New York City 1886. Die Geschwister Maelle, Mattie und Molly Gallagher verlieren bei einem Brand ihre Eltern. Als Einwandererkinder haben sie keine Verwandte zu denen sie Geschickt werden könnten. So werden sie, wie 150 000 Tausend andere Waisenkinder zwischen 1854 und 1929, in den sogenannten "Waisenzügen" aus den überfüllten Städten im Osten in eine neue Heimat im Westen geschickt.Eingedenk des letzten Versprechens, dass Maelle ihrem Vater gegeben hatte, sich um die Kleinen zu kümmern, verkleidet sie sich als Junge und versucht die kleine Familie solange es geht zusammenzuhalten. Womit sie jedoch nicht gerechnet hat ist, dass die Geschwister in verschiedene Familien kommen werden. Hilflos muss sie mit ansehen, wie ihre kleine Schwester Molly ihr von einem reichen Ehepaar aus den Armen gerissen wird und ihr kleiner Bruder Matt von einem Farmerehepaar mitgenommen wird. Sie selber wird mit 12 Jahren zum Lehrling eines reisenden Fotografen, aber sie schwört sich nie zu vergessen, dass sie einen Bruder in Shallow Creek und eine Schwester bei einer Familie Standler hat.18 Jahre später macht sich Maelle auf die Suche nach ihren Geschwistern. Die Suche lässt sie von Stadt zu Stadt weiterziehen, obwohl sie den Wunsch hat, sich niederzulassen und einen Laden zu eröffnen. Die Hoffnung, die sie treibt ist, Mattie und Molly an ihren Familienbanden zu erkennen, der Familienbibel, die sie Mollys neuen Eltern mitgab und dem Familienfoto, dass Mattie an seine Wurzeln erinnern sollte.Kim Vogel Sawyer ist eine christliche Autorin. Sie leitet die Frauenarbeit in ihrer Kirchengemeinde und schreibt bewusst Geschichten, die Gottes Kindern Hoffnung geben sollen, dementsprechend spielt der Glaube in ihrem Romanen eine große Rolle.Ich kenne auch Romane deutscher Autorinnen, mit der gleichen Intention, die Geschichten zu der Zeit schrieben, zu welcher diese Geschichte spielt, darunter z. Bsp. Helene Hübener. In den Romanen Helene Hübeners jedoch ist der Glaube wichtiger Bestandteil der Geschichte, aber er stört nicht. In diesem Roman jedoch wirken die Glaubenselemente aufgesetzt, bemüht und irgendwie gezwungen. Sie sind oft nicht Teil der Geschichte, es wirkt teils fast so, als währen sie forciert und bewusst eingefügt worden, so dass sie den Fluss der Geschichte teils eher stören als unterstützen. So stellen sich die Protagonisten in der Küche spontan zu einem Kreis zusammen, reichen sie die Hände und beten oder Maelle, die sonst Hosen trägt zieht ein Kleid an, damit die Menschen "Jesus in ihr erkennen" (S. 215). Das ist zu viel oder einfach zu amerikanisch.Die Geschichte an sich ist einerseits sehr schön, sie geht ans Herz ABER sie wirkt von Anfang an konstruiert und künstlich. Schon wie die Geschwister an einem Ort zusammengeführt werden wirkt unecht und forciert. Der Plot ist schon nach wenigen Seiten klar und bezieht seine Spannung aus den Situationen, in welchen sich die Geschwister knapp verpassen.Fazit. Netter, vorhersehbarer historisch religiöser Roman. Ein wenig moralisierend und teils zu gewollt wirkend sowohl was den Plot als auch die religiösen Komponenten angeht.
About 75 percent into this book I knew that I could not give this book more than two stars. I also knew that I had to review it, which I don't do very often.The plot was extremely predictable to me. I knew what was going to happen, and found myself wanting the siblings to meet each other so it could be done with. The characters fell flat. A lot of these characters were suppose to have a lot of different issues in their lives, and yet the back story to most of them fell short. I found myself wondering what really happened with the 3 siblings during all their time apart. The biggest turn off was the faith based portion in this book. I knew it was Christian fiction going in, and while I am not a Christian I don't normally have a problem reading books with religion in them. I read some of the reviews of this book stating that the religion was not in your face preachy. That was part of the reason that I picked up this book. I found that this statment was extremely wrong. A lot of the dialogue about Jesus just seemed out of place, and there was definitely a lot of in your face preaching (example: just because Maelle wore pants she was not a good christian.) The only good thing to come from this book was the historical aspect of it. It was interesting learning about the orphan trains, something I will definitely be looking into reading more about. In the end I just can't reccommend this book and will probably be deleting it from my kindle.
What do You think about My Heart Remembers (2008)?
A quick read, one meant to tug at the heart strings. Three siblings, Maelle, Mattie, and Molly are orphaned when their parents do not survive a tenement fire in NYC. The children are sent west on an orphan train and split up, as was the case for many orphans. After many years apart, they finally find each other while working to outlaw child labor. There wasn't a whole lot of "meat" to this book, making it ideal as a break from weightier things or as a beach read. You kind of know what's going to happen, so there are no real surprises. It's quite religious in tone, which I already knew since it was put out by a faith-based publisher. A few bits did bother me, however. There are quite a few instances when one of the sisters is alone with a man, and in one case even in her bedroom, though nothing untoward occurs. I doubt that would have happened for propriety's sake. A woman's reputation could be tarnished by less back then. Also the writing was rather modern in tone, which made it difficult to believe the book was taking place in the early 1900s.
—Karyl
This is the story of 3 Irish immigrant siblings, who lost their parents in a tenement fire in New York City. 8 year old Maelle makes a promise to her father to look out for younger brother Mattie, and baby sister Molly. They are sent to Missouri on an "orphan train", where they are separated. Maelle makes a vow though to find them again one day, but as the years go by, her hopes start to dim.The story also follows the lives of Molly and Mattie, and the very different paths all their lives took.This story is based on the real "orphan trains", that took orphaned or abandoned children from the Eastern cities, to the West where they were adopted by families. Some of the children did find loving homes, but others ended up working as indentured servants, and often siblings were separated. These trains ran from 1854-1929. The author did a great job describing the plight of these children, and the problems that children faced back then if circumstances forced them to live on the streets and fend for themselves.I think the author overdid it a little though on some of the religious themes, and it seemed like the story was wrapped up too quickly and neatly to be realistic, but overall, it was an enjoyable read and I liked all the main characters.
—Shari Larsen
This was a surprisingly good novel. I received it as a Christmas gift from my grandmother, and while I ordinarily do not dabble in the Christian fiction genre for one reason or another, I figured there was no harm in giving it a try. The story really sucked me in, especially with the three altering narratives from each of the protagonists. A quick read, but an enticing story that I couldn't put down. While the characters were all Christian, they certainly weren't perfect and were all the more believable. A heartbreaking story with the perfect ending that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, like all is right in the world. I have a weakness for historical fiction, and I enjoyed Sawyer's descriptions of Missouri town life in the early 20th century. Surprising bits of enticing romance too, which I was not expecting, and carried out very well.Not quite on par with Francine River's Redeeming Love, as far as Christian fiction goes, but still worth a read. Full of Truth, but not too preachy...I liked that it focused on the theme of Psalm 139, which coincidentally happens to be one of my absolute favorite psalms. I think it might appeal slightly more to the Protestant crowd, just because of some of the theological elements presented (e.g. welcoming the Lord into your heart as your personal Savior automatically granting a believer entrance into Heaven). Also odd that the three siblings are of Irish origin, but there is no mention of a Catholic background. Although considering the importance of the family Bible in the plot and the fact that they are immigrants could mean they are of the Irish Protestant minority...either way, it makes for a heartwarming, inspiring story. And sometimes you really need to read those kinds of things.
—Rebecca Haughey
