Mary is a young girl with stars in her eyes. I have really appreciated how the definition of the courting customs of the day were woven seamlessly into the story and added to the delight it brings the reader. From Mary learning to bake Martha's honey date cakes to Martha changing her heavy veils to lighter ones, from page one to the glossary at the end, this book does not fail to satisfy the reader.
Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a honey date cake.
Lighthouse Brides
Lighthouse Brides is a collection of novellas that disappointed me; most of the novellas ended abruptly as if the author said, "Okay, I've made it from point a to point b and that's as far as I need to go." The only novella that truly satisfied me as a complete story was the one by Andrea Boeshaar: "A Beacon in the Storm." Amanda took care of the North Point Lighthouse and her dying mother. Because of Amanda's diligence, Cade's ship "Kismet" made it through the storm with little damage but all repairable and no loss of life. Cade was planning to sell his ship after this voyage anyway because he needed to set down roots for his daughter, Jenny. Amanda has another issue facing her in that someone else wants her job and her brother wants her to move in with him. Andrea Boeshaar wrote an entertaining story bringing these two characters together and still left the reader feeling the story was complete.
I can't recommend this book based on this one story, since there are six in the book.
Two Stars
I can't recommend this book based on this one story, since there are six in the book.
Two Stars
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Rebellious Heart
Since I began reading this book, I couldn't wait to finish it so that I could review it. When I was in high school, I loved reading Irving Stone novelized biographies and Jody Hedlund writes in a very similar style. I absolutely LOVED her two previous novel-biographies--The Preacher's Bride and The Doctor's Lady.
When I first read The Preacher's Bride, I didn't find out until I finished it that it was a biographical novel of John Bunyan. I have a horrible (well, it's horrible to other readers) habit of reading the end of a book before I finish it. So this time I knew whom I was reading about--but, for the sake of those who like to be kept in suspense, I won't tell.
Susanna Smith first saw Benjamin Ross during a murder trial where he was defending a local man accused of murdering a young woman found dead in front of his shack. Ben knew without a doubt that the man was innocent but had no evidence to prove it. Ben pleads for mercy for the man after he is found guilty, stating that he will be under the constant care of the clergy and therefore capable of being reformed.
Susanna again runs into Ben at a party at her Grandmother Eve Quincy's home. His friend, Richard Cranch, meets Susanna's sister, Mary, and falls in love with her, and Ben is taken with Susanna. While at the party, Susanna and Ben both remember the first time she met: she was a child of five--stuck in a tree, and he was a strapping lad in his early teens who helped her out of the tree. This time Susanna has given away her shoes to a young woman who has been robbed her shoes and chased to the limits of her endurance.
Because of Susanna's generosity to the young woman, an escaped indentured servant, Susanna and Ben find themselves in each other's company often, writing letters to each other frequently, but denied the opportunity to court. Susanna's mother doesn't feel that Ben is suitable for a woman of Susanna's stature.
It takes the young indentured servant's capture by the English officer who murdered the one the local man was convicted of killing to finally bring Ben and Susanna together in a way that even her own mother approves of.
Now I am wondering whose love story will Jody tell next? I can't wait.
Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a letter to your best friend.
When I first read The Preacher's Bride, I didn't find out until I finished it that it was a biographical novel of John Bunyan. I have a horrible (well, it's horrible to other readers) habit of reading the end of a book before I finish it. So this time I knew whom I was reading about--but, for the sake of those who like to be kept in suspense, I won't tell.
Susanna Smith first saw Benjamin Ross during a murder trial where he was defending a local man accused of murdering a young woman found dead in front of his shack. Ben knew without a doubt that the man was innocent but had no evidence to prove it. Ben pleads for mercy for the man after he is found guilty, stating that he will be under the constant care of the clergy and therefore capable of being reformed.
Susanna again runs into Ben at a party at her Grandmother Eve Quincy's home. His friend, Richard Cranch, meets Susanna's sister, Mary, and falls in love with her, and Ben is taken with Susanna. While at the party, Susanna and Ben both remember the first time she met: she was a child of five--stuck in a tree, and he was a strapping lad in his early teens who helped her out of the tree. This time Susanna has given away her shoes to a young woman who has been robbed her shoes and chased to the limits of her endurance.
Because of Susanna's generosity to the young woman, an escaped indentured servant, Susanna and Ben find themselves in each other's company often, writing letters to each other frequently, but denied the opportunity to court. Susanna's mother doesn't feel that Ben is suitable for a woman of Susanna's stature.
It takes the young indentured servant's capture by the English officer who murdered the one the local man was convicted of killing to finally bring Ben and Susanna together in a way that even her own mother approves of.
Now I am wondering whose love story will Jody tell next? I can't wait.
Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a letter to your best friend.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
The Invention of Sarah Cummings
Sarah grew up in St Andrews Orphanage, then went to work in the Banning household--first as kitchen help and then as a maid. She has her sights set on bigger and better things. Her opportunity to begin her dream comes when she meets Lillie Wagner in a millinery shop where both women are admiring the same hat. Instead of giving her real name, she introduces herself as Serena Cuthbert, she invents a whole past based on whom she wants this new persona to be--someone on an equal with the high society of Chicago. Through Lillie's ability to introduce her into society she meets Brad Townsend and pins her hopes on marrying him.
Sarah is not the most likable main character, but in Simon Tewell, director of the orphanage, Olivia Newport has given us a glimpse into what's truly needed in Sarah's life as well as our own lives--the love of God, the eyes to see ourselves as God sees us. Sarah spent so much time inventing someone she thought she wanted to be, she lost sight of the reality that truly mattered. She was looking on outward appearances and seeing someone largely ignored in society. Her eyes were fixed on the wrong goal, as ours often can be. Sarah learns, slowly, what is truly of value, and in the meantime loses a very important friendship, loses her self-respect, and finds herself and finds what true love is all about.
The Invention of Sarah Cummings is not as entertaining as the other two books in this series, but there is a lot to be learned through Sarah's foibles. I give this book a solid four stars. It's still worth the time to read.
Sarah is not the most likable main character, but in Simon Tewell, director of the orphanage, Olivia Newport has given us a glimpse into what's truly needed in Sarah's life as well as our own lives--the love of God, the eyes to see ourselves as God sees us. Sarah spent so much time inventing someone she thought she wanted to be, she lost sight of the reality that truly mattered. She was looking on outward appearances and seeing someone largely ignored in society. Her eyes were fixed on the wrong goal, as ours often can be. Sarah learns, slowly, what is truly of value, and in the meantime loses a very important friendship, loses her self-respect, and finds herself and finds what true love is all about.
The Invention of Sarah Cummings is not as entertaining as the other two books in this series, but there is a lot to be learned through Sarah's foibles. I give this book a solid four stars. It's still worth the time to read.
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