Not Just Any Quilt

I don't know about you, but Christmas and quilts just seem to go together as do babies and quilts. And when I think of quilts, I think of the Amish who are known for their quilts. So the title The Christmas Quilt jumped out at me. It was particularly excited to find this story revolves around not only a Christmas quilt but also a baby quilt.

When I began reading The Christmas Quilt by Vannetta Chapman, I was excited to find the characters are those first introduced in A Simple Amish Christmas. Thus I felt like I was catching up with old friends when I began reading. While familiarity with the characters was helpful, author Vannetta Chapman provides sufficient details so that readers just meeting these characters will have no problem following the story. Chapman begins the story by introducing Annie and Leah who are sisters-in-law and both expecting. Annie is excited to begin making a special quilt for Leah whose baby is due around Christmas time. Unfortunately, she has difficulty finding the time to sit down and work on it as Annie also is a nurse and assists her community quite often. Her nursing training comes in very handy when Leah experiences complications with her pregnancy and needs to be moved to a high risk unit at the hospital where Annie was previously employed.

Often Amish fiction with very few changes could just easily be historical fiction set on the frontier. An enjoyable twist to this particular work of Amish fiction was the very 21st century issues the characters faced. Too often it seems that characters in these books deal mostly with who is going to be married to whom or whether the young adult child is going to remain Amish or become an Englischer. Although there is tangential hinting of a romance between two minor characters, the main issues in this work are very similar to those non-Amish readers experience.

The Christmas Quilt is a very enjoyable piece of fiction just right for reading during the Christmas holiday or at any other time of the year. Begin reading this book now with this excerpt. The Christmas Quilt is part of the Quilts of Love series published by Abingdon Press. While this particular title is set in Amish country, not all of the books in this series are. I look forward to reading additional titles from this series.

I received a complementary copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Bridging the Generations

The back cover of Letters From Ruby states “Not everything a young pastor needs to now can be taught in school” which sums up the first novel by Episcopal priest Adam Thomas quite well. As I work with many young ministers during my day job, I can attest to the truth of this statement and that much of what happens in ministry as well as any job must be experienced in real life. The main character, Calvin, quickly steps on toes and identifies the congregation’s official and unofficial leaders. Shortly after his arrival, Calvin experiences both the death of a parishioner as well as the birth and baptism of a new generation. Throughout his experiences in Victory, Calvin can count on his Morning Prayer ladies to guide him.

Thomas uses a variety of techniques to share Calvin’s adventures as a young priest as well as the story of Ruby and her husband. Calvin’s story begins in the present and then via flashback tells the story of his time in Victory, West Virginia when he first meets Ruby. His flashback is prompted by a letter from Ruby which, as the title indicates, appears regularly throughout the book. The juxtaposition of Calvin’s story and the letters give the reader almost the feeling of reading two stories at once yet the two techniques work together to tell an integrated story.

Some readers may be unfamiliar with various terms used in Letters from Ruby as it is set in an Episcopal church. Author, Adam Thomas, explains some unfamiliar terms and practices in passing, yet also expects readers to have some familiarity. Reading this book just may entice you to seek out a local Episcopal congregation to visit. Letters from Ruby shows how much different generations can learn from each other. As such, this book will appeal to individuals who enjoy a warm WWII romance and those who are looking for a more contemporary story as well. I hope to see more books from Adam Thomas in the future and perhaps even more about Calvin as he continues to grow in his ministry.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Abingdon Press. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”