I was selected to be a tour stop on the “Butternut Summer” virtual book tour through TLC Book Tours. Realising this was a second novel within a series, I requested a copy of the first novel “Up at Butternut Lake” in order to understand the continuity of the characters & the story. I received a complimentary copy of the novel direct from the publisher William Morrow without an obligation to post a review. Whereas I received a complimentary copy of “Butternut Summer” direct from the publisher William Morrow, in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Inspired to Read:
Stories of second chances have always held fast to my heart, as life has this beautiful way of giving us a bit more than we’re expecting it to yield most of the time. The idea that there are ways to have a renewal of our lives through a second chance or a new beginning elsewhere from whence we are currently has a very alluring appeal! I have been an appreciator of Contemporary Romance & Contemporary Women’s Fiction for a good 20 years now, as I snuggled into a fierce appreciation for Debbie MacComber originally when I first started noticing both of these genres. Sherryl Woods followed 15 years later when I discovered the small towne of Serenity, and the series the Sweet Magnolias (although I personally refer to that series as ‘Serenity’). MacComber’s Angel series drew me into her narrative arcs, followed closely by the Cedar Cove series and Blossom Street; as I appreciated her style of story and the homespun sincerity of her characters. Being that both MacComber & Woods are going to have series based off their novels on the Hallmark Channel within the next year or so, humbles me a bit as I have this history of discovering both authors ahead of their newfound popularity. I even knew Debbie MacComber’s works would find a home on Hallmark Channel, but that’s a story for another time, perhaps!
I had started to curate a List on Riffle entitled: Contemporary Romances : Returning back to the Modern Eraas I wanted to walk back into an area of literature I have started to negate reading. When I first had the opportunity to have a library card after a considerable absence, my checkout queue looked quite hyperactively complied! I simply couldn’t wait to grab this or that novel, and try this or that author! I started so many wicked awesome series by new-to-me authors, I have a list a mile long of ‘next reads’ to continue the happiness I had begun five years ago! Then, I started to shift my wanderings a bit, exploring new genres and/or committing to new styles of the craft of storytelling itself. My wanderings are always a bit decidedly serendipitous in their nature, but as much as I have a niche for being addicted to the historical past, I am equally entranced by the modern era!
I may or may not have highlighted my joy of giving back to deployed servicemen & women as much as I have a deep appreciation for the sacrifices and hard work they give whilst they dedicate their lives to others. Military fiction was a branch of literature I was attracted too as a young teen, and likewise, my passion for watching JAG, NCIS, NCIS: LA, & NCIS: NOLA originated out of my love of Jack Ryan stories (by Tom Clancy). Hallmark Channel has a lovely Romance with Lori Loughlin entitled: Meet My Mom of which I loved for bringing a realistic story to their offerings and shining a positive light on today’s military families.
As soon as I read the book synopsis, I was hooked. I couldn’t wait to read both of these novels, whilst being wicked happy the third novel: Moonlight on Butterlake releases in 2015!
In the tradition of Kristin Hannah and Susan Wiggs, Mary McNear introduces readers to the town of Butternut Lake and to the unforgettable people who call it home.
It’s summer, and after ten years away, Allie Beckett has returned to her family’s cabin beside tranquil Butternut Lake, where as a teenager she spent so many carefree days. She’s promised her five-year-old son, Wyatt, they will be happy there. She’s promised herself this is the place to begin again after her husband’s death in Afghanistan. The cabin holds so many wonderful memories, but from the moment she crosses its threshold Allie is seized with doubts. Has she done the right thing uprooting her little boy from the only home he’s ever known?
Allie and her son are embraced by the townsfolk, and her reunions with old acquaintances—her friend Jax, now a young mother of three with one more on the way, and Caroline, the owner of the local coffee shop—are joyous ones. And then there are newcomers like Walker Ford, who mostly keeps to himself—until he takes a shine to Wyatt . . . and to Allie.
Everyone knows that moving forward is never easy, and as the long, lazy days of summer take hold, Allie must learn to unlock the hidden longings of her heart, and to accept that in order to face the future she must also confront—and understand—what has come before.
Mary McNear lives in San Francisco with her husband, two teenage children, and a high-strung, minuscule white dog named Macaroon. She writes her novels in a local doughnut shop, where she sips Diet Pepsi, observes the hubbub of neighborhood life, and tries to resist the constant temptation of freshly made doughnuts. She bases her novels on a lifetime of summers spent in a small town on a lake in the northern Midwest.
Picking up the pieces : from loss & tribulations:
One of the hardest obstacles about living our lives forward without the benefit of understanding the events that will take place in the future, is being able to dig deep into our wells of strength and fortitude to accept the hope that our lives will start to turn back around. The thematics which are strongly represented in Up at Butternut Lake are an evolving exploration of Change (questions of destiny, permanence, and stability – of not only the mind, heart, and spirit but the physical locale of where your life will be lived); where each character who takes a central focus is at a turning point in their lives. Where they can choose to move forward and let go of the past that is weighing them down, or they can continue as they are without moving forward at all.
The complaisance’s of life arise out of the complexities of a cobweb’s worth of lies, spun innocently enough at the time they are created but woven into the texture of your life can become a haunting self-reminder of how untruthful of a life you’re actually living. Within the thematics of the story, this kernel of truth is an underscore that affects different characters in different ways, as the lies we tell ourselves to recover from something we feel we cannot face head-on are just as damaging as the lies which remain unspoken or proven untrue through the wrinkles of time itself.
I am a ChocLit reviewer who receives books of my choice in exchange for honest reviews! I received a complimentary copy of “The Road Back” from ChocLit via IPM (International Publisher’s Marketing) in exchange for an honest review! I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
On my Connection to Ms. Harris & my inspiration to read this novel:
When I began reading this novel, I was already hosting #ChocLitSaturdays chats on a regular basis. Eleven in the morning of a Saturday, has become a favourite hour for me to exchange conversation and joy with everyone who shows up to participate in a chat centered around ChocLit novels and the Romance branch of literature in general. Ms. Harris and I had exchanged a few conversations ahead of the chats beginning, and during one of those lovely moments she had mentioned to me about how she met Mr. Dexter (the writer behind Inspector Morse). I had an inkling I would appreciate reading this novel ahead of her mentioning that story to me, but afterwards, I knew I wanted to read this sooner rather than later! The fact that this story centers around an adoption story solidified my interest, as I will be adopting in the future myself.
Similar to my previous thoughts I shared about Ms. Courtenay, I have come to appreciate chatting with Ms. Harris, either through #ChocLitSaturdays chats or privately. She is most giving of her time and I have appreciated the opportunity to know the writer behind the stories I enjoy reading! She always shares her happy spirit in the chats too, and her insights into why she enjoys writing the books that speak to her the most.
I am disclosing this, to assure you that I can formulate an honest opinion, even though I have interacted with Harris through our respective love & passion of reading inside the twitterverse whilst I host #ChocLitSaturdays the chat as well as privately; I treat each book as a ‘new experience’, whether I personally know the author OR whether I am reading a book by them for the first time.
Book Synopsis:
When Patricia accompanies her father, Major George Carstairs, on a trip to Ladakh, north of the Himalayas, in the early 1960s, she sees it as a chance to finally win his love. What she could never have foreseen is meeting Kalden – a local man destined by circumstances beyond his control to be a monk, but fated to be the love of her life.
Despite her father’s fury, the lovers are determined to be together, but can their forbidden love survive?
A wonderful story about a passion that crosses cultures, a love that endures for a lifetime, and the hope that can only come from revisiting the past.
Author Biography:
Liz was born in London and now lives in South Oxfordshire with her husband. After graduating from university with a Law degree, she moved to California where she led a varied life, trying her hand at everything from cocktail waitressing on Sunset Strip to working as secretary to the CEO of a large Japanese trading company, not to mention a stint as ‘resident starlet’ at MGM. On returning to England, Liz completed a degree in English and taught for a number of years before developing her writing career.
Liz’s debut novel, The Road Back, won a 2012 Book of the Year Award from Coffee Time Romance in the USA and her second novel A Bargain Struck was highly praised by the Daily Mail in the UK.
Geographically Specific: Ladakh (north of the Himalaya Mountains):
Ms. Harris has a way of capturing the scenery and the depth of locale in such a beautiful scale of visual fortitude! As I was reading the passages expressing the angst and anguish of Patricia’s life in London, England and then, juxtapositioned that life against the life of Kalden in Ladakh, and the imagery is quite startling! She gives the reader such a window into their everyday worlds as if to breathe in a piece of that scenery for the very first time and know that you’ve gone to the location rather than merely ‘visiting’ the locale off the printed page. For Ladakh, she even used local words which would make sense from the character’s point of view to be authentic and true to his identity, as much as writing in the everyday elements I have always appreciated which are stitched into the fabric of the background.
I love how through Kalden’s eyes we are seeing the lush beauty of the glaciers within the Himalayan mountains, as much as we see the stark isolating quiet of being present in a place that has more silence than sound. She gives you the essence of being in Kalden’s shoes, and for that I am celebrating ‘going somewhere’ quite different and alluring from what I have previously read. I love Eastern Religions and Spirituality, and having this story set in a mystical place as a backdrop to the enveloping story was a very special treat.
My Review of The Road Back:
Grabbing you in the heart with her opening bits of narrative to explain the journey Amy is about to embark on to seek out her birth parents now that her adoptive parents have passed on is gripping to say the least! The fact that I am reading this novel as a Prospective Adoptive Mum, of whom is planning to adopt children out of foster care in the future puts the story firmly in the forefront of my mind and heart. I have always had a strong empathic heart for children who either do not know their birth families if removed from their homes as infants or young toddlers, or children who know of their birth families but have been removed as school-aged children. The connective ties of family stitched together become fragmented memories and a heartache of ambiguous loss for the ones who never knew them at all. My heart went out to Amy as she’s on the brink of breaching back into her past, uncovering the secreted mysteries of her birth mother, and wondering if she is brave enough to handle what she discovers.
Patricia is the elder sister of a special needs brother, who was physically affected by the siege of war; her childhood is altered the day her father chooses him over her in his affection. For a young child to realise how a father can choose which child to adore, dot, and love more than the other, has ramifications as the child grows. I felt for her in the sequences where not even her mother was strong enough to stand against her father when he was in the wrong. And, how disconcerting it was to watch as he did not realise how he was affecting his daughter.
Kalden’s entrance into the story is heart-wretching as his position in his family is that of the fourth son, a designation that has him sentenced towards being a monk rather than a husband and father. In his culture, a fourth son cannot inherit land at least not in his family, where the land is divided by three and unable to be partitioned off into fourths. For such a young lad to enter the story, the weight of his heart bleds out of his scenes, giving us a heartfelt grasp of his reality despite the youth of his eight years.
The beautiful irony is that both Patricia and Kalden’s upbringings were a bit similar to each other, in that neither of their families elected to place their needs first or in any measure of importance. They were each self-reliant at a young age, and they each treasured their family’s affection but knew that for whichever reason, they were not the children in the family of whom theirs would consider had worth. Their lifepaths were already on a route towards convergence long before their encounter in Ladakh. Two souls from two very different worlds, and yet on the heart level, their spirits were entwined by the circumstances of their lives.
Tragedy affects people in different ways, and the unique twist in the story for me was in realising that out of the grief for her brother, Patricia turnt her full attention to her father rather than drawing closer to her Mum. Whereas Kalden’s world was tethered and tied to a missionary family whose only hope in life was to bring education to his village; yet the prejudice his village gave them in return shattered his hopes for a familial connection. Each of them were searching for something outside the tangible and outside the scope of what they fully understood. Life is lived forward and understood only in the hours in which we truly take a pause to resolve the angst of our souls.
An emotionally gutting story about two entwined soul mates who are magnetically connected to each other despite distance and circumstances attempting to separate them. My heart was full, my head was wrenched with a desire to know the ending, but it is not an ending you want to rush. You have to go through each step of the narrative, allowing their story (Patricia & Kalden) to absorb into you and become a part of you. Theirs is a love story that lifts up your own soul as you read the passages, and gives new meaning of hope through the transcendence of love set against the greatest odds two people could ever want to survive. This started out as an adopted daughter seeking her birth parents, but in the end, it is about a romance between two people who were forbidden from being together and found solace in their union.
Time Shift rather than Time Slip:
I appreciated the flow of the story being encapsulated inside of a ‘time shift’ rather than a ‘time slip’ sequencing, as it gave a strong sense of each character’s reality as the story was told. The start of the novel itself was with a proposition of unearthing information about Amy’s birth parents, yet it is where her journey takes her to find her birth mother & birth father that has such a confluence of drama and heart; you will find that you do not want to put the book down! The pacing is set to its own rhythm as each chapter unfolds a new piece of either Patricia or Kalden’s lives, taking us one step closer to understanding who they were as adults. The novel is also broken into two distinctive parts, where the latter of the two is the summation of the whole.
A Note of Appreciation on behalf of the writing style of Ms. Harris:
This is the second novel I have read on behalf of Ms. Harris, and it is her début novel! I am thankful that I have had the honour to read two of her novels now, as her writing style within the heart of the narrative is fully conjoined, as she is a writer who puts her heart into her pen. She writes her heart out, and I will always appreciate that style, as it mirrors my own. I even appreciate the fact that she can move and shift through locations, time sequences, and elements of distinction between where her characters and story are set alive. She has the ability to become a chameleon as she writes one story to the next. This is a quality that is appreciated because she gives us such an intense view of her worlds and characters, with a pulse on who they are and how they lived that each story becomes an experience your willingly thankful to have had afterwards.
*NEWSFLASH* : Each Saturday henceforth onward from here in July shall feature a new ChocLit book review! For the updated schedule, please visit my Bookish Events page! The next novel I will be reading & sharing my thoughts on will be “Flight to Coorah Creek” by Janet Gover!
For those who are unware of #ChocLitSaturdays, the chat, we meet regular @ 11am EST / 4pm London! I created the chat to encourage new readers to discover not only the ChocLit novels I am showcasing & reading through my blog feature of the same name, but to help draw a close knit group of Romance booklovers, writers, and appreciators together for an hour of solid friendship and wicked sweet conversation!
All are welcome to attend! Tweet me or leave a comment in this thread for further details!
{SOURCES: Author photograph, Author Biography, Book Synopsis, and Book Cover were provided by ChocLitUK and were used by permission. Book Review badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Jorie Loves A Story badge created by Ravven with edits by Jorie in FotoFlexer. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination.}
I was selected to be a stop on “A Star for Mrs. Blake” Virtual Book Tour, hosted by TLC Book Tours in which I received a complimentary ARC direct from the publisher Alfred A. Knopf in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Inspired to Read:
Apparently, 1929 was far more historic than I ever imagined possible!! My own family went through the collapse of the market, the death of my great grandmother’s beloved husband and the Depression, yet sadly few of the stories of that era were passed down! This is a unique chance for me to not only learn more about the late 20s, but to see how the lives of the mothers of fallen soldiers were knit together! Its a beautiful arc of a storyline! I am especially keen on the lives of military families, as not only are we honoured to have servicemen and women serve our country with such sacrificial hearts, but I have had members of my own family serve in different generations. Including a civilian grandfather, a Navy grandfather who went through Normandy & Japan, as well as a USO dancing & singing Aunt who kept the liveliness and joy alive and well on the dance floor! The endurance of great loss and the sympathies of those we may never know the full story of, knows no bounds. We are always blessed with a mirth of grace in acknowledging those who have walked before us and those who gave more than most. We are indebted to all who serve in the name of peace and goodwill.
There is a beautiful testament of Ms. Smith’s approach on writing on her website, whereupon she endeavours to explain to readers the motivation and the inspiration behind creating the stories you find in not only her novels, but all novels in which the writer left a piece of themselves behind!
I volunteer to give back to our deployed servicemen and women each chance I can, as a small measure of gratitude for how blessed I am for their service. I hope to extend my abilities to allow more men and women of the armed services know how loved and honoured they are by the families who might not have active heroes in their lives, but who cherish the ability to lift the spirits of those who do!
World War I | Mums of the Fallen Soldiers:
I smiled inwardly seeing the setting of Cora Blake’s story was set on an isolating island off the Coast of Maine! I instinctively knew a bit about what I would be finding inside as her story would be laid bare for all of us to absorb, resonate internally, and appreciate on such a deep level of sincerity. Mrs. Blake might be a fictional character in a story which draws a breath of clarity and light on living American Gold Star Mothers; but she is as real to me as though she were able to draw breath! Her determined spirit of plucky spunk doesn’t surprise me being she’s a Mainer! In Maine, there is a living code of not only seeking to appreciate life as its being lived, but to live well with what you have, and find the everyday joys to not only sustain you but to carry you forward through the adversities life is surely going to bring! I was most delighted in seeing the true “Maine spirit” threaded throughout the opening chapters, as Smith allows us this curious window of understanding Mainers from a singular focus of their lives turnt inward and reflective.
They not only make do and make good on what they have on hand, they have this determination inside their bones to not allow the worst of what life can bring to them hold them down for very long. I think it was the perfect metaphor of spirit to launch a story of the insurmountable strength it takes for all mothers of fallen soldiers to emerge out of the swallows of grief and realise that they not only have a heap of self-worth to give back to others’ but they can find honour and respect for their fallen children in the eyes of those of us who support them from afar. I am ever so thankful tonight to find that the organisation which led the World War I mothers to France to visit their sons graves is still very active in present day! What greater blessing than to be surrounded by other mothers who can directly understand the loss and the pain of having a child pass on from this world at such a young age. Grief is better when shared as it ebbs away the darkness and allows the light to be reflected back in. Memories which were once difficult to process and accept, I would imagine start to bubble back to life, drawing smiles and fierce hugs from all who listen. Everyone has a story to share, because each of us is writing our stories each day we live. We must not allow those stories of the soldiers become forgotten in the annals of time.
I am hopeful as this book gains momentum and exposure, it will alight into the hands of all the Mums who have given the greatest gift: their sons and daughters who elected to fight for our rights of freedom. They walked through their children’s service, fully equal to the emotions and the experiences, as Mums are always instinctively connected to their children. Let us give gratitude to their strength, their courage, and their ability to find each other to help others carry-on when they felt their grief would overtake their beings. Let us remember to shine our internal light on those who feel as though we are not even aware of their loss.
My Review of A Star for Mrs. Blake:
A Star for Mrs. Blake opens by introducing you to Mrs. Cora Blake, the mother of a soldier who died during World War I in France. She’s on the brink of having to decide what is the best resting place for her son,… France or America!? The resounding response deep within her is to allow him the freedom of choosing to lay to rest in the country and battlefield where he was attempting to keep everyone’s liberties and freedoms intact. He chose to be brave and to allow courage to help him forge through all doubt in order to serve in a war he may not survive. His Mum, Mrs. Blake is the cornerstone character who acts as a catalyst who brings everyone else together in her group of ‘pilgrims’ sponsored by the US government to give them a first class tour of Paris as well as the French countryside. It is through this hodgepodge group of women she develops a spontaneous sisterhood bond.
Mrs. Russell the proud Southern mama who doesn’t trust people easily, Kate the bold Irishwoman with the brooding family, and Minnie the Jewish lady who walked with a proud countenance. Then, there was the benefactor of the rail-line which brought Cora into Boston down from Bangor, Mrs. Olsen! Each of the women had a colourful family life as much as experiences to fill your ear over a hearty cuppa tea! The sad part is prior to boarding the ship setting sail for France, Mrs. Russell was mistaken for another Mrs. Russell and was forced to switch ships. Each of the mothers start to re-live different memories of their children, and of the prejudices they might have faced in life. The memories start to trigger and set-off moments of high-octane drama which starts to affect the tone of the trip. I knew at some point there would be a shift in the emotional keel, but some of the shiftings were brought on by secondary characters or bystanders.
In the backdrop, you have the men assigned to the whole affair itself, the military overseers who are worried the mothers and widows might not be able to handle the overseas crossing much less the rigors of the experience itself! I found the back-story of the planners to be a bit hysterical, as if a mother could find the courage to bury their sons ahead of their living years exulted, I do believe they had the strength necessary to carry them across the North Atlantic! Sometimes I think certain men do not realise how much women have to constantly dig in their heels and do things they may not foresee where their internal strength arises from but they can draw on it as though it is a life-force of its own.
As with most journeys that we find ourselves taking in life, it’s very rarely the destination which is the key component of our trip. As these women journey back to say a final farewell to their sons, it’s what they find inside themselves and in each other that has more of an effect on them personally. They weren’t expecting to live half a lifetime in their wanderings through France, but it’s within those wanderings greater truths started to emerge and come into the light. This is a story for anyone who has been touched by war and loss. For giving a voice to those who anguish over the tragedy as much as try to make peace with the dead. There are moments inside the story where Smith doesn’t shy away from the harsher realities each of her characters need to face head-on. She allows the reader to take the story as far as they are willing to go.
Style of Ms. Smith’s writing:
Smith is a screenwriter in her other life by day, where she knits together stories set to an entirely different pace than her mysteries of Ana Grey! She has the blessing of studying the craft of writing through different facets of integrity and design. Using a sharp lens of carving out the bits and bobbles of the human heart as she endears to convey the poetic narratives which bring A Star for Mrs. Blake fully to life! She allures you with the gentle gliding hand of walking alongside Mrs. Blake as she goes about her everyday joys and obstacles. You feel ‘inserted’ into her life as though you’ve become a participant rather than a mere observer, and for this, I credit to the styling of story-telling in which Smith has etched into the novel. This is one aspect of telling stories by screen and by motion pictures I can attest to having a deep appreciation and preference of passion! Throughout different blog posts I have alluded to my passion for motion pictures, as much as how my tweets of late (the past nine weeks!) have reinstated this fact quite keenly! There is the ability for a viewer to feel as though they have abandoned their own living reality and exchanged it out to live inside the shoes of a character they have only just become acquainted with… compelled to see, hear, feel, and visionalise everything the character is going through. In this way, motion pictures and novels are entwined together, because it’s the heart of a solidly constructed narrative in spilt words on a page that can wring out such a hearty connection to the reader as the screenwriter can bleed out our emotions by how the story evolves through the actors who perform.
A Star for Mrs. Blake is an uplifting narrative on how even during our greatest losses, we can overtake our fears and re-discover hidden joys in a life we felt we could never again be surprised with a smile of gladness! She even thought to include the adage of ‘going up to Portland’ rather than ‘down’ as Mainers give directions by road via the nautical ques of the sea! In direct reference to a passage which explains how you go ‘up’ in order to ‘go’ down in a southerly direction!
Inspired to Share:
To bring forward the extraordinary lives of those who serve and sacrifice and of whom are brought to the forefront of our minds throughout A Star for Mrs. Blake. This is a film of interviews and memories stitched together by heart and soul of the Mums who have lost their sons and daughters. They shine such a powerful light on the human condition towards enduring the unfathomable in order to see the light of the approachable. Those mothers who have found the American Gold Stars group, I can only imagine found new footing in being able to light small candles towards recognition of their children’s achievements as well as stirring a social conscience towards acceptance that for each battle we fight, there are losses who deserve to be known and held in thought. Secured in our resolute resolve to not merely carry-on but to live onwards through the dedicated service of those we shall never meet.
{SOURCES: Cover art of “A Star for Mrs. Blake” as well as April Smith’s photograph, and the logo badge for TLC Book Tours were all provided by TLC Book Tours and used with permission. The clip of the documentary “They Shall Live” and the “American Gold Star Mothers” video had either URL share links or coding which made it possible to embed this media portal to this post, and I thank them for the opportunity to share more about this novel and the author who penned it. Blog tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination.}
Acquired Book By: I was selected to be a stop on “The Prayer Box” Virtual Book Tour, hosted by JKS Communications Literary Publicity Firm. I received a complimentary copy of “The Prayer Box” in exchange for an honest review by the publisher Tyndale House Publishers. The book releases on 1st September 2013. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein. This marks my first stop as a Tour Host for JKS Communications!
Partial Author Biography {quoted from her press kit}
Lisa Wingate is a magazine columnist, speaker, and the author of twenty mainstream fiction novels, including the national bestseller Tending Roses, now in its nineteenth printing from Penguin Putnam.
She is a seven-time ACFW Carol Award nominee, a Christy Award nominee, an Oklahoma Book Award finalist, and two-time Carol Award winner. Her novel Blue Moon Bay was a Booklist Top Ten of 2012 pick. Recently the group Americans for More Civility, a kindness watchdog organisation, selected Lisa along with Bill Ford, Camille Cosby, and six others, as recipients of the National Civics Award, which celebrates public figures who work to promote greater kindness and civility in American life.
Lisa lives on a ranch in Texas, where she spoils the livestock, raises boys, and teaches Sunday school to high school seniors. She was inspired to become a writer by a first-grade teacher who said she expected to see Lisa’s name in a magazine one day.
Lisa also entertained childhood dreams of being an Olympic gymnast and winning the National Finals Rodeo but was stalled by the inability to do a backflip on the balance beam and parents who couldn’t finance a rodeo career. She was lucky enough to marry into a big family of cowboys and Southern storytellers who would inspire any lover of tall tales and interesting yet profound characters. She is a full-time writer and pens inspirational fiction for both the general and Christian markets. Of all the things she loves about her job, she loves connecting with people, but real and imaginary, the most.
On how I know Lisa Wingate: I discovered Southern Belle View Daily in early 2013, and over the months have come to appreciate conversing with all the Belles, including Lisa Wingate. I am disclosing this, to assure you that I can formulate an honest opinion, even though I have interacted with her through her blog, and won a book through a contest of hers in the past. I treat each book as a ‘new experience’, whether I personally know the author OR whether I am reading a book by them for the first time. I can attest that due to circumstances, I haven’t had the chance to read the aforementioned book I won, nor have I had the pleasure of ever reading a book by Ms. Wingate previously.
I still remember when she was first describing this book on “the Porch”, as Southern Belle View is most readily known, and I instinctively knew it would have the substance of a story that I would be drawn to read. I applaud strong characters who embark on a journey, whether internal, spiritual, or in life. Pieces of the premise reminded me a bit of a Hallmark Christmas film I tend to see during the holidays, starring Richard Thomas, “The Christmas Box”. I love when characters are set up to be in a place they are not intending to stay for a long period of time, yet the place they find themselves is the very place a transformation can occur. That is always powerful to read or watch, because there is such a hearty breath of living truth to the stories! Each of us are walking through life as best we can, growing and learning as we move forward, and never quite knowing when God has an alternative course in mind to restore something to us that has become lost or hidden from view.
[Southern Belle View Daily: author group blog featuring: Lisa Wingate, Julie Cantrell, Beth Webb Hart, Rachel Hauck, and Shellie Rushing Tomlinson]
Authors Note on Prayer Boxing:
Dear Reader,
This is how The Prayer Box came to be: by accident, if you believe in accidents. I glanced across the room one day, saw the small prayer box that had been given to me as a gift, and a story began to spin through my mind. What if that box contained many prayers accumulated over time? What if there were dozens of boxes? What if they contained the prayers of a lifetime?
What could more fully tell the truth about a person than words written to God in solitude? Of course, Iola would say those random questions popped into my mind – and The Prayer Box story itself – weren’t accidents at all. She would say it was divine providence. Something that was meant to be.
I believe divine providence has brought this story into your hands, as well. I hope you enjoyed the journey through Iola’s prayer boxes as much as I did. If the journey is still ahead of you, I hope it takes you to far-off places… and into inner spaces, as well. More than that, I hope it will inspire you to think about keeping a prayer box of your own and maybe giving one to somebody else.
The little prayer box that was given to me was by no means unique. I’d heard of prayer boxes, and I knew what they were for. They’re either keeping places for favourite Scriptures, or they’re similar to a prayer journal, only more flexible. Any scrap of paper will do, anywhere, any time of the day or night. The important part, in a world of fractured thoughts, hurried moments, and scattershot prayers, is to take the time to think through, to write down, to clarify in your own mind the things you’re asking for, the things you’re grateful for, the things you’re troubled about, the hopes you’ve been nurturing.
And then?
Put them in the box and . . .
Let. Them. Go.
That’s what trust is. It’s letting go of the worry. It’s the way of peace and also the way of God. It’s such a hard road to travel for people like me, who worry. When I’m writing a story, I control the whole universe. In life . . . not so much. Actually, not at all. Things happen that I hadn’t anticipated and wouldn’t choose and can’t change. That’s the tough part.
Closing the lid on a prayer box is symbolic of so many things. When we give a prayer over to God, it’s supposed to be in God’s hands after that. I think that’s what Sister Marguerite was trying to teach Iola when she gave her that very first prayer box. Life is, so often, beyond our control, just as it was for that little ten-year-old girl, far from home. I like to imagine that Sister Marguerite decorated that box herself, prepared it with young Iola in mind, don’t you?
After studying more about prayer boxes and using them myself, I’m surprised we don’t do this more often. Prayer boxes have a long-standing tradition, both among early Christians and among Jewish families. Jews and early Christians often wore small leather or carved bone boxes on the body. These phylacteries or tefillin were a means of keeping Scripture close to the wearer. Large boxes, called mezuzah cases are still affixed to the doorposts of Jewish homes today.
It’s a beautiful tradition, when you think about it, to surround our coming in and going out with a brush with God. It’s also a reminder, as family members pass by, to pray and to trust that our prayers are being heard. That’s one of my favourite reasons for keeping a prayer box inside the home, as well, or for giving one as a gift. When you see the box, you’re reminded that things are supposed to go in it. In other words, the prayer box isn’t meant to gather dust; it’s meant to inspire a habit. That’s the real idea behind making a prayer box attractive – and the reason I think Iola must have decorated so many of hers. I imagined that, as each year came, she peppered a box that represented her life at the time, and then, she kept the box out where she would see it and be reminded that her Father was waiting to hear from her.
I wonder if Iola ever gave prayer boxes as gifts, just as that first box was given to her. Maybe that’s what she did with some of those many glass boxes she purchased from Sandy’s Seashell Shop. Do you think so? What better way to bind a family, help a friend struggle through an illness, see a just-married couple start off right, celebrate a tiny new life just born, send a graduate off into the world, than to give a prayer box and an explanation of what it’s for? The box can be something you buy premade or something you decorate yourself. If you’re hand-decorating it, why not personalise it with photos or favourite Scriptures?
Are you inspired to consider spreading the tradition of prayer boxing yet? I hope so. I could go on and on with ideas and stories here, but that’s another book in itself. If you’d like to learn more about how to use prayer boxes in your church, your study group, your family, your ministry, your community, or as gifts, drop by www.LisaWingate.com for more information about prayer boxes, some examples, sample notes to include with prayer box gifts, and ideas for making, using, and giving them.
My wish for you is that, in this age-old tradition, you and others will find what Tandi found when she entered Iola’s blue room in her dream. May the glorious light fill you and shine upon you and draw you ever closer.
Read An Excerpt of the Novel & my Favourite Passages therein:
On Lisa Wingate’s website, Chapter One of “The Prayer Box” is featured, which is where you start to realise the breadth of Ms. Wingate’s poetic voice that lights up the narrative prose as the opening scenes of The Prayer Box start to unfold.
The opening of chapter one is exactly how I draw back a breath of salt air into my being when I think of my respite whilst reading “The Prayer Box”: {page 1}
When trouble blows in, my mind always reaches for a single, perfect day in Rodanthe. The memory falls over me like a blanket, a worn quilt of sand and sky, the fibers washed soft with time. I wrap it around myself, picture the house along the shore, its bones bare to the wind and the sun, the wooden shingles clinging loosely, sliding to the ground now and then, like scales from some mystical sea creature washed ashore.
And, further into the story these passages have stayed with me: {pages 174 & 230}
What does a lighthouse do? I ask myself. It never moves. It cannot hike up its rocky skirt and dash into the ocean to rescue a foundering ship. It cannot calm the waters or clear the shoals. It can only cast light into the darkness. It can only point the way. Yet, through one lighthouse, you guide many ships. Show this old lighthouse the way.
You are not a God of endless harbors. Harbors are for stagnant sails and barnacled wood, but the sea… the sea is fresh rain and cleansing breeze and sleek sails. You are a God of winds and tides. Of journeys and storms and navigation by stars and faith. You send the ships forth to serve their purpose, but you do not send them forth alone, for the sea is yours, as well.
As well as one singular truth all parents try to get their children to understand: {page 274}
Hold the box up to the light,… See what happens to the cracks. Some of the hardest things you go through will teach you the most. Don’t let other people tell you who to be, Zoey. You are loved just the way you are.
As much as this passage reminded me of my own yearnings when losing someone I loved dearly: {page 341}
Forgive me, Father , for asking for another day yet, and another beyond that, when this one is so very beautiful. We, in our humanness, cannot help but foolishly desire eternity in this life.
Passages taken from “The Prayer Box” by Lisa Wingate. Copyright 2013 by Lisa Wingate. Used by permission by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. As stated on their Permissions page, up to 500 words can be used for non-commerical purposes; and I am under that count at 291.
View Ms. Wingate’s Pin(terest) Board of Inspiration for The Prayer Box, which also features the e-novella prequel The Seaglass Sisters. This board provides a way to see the nibblements of the Outer Banks, North Carolina, combined with an author’s perspective of positive affirmations, sea glass jewelry, and snippets of the essences of what these two stories will reveal. On 11th of August, via Southern Belle View Daily, she shared a recipe worthy of the Carolina coastline, which has a tie-in to The Prayer Box and its prequel, The Seaglass Sisters. It set the course, for all the Belles to share wickedly smashing shrimp and crab delicacies!
On 26th of August 2013, via Southern Belle View Daily, she revealed the bounty of blessings the project “The Sisterhood of the Travelling Book” encompassed whilst readers throughout the country shared copies of The Prayer Box and became as wrapped up in the soothing legacy of Ms. Iola Anne Poole! I couldn’t help but leave a note of gratitude on that posting, as I had only mere minutes ahead of reading that post finished the very last chapter, myself! My heart was a thankful one, for having discovered this book tour and having requested to be a part of it in time to participate! I noticed that she had posted another update on the travelling books on 21 July 2013; as well as an earlier glimpse into the story, about how to re-affirm and re-attach ourselves to our younger selves, back in April. A post that I remember like it was yesterday, yet it was first read in Spring!
You see, I have this sense about the books that I receive by way of book contests, book tours, First Impressions selections, or even, books that are gifted to me, or even when a hold at the library comes through,.. there are singular moments when certain books {such as The Prayer Box}, that reach you at just the right moment your meant to read the story contained within its pages. The stories I read tend to align with a knowing murmur of something I am either facing in my own life, a contemplation on life itself, or even, a wondering curiosity of a life unknown to me yet causes a stir for me to uncover and get to know properly. There are stories that alight in our lives at just the right moment, for whichever reason, and I am thankful to recognise their arrivals as more than a passing fancy or coincidence.
The Prayer Box arrived ahead of my undertaking of my first read-a-thon {Bout of Books, 8.0}, which I contemplated whether or naught, I ought to read it ahead of the event; apparently, my hesitation had a reason beyond the knowledge of what I knew then! You see, I had to bow out of the read-a-thon on Day Six, one day short of completion, due to a bad case of food poisoning and a severe migraine! This is the blindingly horrid migraine, that doesn’t allow yourself to function properly, as waves of nausea hit you with such a strong force, its like the salt-sprayed houses that dot the Outer Banks, wondering if their prepared for their next storm, yet unwilling to yield that its too strong to overcome! I ducked away completely to ride out the first day and night, as I mentioned just how miserable that first day was on my Day Six recollection post. When I emerged, I had the blessings of a natural migraine medicine to help attack the throbbing, as I longed to sit in my comfy chair and soak myself into the Outer Banks, and the story I was eager to meet that Ms. Wingate had penned. Its interesting how quickly you can shift gears, how quickly it is to realise one goal you had a week ago now paled in view, for another one that felt more important somehow. As if you had reached this insular place for a reason. With a heavy heart, a resolute constitution, and a wearing migraine that had struck me as one to stay for the long haul, I willed myself to open The Prayer Box.
Hours melted away before I even realised that my eyes were leaden down with exhaustion, and that there was a lingering dull ache where the throbbing had been earlier. I dozed off a few times before continuing on into the story of Tandi Jo and Iola Poole, whose lifepaths were crossing into each other by such extraordinary circumstances that I felt pulled into their living sphere of uncertainty laced with hope, and a resounding calming balm of the sea-salted air that a setting like the Outer Banks can provide. I nearly felt the salt on my tongue, as that is how real it felt as though I had transported myself directly into the setting! And, I knew, after that first day I spent in Fairhope and Hatteras,… there was an undercurrent of a reason I was meant to read this book, right here, and right now.
The full measure of how impactful this book was on me, falls into a personal realm, which I will not fully disclose through public eyes. To say that it was hard to summarise my internal thoughts and feelings on a book, that came into my hands at such a pivotal moment in my life, was quite a difficult undertaking! There are so many key phrases and paragraphs that I felt were speaking directly into my heart and my soul as I read this story, that it (the book) became very personal to me. The experience of reading The Prayer Box had a very powerful effect on me personally, for which I will forevermore feel gratitude to the author for penning a story that can ignite such a powerful tug of heartstrings to such a diverse readership such as the one she has accumulated.
Soaking into the world of “The Prayer Box”, I discovered something rather extraordinary: This world was quite familiar to our own, as it takes place in the modern world, straight-out of our national weather updates on the wrecking numbness that hurricanes can wreck on any seacoast they take into their sails to plunder! Ever since the 2004-5 through 2012 storm seasons, I daresay, no one from the Gulf Coast straight through to the Jersey Shore will ever look at a hurricane in quite the same way again! When you’ve lived your life on a peninsula, storm battered and absolved of tragedy depending on the year and which way the storms blow ashore, you dig into your toes a bit at the mere mention of a ‘storm season’ on approachment! The Outer Banks were always in the back of my mind as a place I wanted to visit, yet ever so trepidaciously proposed as I knew what that particular slice of Carolina shore was used to surviving! Including the sunken remains of ships long since forgotten by most who are not keen on nautical history.
I have a cursory knowledge of the area, but what I felt and sensed as I read into Ms. Wingate’s words, were the setting of the place that beckons to those who call the Outer Banks home. There is an other worldly precipitation, a sense of belonging and longing, etched by the sea and the sands, where time itself steps back and folds in on itself. A place where tourists might bring in the commerce, but its a community set apart from its contemporary counterparts, owning to its own rhythm and pace. Its not for everyone, mind you, as there is a lulling of serenity stitched into the counterbalances. Its a place to re-define who you are and re-invent who you want to be. Surrounded by the kind patience of people you’ve only just met, who know you’re on a journey without ever asking you the details of what led you to where you currently are. There are very few places like this left in our modern world of technologic craziness. Places where the strength and integrity of interlocking your life with those you will soon call neighbours still has importance and mirth.
As I settled into the atmosphere of The Prayer Box, I knew I was setting into a place I would one day hope to find for myself. Ms. Wingate is a lyricist in her prose, as her words ebb you into Fairhope and Hatteras Village, as smooth as dew on honeysuckle. She envelopes you into the time slips, edging out of Tandi’s reality and slipping back into the life of Iola, as simple as picking up a discarded and hidden letter, meant for the one who would read the words to unlock the manifold puzzle of her life through a life lived before her. The words etch this entire world into your heart, and the pulse of the sea, and the towne make you eager to elongate your stay long past the last chapter’s fold.
Her inclusion of noting the spirituality of perspective seen vividly in seashells, sea glass, and driftwood, pieces of life and time tossed and intermixed together on a shore of a beach that may not even have a name, is a key to how magical this setting is to ebb away any doubts about how discarded and alone we all may feel at one point or another. There are elements of truth hidden in plain sight for each of us to pick up, collect, and cherish. Fragments of a living whole and an interconnected bond that we share as we walk through our lives, blessed to interact with the natural world, and find remnants of our own faith in ordinary objects that yield extraordinary truths.
Her use of secondary characters to paint the inner and outer landscape of Tandi Jo’s turmoil is a writer with a deft hand to interweave the undercurrents of a woman caught in a sea of upheaval. For me, the use of the mysterious one-eared cat is the measure of how much uncertainty and mystery is in each of our lives. There are always a lilting of the unknown, of things yet revealed to us, that keep us at bay from the darkness, if we choose to walk in the footsteps of the light, but evenso, there are times where the unknown feels ominous and oppressive. Whereas if we give into our human-felt fears, we might dip into unwanted waters. The cat mixes the doubts, the fears, and the uncertainty of not always knowing the full scope of what is happening in our lives with the pleasure of unexpected company and a sliver of joy. Cats have notoriously always been noted as being able to walk and see through the veils of our time here and into the next realms. The fact that this particular cat is midnight-coal black and quirkily more elusive than most, paints the picture of how we truly never are fully aware of everything that is going on.
The unassuming science teacher, who dresses as if humourously engaged in a perpetual private joke, and readily engages children into to the classroom outside the walls of school, makes me smile in knowing there are still good teachers out there who care about teaching and lighting a young mind up with the wonders of what is just outside our own doors. His gentle grace in acceptance and understanding, long since gained from his own tragic circumstances, is a harbour in Tandi Jo’s second beginning at living a life she was only just starting to understand how to thrive in. Paul is the type of man we all hope to meet and find ourselves interlaced with because his calm goodwill enlarges our ability to draw close towards the fissures of love.
And, where pray tell would Tandi Jo, Zoey, and JT be without the incorrigible inclusions of Brother Guilbeau and Sandy {of Sandy’s Seashell Shop}!? I didn’t focus as much on Tandi’s children {Zoey, the unhappy fourteen year old and JT the reclusive nine year old}, but through the unexpected gifts of their new neighbours and community members, all three of the residents of Iola Anne Poole’s rental cottage {er, bungalow! I can hear Brother Guilbeau correcting me as he walks through the meadow grass from the church!} go through a transformative phase. They each peel away slowly from the protective shell they came into towne with and eased into their more authentic selves one day at a time.
The fusion of long-forgotten tradition with a touch of enlightenment for the modern world: Prayer boxing has a rather long history from what I have been able to ascertain from working on this lovely review!! I hadn’t quite realised how deep into history the idea of writing down our innermost thoughts and prayers to our Heavenly Father would run, but I knew one thing: as surely as the moon and the sun, this is one of the ways man has suspended himself in time. Letters are encapsolants of our lives wound together by the words and phrases we each choose to illuminate our worlds. We each find different ways of expressing ourselves, inasmuch as the words we choose to convey our innermost desires, hopes, dreams, fears, stresses, and fallacies. When you take the time to commit the prayer to paper, it fuses itself into a new form, where its not merely a whispered prayer held silent between your mind and God’s ears, but rather a fusion of conversation intermixed with prayer, that takes on its own breath of life. You tend to expand your thoughts as you write, as the mere writing the words for a prayer box letter is the expulsion of a well come undone, running over without a cork to catch the current of water sprung forth!
To watch the interplay between reading Iola’s long-lived life play out through her letters, tolled closely to mind, one of the last books I’ve read which was Letters from Skye. Being a correspondent myself, I can attest that we tend to share our most intimate secrets and dreams spoken into the space between where our words lift out of our hearts and cast down onto the paper where pen or ink encase them. Seeing Tandi Jo’s entire being shift and flow and evolve in her understanding of life on the purist of levels, as one letter led her to another, until the entire 81 boxes spilt forth a living testament of one woman’s chosen path of how to live gave her the courage to seek out a new life for herself, and her children is beyond miraculous. Sometimes I think, letters are an everyday miracle. The words that the letter writer chooses to etch into the paragraphs and lines, sometimes has a way of resounding the truth of what the receiver needs to hear. Perhaps even, at a time the letter was first composed, the importance of what was said was not even known. This is true in real life as much as it in the reality of Tandi Jo and Iola Anne Poole.
We are all pebbles cast into a sea, finding each other when our paths are not even known to cross. I smile on this analogy as much as Chinese wisdom of understanding the red thread that connects us, heart and soul.
My Review of The Prayer Box:
As butterflies alight in our lives at the moment we need a reassurance of knowing someone is listening to us as we cast our thoughts heavenward whilst walking out in nature, so too, do our heartfelt prayers sometimes need a guiding force to help us understand our path in this world. Prayers are harder to give assurance towards, as they’re singularly our individualistic communication with God. Its one of the rare moments, where we are entirely alone and yet not alone at the same time. Our human nature is as such as we thrive more on communicating where we’re a component of two, rather than a solitary seeker of one. Yet. By casting these whisperments of prayer, fueled and stitched with heart, hope, and courage onto the surface of paper, inked and penned with our thoughts, we are stepping towards a new level of communication. One that allows us the tangible connection we seek. And, if we find a way to leave behind these thoughts, and memories of our lives as they were lived, without fear of judgement or criticism, to lend themselves a calming balm to someone down the road into the future, perhaps then, the circle is nearly complete, as we impart our experiences to another who needs a map to sort out their own path.
Tandi Jo is a girl not yet a grown woman in her self-image view of her current situation. She has issues with shedding the past hurts and issues she has been dealt since being forced to separate from her loving grandparents who taught and guided her when she was younger. Growing up in foster care, one placement after another, she was never taught how to trust much less how to acknowledge the difference between love and infatuation. She’s betwixt a heady situation that either could harden her more than she is, or enable her to move forward in a way that would finally shed the skins of the past, like the caterpillar who becomes the butterfly. Her entire time in the Outer Banks inside The Prayer Box, is a cocooning lesson in how to achieve true success and a living creed.
Iola Anne is a humble child of God whose faith in the everyday spillings of ‘grace’ as it trickles out into the lives of those who live around her, walks her faith in a quiet testament of philanthropy. Her life is marred and marked by the times she was bourne and raised, having come into this life at the age of servants and a class in life where the colour of your skin could hold you back. Her unexpected departure from her family home, hinged her spiritual life to her living lifepath. She learnt that a simple act of grace had more weight than any other thing she could ever hope to give. Little ripples of unknown kindnesses over a lifetime of giving back to a community she felt rooted into set the stage for one last gift to be opened.
There is more to living than existing, especially when you have two children under wing who need your guidance and your security. What I appreciated the most from the story, is the journey Tandi takes towards redemption and self-enlightenment. She truly is wrapped around the tender arms of the past, on a path towards understanding how to let go and let be, whilst finding that true friendship isn’t something that you have to force into your life. Sometimes, it walks in whilst your not expecting to find it. Sometimes life truly takes you to where you need to be in order to heal from the inside out. And, if returning to the one place where as a young girl Tandi felt the most secure and loved, then how can that not lead to her more authentic self!?
On how being of service to others is as natural to me as drawing a breath of air:
Ever since I was a young girl, there has been a measure of kindness etched into my veins. It started even before I can draw a date to mind, whereupon my parents and I would give away food, clothes, toys, or other necessities to those in need. When I was a young girl, I gave my outgrown clothes to a young girl at my church. She always felt special as she felt she had inherited a piece of my closet! She made me blush a bit in hearing those words of affection, but just knowing that the clothes were now loved by another was enough to make me know I had made the right choice. Its not always easy to decide what to give or know what gift is best for each situation, person, or need that your trying to fill. As I grew, those choices become compounded by local, state, national, and global calls for help. Over the past few years, I have been giving back to deployed soldiers and chaplains through Soldiers’ Angels, as I was called as a young girl to write letters, yet never knew how to fill a page worth sending! I am thankful, that 20+ years later, I would not be as gun-shy to write a letter, but be able to send little care packages of hope and faith to those who are deployed so very far away from home.
In the Spring of 2013, my Mum stumbled across two national knitting charity calls for knitters to send in 8×8 squares to form a love blanket for the victims of the Boston Bombings. This was the first time we had the opportunity to reach out on such a national level to impact the lives of those we had been holding close in thought and prayer. To not only overcome the tragedy of that day, but to rise up again, and find peace in living. On a local level this year, we were given the chance to knit in tandem six prayer shawls before the Winter holidays set in. The patterns of which were up to us to find and the yarn was provided by donations. As each stitch we knit is met by the needles that wind the patterns into graceful lines, we silently impart our prayers. These are only a few examples I am choosing to share, as the willingness to give and to serve others has become a part of my life. There are many more ways in which I would love to give one day, and I pray that I am given the opportunities to always strive towards making someone’s day or life a bit better and enriched by a kindness they were not expecting to receive. I gain a boomerang of love back each time I set my own affairs aside and focus on someone who needs what I can give.
I could directly relate to Iola Anne Poole, who hesitated in life to allow others to know what she was up too, and how much she cared about her ‘charges’, as I would refer to them as I read her story. There is something to be said that the art of giving needs no attribution, no sign of gratitude, no recognition of any kind, because the heart of the giver always wants to uplift the heart of the receiver. For this I know to be true, because it is a life that I am already living.
Jorie Loves A Story : Undertakes the Project of the Prayer Box
Inspired by the premise of the book, Jorie, her Mum {Bairbre}, and her Da decided to undertake the project of setting up a Prayer Box! She originally was going to start off by altering an office supply store’s ‘box’ for 6×9 envelopes, decorating it to reflect an introspective reflection of what the pieces and fragments of paper might reveal once their words were either spoken OR read. A project that one family chose to participate in, as an inwards journey towards acknowledging the Light that is always readily near-to-us, if we take a moment to be mindful of where we are and how we are living. However, in lieu of noticing that the prayer letters she, her Mum, & Da were composing were quite longer in length than she originally thought they would take them, a second plan materialised!! To use an Angel motif hat box to use as her family’s first prayer box!! In this way, it wouldn’t matter if their prayer letters were written by hand or composed on a computer, whichever way their hearts poured out onto the page, this prayer box could handle it!!
They started off by selecting to read passages out of: “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Devotional Stories for Tough Times: 101 Daily Devotions to Inspire & Support You in Times of Need” by Susan M. Heim & Karen C. Talcott, which Jorie won through a bookaway contest hosted by The Christian Fiction Historical Society, in April 2013. She received the book directly from an author [Marilyn Turk] , {without an obligation to post a review}, who is one of the featured writers who shared a story that speaks about the path God chooses to place us on that might run counter-current to the one we feel we are meant to walk ourselves. We read aloud Ms. Turk’s story and prayer settling into the mindset of the Prayer Box Project, aligning our thoughts and hearts towards an inward state of reflective pause, before each heading off to write their first prayer letter!
This is how they continued to begin each evening for the three weeks leading up to “The Prayer Box” release day!! After concluding dinner, the read-aloud became a calming balm and a way to not only share the stories inside a book geared towards anyone going through economic hardships but to draw an inner peace in knowing that there is a hand in the mix who is forevermore guiding us, helping us see what we feel we’re blind to seeing, and inspiring us to step forward each day with a renewed sense of Hope and Light.
Three weeks of Prayer Boxing has revealed: For Jorie, to not always be consumed by the days that tick off the clock where she hasn’t been able to write down her heart’s voiced prayers, but rather, to focus on the days where her mind and heart are conjoined in unison! Those are the days to write her prayer box letters, because the everyday for her, is generally lit with too much activity or stress, to lay a proper pause on what she wants to say or lay bare to give over to another who is better equipped to wrap his hands around the situation! Therefore, during the days she wasn’t able to write the letters, she found herself curled into a more focused prayer life, where her words were lifted silently rather than through text. The calming ebbing of uplifting stories of trial and tribulation through the devotional book set the pacing she found herself needing to serve as an anchor.
In full conclusion, the prayer box project is still underway in her family, because like life, it takes time to sort out the rhythm and pace that is best for the person who is participating. Everyone arrives at the door in their own unique way and in their own timing. The prayer box will continue to be filt with letters, both typed and hand-written, as whomever writes the letter will use the best method for them, as its not the vessel the words are on that matters, but rather, the imparting of the message to the paper, and the experience the writer achieved whilst composing it.
On 4 August 2013, Ms. Wingate wrote a spotlight post on Southern Belle View Daily, featuring a visual tutorial on how to construct a prayer box by hand using everyday objects, materials, and inspirations!
Questions I drew to mind, I wished I could have asked Lisa Wingate:
Ms. Wingate, throughout the hours you have spent pouring your innermost thoughts and whisperments of prayers into your own personal prayer boxes, what would you say was the most beneficial part of the experience? What draws you back to write more notes?
Ms. Wingate have you ever given away a prayer box where the receiver came back and said how it affected their life? Altered it in some way, and changed them thereafter?
Ms. Wingate you have composed a prequel {The Seaglass Sisters} as well as “The Prayer Box”, do you find yourself motivated to continue the storyline in future installments, or do you think it best to stop with these two stories?
Expanding on this, excerpts from a Q & A with Lisa Wingate:
You originally had the book set in Texas. What made you switch to the coastal setting? My special reader-friend, Ed Stevens, visited the Outer Banks (his daughter Shannon has a beach house in Duck) after Hurricane Irene, and he asked me to set a book in the Outer Banks to draw attention to the destruction there and the plight of residents—Irene was mostly thought of as a “nonevent” because it didn’t hit New York, etc. as was predicted. But the damage was very bad.
It’s a post-hurricane story, and we’ve had our share of hurricanes here in Texas. We lost our family beach houses (relatives on the coast) during Ike several years ago, so I understand the aftermath of having family treasures scattered to the tides and the feeling of losing a place you’ve loved and where you’ve made memories.
Your fans make big impacts on your writing—and your family. How did your aunt Sandy contribute toThe Prayer Box? Aunt Sandy is my mom’s sister, and while she and my mom (who I based the character Sharon on) wish I would have made them a bit younger in the book, they are great inspirations. My aunt designed her character and the Seashell Shop and made beautiful sea glass necklaces, glass boxes, and hummingbird suncatchers that will be given away as reader prizes. She is an amazing glass artist.
What’s the overall message? In this cyber age, it’s more important than ever to equip families with ideas for generating family table talk and storytelling. My first mainstream novel, Tending Roses, was inspired by stories shared by my grandmother. I’ve since watched that book travel around the world, and her stories— those simple remembrances from a farmwife’s life—have affected many lives. Our stories have amazing power and value, yet we’re in danger of losing that tradition of sharing our stories, particularly with the next generation.
Tell us about the e-novella prequel toThe Prayer Box you’re releasing in July. Titled The Sea Glass Sisters, this is a story of the sisterhood in Sandy’s Seashell Shop, a prominent theme in The Prayer Box. In this prequel, Sandy’s sister, Sharon, and Sharon’s daughter Elizabeth travel to the Outer Banks determined to convince Sandy to move back to the family land in Michigan and give up Sandy’s Seashell Shop before the financial costs of hurricane repairs bankrupt Sandy. The three women end up riding out the second hurricane on the Outer Banks and form a life-changing sisterhood.
How did you write twenty books in twelve years with kids at home? I’ve always loved to write, but I didn’t get serious about freelance writing and selling until after I’d graduated college, married, and started a family. I wrote and sold various smaller projects in between naps, diapers, and playgroups. And when the boys were older, during soccer practices, in carpool lines, while helping with homework, and in all sorts of other situations.
People often ask me if I need quiet in order to write. With boys in the house, if I’d waited for quiet, the writing would never have happened. I learned to lose myself in a story amid the noise of life and I loved it that way.
I asked myself what makes a story last, what really makes a story worth telling and worth reading? I wanted to write books that meant something, that explore the human soul.
I came across a notebook in which I’d written some of my grandmother’s stories. I’d never known quite what to do with those stories, but I knew they were significant in my life. When I rediscovered the notebook, I had the idea of combining my grandmother’s real stories with a fictional family who is like and unlike my own family. That little germ of an idea became my first women’s fiction novel, Tending Roses.
Now that the boys are practically grown and the house is often quiet, I’m redefining the writing routine again. Just as in books, life is a series of scenes and sequels, beginnings and endings, and new discoveries.
IF you came into the tour a bit late in the schedule be sure to go back around and see what everyone has featured on their respective blogs! Good books like these are meant to be celebrated and savoured! Enjoy your ‘roadmap’ and travels!!
“Seaglass Sisters” Book Trailer, from Lisa Wingate
{SOURCES: Cover art of “The Prayer Box”, Lisa Wingate’s photograph and biography, the Author’s Note about ‘The Prayer Box”, the Q & A with Lisa Wingate, and the blog tour badge were all provided by JKS Communications Literary Publicity Firm and used with permission. Both the interview with Ms. Wingate and the book trailers by Tyndale House Publishers & Lisa Wingate had either URL share links or coding which made it possible to embed these respective media portals to this post, and I thank them for this opportunity to share more about this novel and the author who penned it. Passages taken from “The Prayer Box” by Lisa Wingate. Copyright 2013 by Lisa Wingate. Used by permission by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. As stated on their Permissions page, up to 500 words can be used for non-commerical purposes; and I am under that count at 291. Blog Tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination.}
Up at Butternut Lake
The Road Back by 
Smith is a screenwriter in her other life by day, where she knits together stories set to an entirely different pace than her mysteries of Ana Grey! She has the blessing of studying the craft of writing through different facets of integrity and design. Using a sharp lens of carving out the bits and bobbles of the human heart as she endears to convey the poetic narratives which bring A Star for Mrs. Blake fully to life! She allures you with the gentle gliding hand of walking alongside Mrs. Blake as she goes about her everyday joys and obstacles. You feel ‘inserted’ into her life as though you’ve become a participant rather than a mere observer, and for this, I credit to the styling of story-telling in which Smith has etched into the novel. This is one aspect of telling stories by screen and by motion pictures I can attest to having a deep appreciation and preference of passion! Throughout different blog posts I have alluded to my passion for motion pictures, as much as how my tweets of late (the past nine weeks!) have reinstated this fact quite keenly! There is the ability for a viewer to feel as though they have abandoned their own living reality and exchanged it out to live inside the shoes of a character they have only just become acquainted with… compelled to see, hear, feel, and visionalise everything the character is going through. In this way, motion pictures and novels are entwined together, because it’s the heart of a solidly constructed narrative in spilt words on a page that can wring out such a hearty connection to the reader as the screenwriter can bleed out our emotions by how the story evolves through the actors who perform.
{quoted from her press kit}
Soaking into the world of “The Prayer Box”, I discovered something rather extraordinary: This world was quite familiar to our own, as it takes place in the modern world, straight-out of our national weather updates on the wrecking numbness that hurricanes can wreck on any seacoast they take into their sails to plunder! Ever since the 2004-5 through 2012 storm seasons, I daresay, no one from the Gulf Coast straight through to the Jersey Shore will ever look at a hurricane in quite the same way again! When you’ve lived your life on a peninsula, storm battered and absolved of tragedy depending on the year and which way the storms blow ashore, you dig into your toes a bit at the mere mention of a ‘storm season’ on approachment! The Outer Banks were always in the back of my mind as a place I wanted to visit, yet ever so trepidaciously proposed as I knew what that particular slice of Carolina shore was used to surviving! Including the sunken remains of ships long since forgotten by most who are not keen on nautical history.