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DEJA VU: When the Morning Comes by Cindy Woodsmall (review and giveaway)

By Melissa Markham on November 15, 2007 7:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Yep, this is Deja Vu. Just yesterday I gave away a copy of When the Morning Comes. Today I received another copy in the mail that I can give away to a lucky winner! I thought about pulling a name out of my first post, but decided I wanted to give more people a chance to try. So if you signed up the first time and didn't win, you don't have to sign up again. I will toss your name into the hat. This contest will end on November 21st at 6 pm. So if you would like a copy, please comment below! Good luck! (sorry, this offer is available to U.S. residents only.

I was offered a chance to read and review When the Morning Comes by Cindy Woodsmall. This is the second book in the Sisters of the Quilt series, and even though I hadn't read the first book, I was told that I could would be able to understand and enjoy it anyway. I have always been interested in the Amish way of life and I thought this would be a good chance for me to learn more about it, so I volunteered.

When the Morning Comes is an excellent book. I was able to read it and never felt lost. Part of what helps with this is information about the main characters that is given in the front of the book. But the way Cindy weaves the story, also fills in any past information that I might need to make the current book make sense. Another delightful addition to this book is a glossary in the back that explains the meanings of some Pennsylvania Dutch words that seep into the book.

This is the story of an Amish community that is going through several problems concurrently and how they are attempting to deal with them. One young woman has been raped and ostracized because the community could not bring themselves to believe she told the truth. Hannah is really the main character of the story, but the tapestry of this tale has several other important characters woven into it. There is Hannah's family, particularly two of her siblings Luke and Sarah, and her Mamm and Daed who are trying to cope with Hannah leaving the community and other things going on in their lives. Sarah has some mental health issues and Luke wants to get married, but there are some problems there as well.

Then we have a friend of Hannah's, Mary who wants to marry Luke but some complications from an accident are getting in the way. And there is Matthew, a good friend to Mary, who wants to marry Elle, but she is going through adjustments of her own. This story is rich. I learned a lot about the Amish community and realized that though, as Englischers, we may romanticize their simple life, it does come with a price. But then again, so does our more elaborate lifestyles. There is green on both sides of this fence and it would be wonderful if the two cultures could come together on a ground somewhere in the middle.

There is so much in the pages of this book...survival, love, betrayal, hope, maturing, sadness, happiness. It's amazing that it could all be contained inside of just 320 pp.

I couldn't believe it when the book came to an end. I wasn't ready to let go of these characters and I am anxiously awaiting the release of the next book.

Cindy Woodsmall and her husband have three sons, whom Cindy homeschooled for a number of years. With two children grown and attending college and the youngest entering public high school, she began pursuing her desire to write. The first chapter of When the Heart Cries, became the first book in the Sisters of the Quilt Series, won second place in the Noble Theme Contest - a contest for unpublished authors sponsored by the American Christian Fiction Writers. Woodsmall and her family live in Georgia.

If you can't wait to see if you win or if you want to purchase a copy of this When the Morning Comes or When The Heart Cries, links are provided below.