What do You think about Aunt Dimity's Christmas (2000)?
I liked the "message" of this book. (Yes, I do think the author was trying to convey a message, in addition to spinning a good yarn.) At the end of the book, Lori Shepherd communicates with Aunt Dimity about the homeless man, Kit Smith, who was found in Lori's front yard just before Christmas. Lori tells Dimity that she owes Kit an awful lot and that he helped her--"He forced me to look at things I didn't want to see...and to remember things I wanted to forget."I'd gotten too fat and sassy, Dimity. I'd paid my dues, so I thought I was entitled to my blessings. Kit reminded me that blessings aren't a right--they're a gift." (pgs. 202-203)She goes on to say that she was no more entitled to her blessings than the men at Saint Benedict's (a homeless shelter).I think we often forget that "our blessings aren't a right--they're a gift." And we do need to be concerned about those less fortunate than us.
—Sandy
Sometimes you need a series that you can go to that is predictably comforting. Such is the Aunt Dimity series by Nancy Atherton. Having just finished some rather heavy reading material, my mind and soul needed something that would soothe me and let me relax into a safe world of hope and light. Aunt Dimity's Christmas was just the ticket. Not that the book is devoid of sadness. It's just that the sadness overwhelmed by by joy and positive self-discovery. I usually race through a mystery series without stopping to catch my breath, but I'm approaching this series a little differently, using a modicum of self-restraint. I am interspersing the delightful novels into my other reading, in two or three at a time, especially where I need pick-me-up and a relax-my-mind read. Of course, the setting being England, the main residence being a charming cottage, and, in this case, a snowy Christmas help to ensconce me into a world of pure magic.The storyline starts two weeks before Christmas when Lori Shepherd is planning her first perfect Christmas, with her husband, two twin boys, her father-in-law, and a host of villagers and friends. Of course, nothing goes according to plan after a stranger is found unconscious in Lori's driveway the morning after her much-wished-for snow has arrived. Viewing this discovery as a most inconvenient interruption in her plans, Lori hopes that his hospitalization in an Oxford hospital will conclude her involvement in the matter. Enter Father Julian Bright, who draws Lori into the puzzling identity of the stranger known only as Smitty to him. The search provides much more than identity information, as Lori learns just how far from perfect her plan for Christmas was and how much more Christmas and life can mean.
—Kathy
Lori, a wife and mother, has just settled into a little, inherited English cottage in the village of Finch and can’t wait for this Christmas to be the best Christmas ever. On Christmas Eve, Lori discovers a tramp collapsed in a snowdrift in her yard and spends her holiday trying to determine his identity by visiting homeless shelters with Father Julian. As the tramp lies comatose in the hospital, Lori begins to wonder if her life is too closed to those less fortunate. This cozy, light Christmas mystery is filled with suspense and world of the homeless. Written with an air of reflection on being thankful for our blessings, the author challenges readers to consider to share with others. Can we bring hope with small acts of kindness?
—Gay Ann
