The Selling Point: when even the best of intentions can have harmful results

The Selling Point by Marci Bolden is the second book in the Chammont Point series. In this story, we see the unique Darby Zamora take center stage. She has marched to a different drum. First as an outcast in high school to the brightly dressed free spirit adult, Darby has always worked jobs that suited her unique way of life. Success hasn’t been a sure thing. With many different failed ventures under her belt, she is always looking for and willing to do the next job to reinvent herself. A former bridal seamstress, Darby gave up making custom gowns as her heart was always too big for her pocketbook. Until she comes up with an idea that would make the old new again: The Un-Do Wedding Boutique with the tagline of Her bad luck is Your great deal. Selling dresses online in her bridal consignment shop has been a success. People are lining up to buy the dresses as well as desperate brides are trying to sell their unused wedding items. It is such a success that she is featured on a popular podcast. But Darby is about to pay a steep price as someone takes offense with Darby’s use of her story to sell dresses. She must face the harsh realities of life and business. With the help of her friends, Jade and Taylor, will Darby be able to reassess her business, herself, and find her selling point? 

I loved Darby with her willingness to be so vibrant in a subdued world. But that vibrantness covers a deeply hurt and wounded soul. I related to her story as she tries to justify her actions, insisting she never intended to hurt anyone before realizing that her intentions may have been good, the results still caused pain. Throughout the story, I wanted to reach through the pages and hug Darby and fight by her side as she tries to save her business and ultimately herself. We often think of bullying as a schoolyard problem but adults still suffer from bullying known today as cancel culture. I understood the outrage against her use of the brides’ embarrassing and heartbreaking stories, I didn’t understand the argument against Darby selling the dresses she made for these weddings. But when someone has been so deeply hurt, they will take their pain out on anyone, regardless if they deserve it or not. I also loved the friendship between the three unlikely friends: Jade, the straightlaced, motherly type who is still reeling from her own heartbreak (featured in book 1) and the gruff Taylor, who has had her own share of heartbreak and disappointment (her story will hopefully be featured in the upcoming book 3). Overall, I enjoyed the story of being true to yourself, friendship and finding your purpose. I highly recommend The Selling Point. 

The Selling Point is available in eBook

The Chammont Point series

The Restarting Point, book 1, is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

The Breaking Point, book 3, coming soon

When We Believed in Mermaids: a story of finding answers and healing

When We Believed in Mermaids by Barbara O’Neal is the story of Kit Bianci who is sent on a mission to discover if a woman in New Zealand is her dead sister. Josie Bianci was killed 15 years ago in a terrorist attack on a Paris train. At least that's what Kit believed. Until she sees her on the news. While taking a break, Kit, an ER doctor in Santa Cruz, California, sees live coverage of a club fire in Auckland, New Zealand. There she sees a woman, known locally as Mari Edwards, stumbling in the background that looks like her sister. In fact, the resemblance is almost too unbelievable. At the urging of her mother, Kit travels to Auckland to discover if Mari is her sister and discover why she has hidden herself for so many years. Her journey begins with memories of the past: their childhood days on the beach, the adopted teenage boy who becomes their older protective brother, and the series of tragedies that upend their lives and haunt them today. What secrets will be uncovered? Will the truth haunt her further? One thing is certain, their lives will never be the same again. 

The opening lines of the first chapter hooked me, but by the fourth chapter, I wondered if I would finish it at all. I pushed through, hoping it would get better. The identity of the woman known as Mari is revealed fairly quickly. The real mystery is a bit more murkier that details the series of tragedies that tore them apart. And a side story about a murdered 1930s actress. I did not care for Kit at all. She was cold, unfeeling and just bland. Right off the bat, Kit laments that “it’s hard to be the children of parents who are obsessed with each other.” Ok…..? She describes her father’s passion for her mother as “intense, sexual and possessive” but wasn’t sure she would call it love and her mother’s love for him was “to excess more than she loved her children.” Ummm, ok? I enjoyed Mari’s perspective a bit more but even her story was resolved too neatly and too easily. For the majority of the book, it read like two very different stories, Kit’s and Mari’s, that would eventually merge and very quickly get resolved. Overall, the story was bogged down with too many side stories, flashbacks and a resolution that felt rushed and unrealistic. I do not recommend When We Believed in Mermaids.

When We Believed in Mermaids is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook. 

Abigail: the peacemaker

I have always had a great admiration for Abigail. Her name means “my father’s joy” and she was a very special woman. Abigail was generous, quick-witted and wise. Her great sorrow was to be mismatched with her husband, Nabal, who was her complete opposite. As Abigail was humble, faithful, generous and intelligent, Nabal was arrogant, greedy, selfish and egoistic. She probably had a lot of heartache and sleepless nights dealing with her husband and his cruel ways. However, her great joy is that God used her to save lives and gain peace after her husband’s great insult. She eventually would become David’s wife. The Talmud identifies Abigail as one of the seven female prophets (Megillah 15a) (Adelman, 2021). Why is Abigail an important person in the Bible? How was she a peacemaker? What lessons can we learn from her story?

Abigail must have left suffocated to be married to such a fool of a husband. The wealthy Nabal would have been quite a catch, but he had a domineering attitude that one day would endanger the lives of many. The news of David and his victories had been spreading. Abigail had heard the story of his defeat of Goliath as well as his prowess in battle and his rift with King Saul. Recently, David had taken refuge in her area, the Desert of Maon, west of the Dead Sea. And since his arrival with 600 men, marauders kept clear of the local flocks, including Nabal’s and he greatly prospered. One day, David sent 10 men to ask Nabal for provisions and Nabal responded with a scoff and refused, foolishly insulting the region’s most powerful man. Aware of the danger they were in, the servants ran to Abigail and begged her to intervene. She quickly sprang into action. Gathering a caravan of donkeys, loaded with gifts for David and his men, taking them to David’s camp. Once there, she makes a speech that corrects the wrong and avoids the bloodshed that was coming. The next morning, she tells Nabal what she had done and he collapses. Ten days later he died. When David heard the news of Nabal’s death, he proposed marriage to Abigail, which she accepted and she became his third wife. 

If there is a theme to Abigail’s story, it would be peacemaker. Proverbs 12:20 says “There is deceit in the hearts of those who plot evil, but joy for those who promote peace.” Abigail is known as one of the Bible’s great peacemakers. When she had heard what Nabal had done, she knew immediately what she needed to do. She gathered supplies and went out to meet David. When she sees him, she falls at his feet and gives one of the longest speeches recorded in the Bible by a woman (1 Samuel 25:24-31). First, she takes the responsibility for Nabal’s faux pas and begs to be allowed to speak (verse 24). Second, she begs David to forgive Nabal for he lives up to his name, The Fool (verse 25) and states she didn’t see his men arrive. Third, she seeks forgiveness and prays for the Lord’s blessings on David’s endeavors (verse 26-31). With her speech, David erases his anger and offers his forgiveness. Abigail saved the lives of every man in Nabal’s household (1 Samuel 25:32-34). She also saved David from sin, reminding him that vengeance belongs to the Lord (Deuteronomy 32:35). Even when she went home, she didn’t immediately tell Nabal what she did. She wanted until he was sober. Abigail simply tells him what had happened and his “heart failed him” (1 Samuel 25:37) and he collapses and dies 10 days later. Just as Abigail kept the peace between Nabal and David, she kept the peace between herself and her husband. 

There are lessons we can learn from Abigail’s story. First, life’s tough situations can bring the best out of people. People would understand if Abigail was broken and weak under her husband’s “surly and mean dealings” (1 Samuel 25:3). She was very much in a toxic relationship (McDaniel, 2021). But difficult situations help us develop a strength and perseverance that we didn’t know. She sprang into action to right the wrong instead of running and hiding.  Second, be humble, kind and seek peace with those around you. Even though the offense wasn’t committed by her, Abigail was determined to soothe David’s anger for the sake of the innocent lives that would have been taken. She took a risk, taking responsibility for something she didn’t do and not knowing how David would respond (McDaniel, 2021), it could have easily been her head instead of Nabal’s. But she spoke with humility, kindness and sought forgiveness on Nabal’s behalf. Third, our words and actions are powerful. We need to carefully and thoughtfully consider each one before we speak because once words are said, they cannot be taken back. Her action was the carefully gathered provisions, probably more than the original amount David’s men asked for. She then reminded David that God had done great things in his life and would continue to do great things (McDaniel, 2021) and not to allow one man’s folly to destroy that. 

In conclusion, Abigail was a woman who rose above her circumstances to change the course of events. Although her culture and husband put a low value on her, she used her skills and opportunity to defuse an explosive situation. I think it is telling that the servants came to her. They probably knew she would know how to rectify the situation. She was capable, sensible and able to see beyond herself. She saw the bigger picture and acted accordingly. Do you see the bigger picture? Abigail was a peacemaker in a grand way, but we can all promote peace in small ways every day. How can you promote peace? Using Abigail’s example, we can seek to make the most out of a difficult situation with humility, kindness and choosing our words and actions carefully.

References

Adelman, Rachel (June 23, 2021) . Abigail: Bible. Jewish Women’s Archive. https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/abigail-bible. Retrieved August 29, 2021. 

McDaniel, Debbie (August 24, 2021). 5 Things All Women Can Learn from Abigail in the Bible. iBelieve. https://www.ibelieve.com/faith/things-women-learn-from-abigail-bible.html. Retrieved August 29, 2021. 

Silent Tears: one woman's journey volunteering in a Chinese orphanage

Silent Tears: A Journey of Hope in a Chinese Orphanage by Kay Bratt is a true story of her experience in China and her time as a volunteer at a local orphanage. It is a story of adversity, setbacks and triumphs as she fought against the Chinese bureaucracy to help the country’s orphaned and abandoned children. In 2003, Ms. Bratt and her family relocated to a rural Chinese village as her husband took on a new management position for his employer. She begins to volunteer at the local orphanage and soon it becomes more than just something to fill her days. She begins a crusade to improve the living children and minimize the unnecessary deaths of the children. Silent Tears is the collection of her journal entries from their four-year assignment in China and chronicles the emotions, hurdles and daily frustrations faced by Ms. Bratt and her fellow volunteers as they strive to become champions for these marginalized children. A story with a message that everyone can make a difference. Big or small, it is still a difference. 

Silent Tears is a vivid memoir of strength and determination as Ms. Bratt fights against despair at the conditions of these children and the powerlessness she often feels when her efforts are for naught. She is unapologetic as she describes the conditions these children live in, the circumstances beyond their control that brought them to the orphanage in the first place. Ms. Bratt finds the inner strength to pursue her mission day after day to bring a small bit of happiness to these children’s lives and smiles to their faces. My heart broke as Ms. Bratt talks about the different children who lived there, the treatment they received from the workers and her strives to carefully improve what she saw. I admire Ms. Bratt’s determination to help these children. I also appreciate that she doesn’t gloss over or hide her own preconceived notions and even prejudices as she enters a world so different. It is evident she has a big and open heart for the children she helps care for. I enjoyed the personal letters she included at the end as an update for some of the children she talks about in the book. I highly recommend Silent Tears. 

Silent Tears is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook

The Real Valkyrie: unraveling the hidden secrets of a society long ago

The Real Valkyrie: the Hidden History of the Viking Warrior Women  by Nancy Marie Brown weaves together archaeology, history and literature to imagine the life and times of the Viking Warrior Women. In 2017, DNA tests revealed that the Viking warrior found in the famous grave, discovered in Birka, Sweden in 1889 and designated as BJ581, was actually a woman. Much to the collective shock of scholars and challenges all that has been understood about the men and women of the Viking Age. Ms Brown uses science to link this warrior, whom she names Hervor, to Viking trading towns and their trade routes east to Byzantium and beyond. She imagines what it would have been like for Hervor if she encountered the larger than life but very real women in history, including Queen Gunnhild, the Mother of Kings, The Red Girl, a Viking leader, and Queen Olga of Kjiv. Ms. Brown challenges the common “truth” that has been passed on about the Vikings, which is based on the nineteenth-century Victorian biases of men’s and women’s roles in society. In truth, Viking women carried weapons, not just the keys to the household. 

The Real Valkyrie is well researched, beautifully written as Ms. Brown opens the doors to the what-might-have-been life of the Birka warrior and challenges the preconceived notions of how the Viking society really functioned. In the Viking Age (approximately 750-1050 AD) was more than the marauding travelers who raided the far-reaching lands. They were traders, explorers, farmers, poets, engineers and artists as well. Through her use of history, law, saga and poetry, Ms. Brown opens up the Viking world like never before. There were a few statements made that showed Ms. Brown’s own biases when she is attacking the Victorian biases. However, I chalk it up to her own opinion and assumptions as no writing is bias-free. Despite these biases, The Real Valkyrie is an interesting look into a society that many do not hear about and yet a society that helped shape the world as we know it. Overall, it is a lesson that we cannot judge a society based on our own assumptions. If you are interested in the history of the Viking Age and the story of what could have been the Birka warrior, I highly recommend The Real Valkyrie.  

The Real Valkyrie: The Hidden History of the Viking Warrior Women

Is available August 31, 2021 in hardcover and eBook

Side Trip: when a road trip becomes life changing

Side Trip by Kerry Lonsdale is a story of . With her deceased sister’s Route 66 bucket list in hand, Joy Evers sets out from California on a cross-country road trip to meet up with her fiancé in New York. She’s determined to check off each item as she goes. During a stop in a Ludlow diner, she meets Dylan. Dylan Westfield is a singer-songwriter on a trip of his own. Unfortunately, his car has broken down. They strike a deal. She’ll drive him to New York and he’ll pay for gas. They have three rules: no exchanging of last names, what happens on the road, stays on the road, and if one of them wants a side trip, they both must agree. They find they are complete opposites. Joy is energetic. Dylan is moody. Joy believes in love at first sight and Dylan thinks love is a complicated mess. Soon, they realize that they are both hiding secrets and their motivations. Will they find the peace they hope to find on the road? Will they be able to leave the events of the road trip behind? 

I love Kerry Lonsdale’s books and I heard great things about Side Trip. From the very beginning, I was hooked on Joy’s mission to complete the trip her sister never could. Dylan’s mission was a bit more of a mystery. I enjoyed the back and forth between Joy and Dylan’s perspectives as well as the “Before” chapter which occurs on the road and the “After” chapters when the trip is over and their lives go on as planned. Or does it? Can Joy and Dylan really leave what happens on the road, on the road? I didn’t really have an emotional reaction until the second to last chapter when the reader finds out what happens for Joy and Dylan. I feel the last chapter and the epilogue were unnecessary and undid the emotional impact of that one chapter. The secret Joy was hiding was all too easy to figure out as it has been done before. Overall, I did enjoy the story, especially the spontaneous moments on the road. I do recommend Side Trip as a fun road trip story.

 

Side Trip is available in paperback, eBook, audiobook. 

The Soul of the Family Tree: how a search into one's ancestry can open up the world

The Soul of the Family Tree: Ancestry, Stories, and the Spirits We Inherit by Lori Erikson is her journey as she investigated her own family tree. Growing up in a passionately Norwegian-American Iowa town, she would roll her eyes at traditions like the Nordic Fest and steaming pots of rømmegrøt (a Norwegian porridge). Like many Americans, she eventually felt the draw of her genealogy as she calls the “quintessential hobby of middle age.” Her quest to know more about the Vikings and the immigrants who make up her family tree would lead her to visit Norse settlements and reenactments, medieval villages and modern museums, and her own hometown and ancestral farms on the fjords. While on this journey, she discovers how her soul has been shaped by her ancestors and finds unexpected spiritual guides among the seafaring Vikings and her immigrant ancestors. Can her journey show us how researching our own family history can be a powerful tool for inner growth? 

In The Soul of the Family Tree is a journey into more than just names and dates in the historical record. It is a journey to understand, know and connect with our ancestors. I have long been interested in my family history. I loved listening to stories about my ancestors. So a book about genealogy would be interesting. While most of the book is more a memoir about Ms. Erickson’s journey about her Norwegian heritage, the second half of the book does bring through the questions that are raised with a genealogy investigation particularly with the family stories that have been passed on, only to be discovered to be embellished or outright wrong. Part history lesson, part memoir, and part spiritual journey, The Soul of the Family Tree is a fascinating look into our connections with our ancestors and their place in historical events. Overall, I enjoyed reading Ms. Erickson’s journey. If you are interested in Viking history and a genealogy journey, you may enjoy The Soul of the Family Tree. 

The Soul of the Family Tree: Ancestry, Stories and the Spirits We Inherit

is available August 24, 2021 in paperback and eBook