First in the Wortham Family series by new-to-me author Leisha Kelly. This is good old-fashioned Christian fiction at its best, at least for me. Sweet, charming, quaint, old-fashioned, simple, heart-warming. No action, just lots of details about life and faith.The premise - the Wortham Family (father Samuel, mother Julia, children Robert and Sarah) have lost everything in the Great Depression, including their home in Harrisburg PA and their entire life savings. They leave with the barest of essentials in a bag, and try to reach a cousin in Illinois, with the promise of a job in a factory. They hitchhike, sleep in churches, eat in soup kitchens, and finally take refuge one stormy night in an old farmhouse that seems abandoned. Julia immediately is drawn to the farmhouse and land, and the hope of what they could build there. But without a dime to their name, how can they convince the owner to let them live there and work the land? Well, since this is wonderful old-fashioned fiction, the owner is, of course, an 80-something widow lady named Emma, who is having health problems and cannot remain on her beloved farm as she wants and hopes for. Easy solution, yes, but not everyone is happy to have strangers come in and start "taking advantage" of sweet Emma.There's 2 more in this series that I plan to read, and I really think I'll enjoy them as much as this one. Great read, if you like this kind of story.
My 5-star rating is more for the spiritual backdrop and development of this book than for great writing skill or a well-conceived plot. It's a light read with a solid foundation.I don't know if I can explain this very well -- I so admired the true Christian spirit embodied in these characters, and how they realistically lived out their faith amid life's challenges and hopes. That perspective was absolutely refreshing to me. No misguided theologies here, such as Pollyanna sunshiny everything-is-so-very-good faith, or your amount of blessing depends directly on your amount of blind faith, or God lets every little thing happen without much rhyme nor reason, or if you show a lack of faith in your words God will turn His back on you, or since God is good you better not spend any time in suffering or grief...well, I guess you get the idea! Yes, there are a few "coincidences" turning a bad situation into good. I've seen God do the same for my family, just not as quickly as in the case of the Wortham family. For me, this was a story of the real God working in real ways in the lives of ordinary people. Recommended!
What do You think about Julia's Hope (2005)?
I don't remember who suggested this book to me, I thought it started a bit slowly, but turned out to be a good read.I felt there were a few inconsistencies. Perhaps Ill is different than Ohio, but here strawberries are ripe and ready for picking June, long after grape hyacinths are gone. Another one was lilacs (Late April/early May) and something else I can't remember, something that isn't ready until much later in the summer.Thirdly was another peeve, Golden Labradors. There are golden retrievers which range from light to dark gold and there are Labrador retrievers that come in yellow, chocolate and black coat colors. These two breeds of dogs don't even come from the same country. Research your subject.
—Cathy
This is a solid start to a new series by Leisha Kelly, a new author. I liked the way Kelly wrote the book, alternating chapters between voices - mostly told through the eyes and voice of Julia and Samuel Wortham. I also liked the seed of hope and how Leisha Kelly planted it within Julia, one of the main characters, and watered it and grew it in Julia and in Julia's family. It made me think about hope, the reality of it and what it can look like if we just give ourselves to hope, if we just choose to believe in hope. Julia is a strong character and her "mentor" Emma is strong as well. I liked this book enough and was captured by the Wortham family so well that I will be adding the rest of this series, plus it's "sequal" series, to my "to read list"! :)
—Beth Peninger
I needed a change of pace and looked through all the downloads I have before settling for this novel, which turned out to be just the kind of Christian fiction I enjoy. I've known people like this--I really have--and I wish I was more like these characters. (And according to Goodreads, this is the first in a series. I hope so!)Oh dear God. I posted this and went online to see about other books by Leisha Kelly and discovered she and her 16-year-old son were killed in a car accident three years ago. Sad, so sad.
—Victoria
