Title: A Home in
Drayton Valley
Author: Kim Vogel Sawyer
Pages: 352
Year: 2012
Publisher: Bethany
Unconditional
love and transformation from God are the two most compelling truths mankind
could ever hear and know. How does a
woman who is not taken care of or loved by her husband find hope when all seems
lost? When racial prejudices are taught to
a man since he was a young boy, now learns to love another as God loves all,
how is his life changed? At first it
seemed that being arrested for a robbery at his employer’s home was what he
thought God had in store for him.
A young Irish lass who loves the
Lord befriends a woman named Mary with two young children. Tarsie seems to be a spitfire of a girl who
loves to bring healing when others are hurting from various illnesses. She can take care of herself in New York in
the late 1800’s because her ability to sew with quality and at a fast pace
earns her enough to meet her needs. One
brisk day as she is on her way to visit Mary, who is sick in bed, she notices a
booklet lying on the ground, a booklet that is going to change lives.
Mary knows how sick she is, but is
hiding it from her husband because her mother had the same thing. All Mary wants to see is the new state the
booklet she has talked about and used to convince her husband to move there
even though that might be the biggest hurdle.
Joss rarely brings home all his pay, preferring to drink most of it up
instead of providing for his family.
Mary thinks if she can help Joss by leaving for a new land away from
temptation he will become the man she knows him to really be.
Joss has to decide to let go of his
prejudice sooner or later; it seems he prefers later. First, the wagon master and people his family
travels with aren’t what he wants. On
top of that, once he gets a job after the first one stopped, it seems like his
immediate boss is also a man he would rather not deal with. Every time the boss is nice to Joss, Joss’
father’s rough and angry words echo in his head. What will it take for Joss to let go of the
hurt and anger in order to be filled with the love of God? Will he ever learn to express his love to a
woman who falls in love with him, and who wants his love for her to be the
first thought and not to just being the caretaker of his young ones?
A
Home in Drayton Valley is set in the 1880’s, beginning in New York and
later moves to Kansas. The author does
an excellent job of writing as the various people who lived in America spoke
and thought at that time. It is more
than a love story between a man and woman; it is a love story of God for
man. There is also learning to sacrifice
for what is right and doing what the Lord says even when it goes against the
status quo. Of course, there is more included
in this fictional story, which I highly recommend as I enjoyed it!
My rating is 4 stars.
Note: I received a
complimentary copy for an honest review of this book. The opinions shared in this review are solely
my responsibility. Other reviews can be
read at http://seekingwithallyurheart.blogspot.com/. Also follow me on Twitter @lcjohnson1988,
FaceBook at https://www.facebook.com/lisa.johnson.75457
