Mammamel
07-28-2009, 08:09 AM
I just finished book 5 of 6 in the Leisha Kelley series. The last 3 are called Country Lane Chronicles. The first 3 are listed as "related stories". Odd.
Anyway the books chronicle the Wortham and Hammond families through the great depression, book five takes them through WW2.
The books are
Julia's Hope
Emma's Gift
Katie's Wish
Rorey's Secret
Rachel's Prayer and then the one I have not read Sarah's Promise
Samuel and Julia Wortham start out the story. The year is 1932 and the factory where Samuel work has closed. They begin hitch hiking, with their 2 children Robert and Sarah to Illinois. Samuel's cousin has promised there are jobs there. When they get close a call to cousin Dewey reveals that suddenly there are no jobs and Cousin Dewey is facing unemployment as well.
I must say Mrs. Kelley is as apt a story teller as Laura Ingalls Wilder, or L.M. Montgomery. She ranks right up there with Bodie and Brock Thoene in her abilities. This is a set I will keep and reread over again. Each books expertly builds on the last, evne though they happen some times years apart. (Rorey's secret takes place about 7-8 years after Katie's Wish).
The characters come alive and it is not hard to imagine families facing these very things at that time in history. I am generally a pioneer buff but these have worked to change that.
Book 5 is a bit hard to read, there is a lot of angst but it is needed to reflect the truth of the times. A world in chaos, does God care or not? If He cares then why are so many good men being hurt and killed? Such things mirror some of what we live through today. Through out it all, scripture and prayer stand strong and help to bring them through.
Unlike some series I have read this set begins strong and stays strong through the end. According to Mrs. Kellely's web site, Sarah's Promise closes the set. That makes me sad, but at least I can revisit my new friends at will!
Anyway the books chronicle the Wortham and Hammond families through the great depression, book five takes them through WW2.
The books are
Julia's Hope
Emma's Gift
Katie's Wish
Rorey's Secret
Rachel's Prayer and then the one I have not read Sarah's Promise
Samuel and Julia Wortham start out the story. The year is 1932 and the factory where Samuel work has closed. They begin hitch hiking, with their 2 children Robert and Sarah to Illinois. Samuel's cousin has promised there are jobs there. When they get close a call to cousin Dewey reveals that suddenly there are no jobs and Cousin Dewey is facing unemployment as well.
I must say Mrs. Kelley is as apt a story teller as Laura Ingalls Wilder, or L.M. Montgomery. She ranks right up there with Bodie and Brock Thoene in her abilities. This is a set I will keep and reread over again. Each books expertly builds on the last, evne though they happen some times years apart. (Rorey's secret takes place about 7-8 years after Katie's Wish).
The characters come alive and it is not hard to imagine families facing these very things at that time in history. I am generally a pioneer buff but these have worked to change that.
Book 5 is a bit hard to read, there is a lot of angst but it is needed to reflect the truth of the times. A world in chaos, does God care or not? If He cares then why are so many good men being hurt and killed? Such things mirror some of what we live through today. Through out it all, scripture and prayer stand strong and help to bring them through.
Unlike some series I have read this set begins strong and stays strong through the end. According to Mrs. Kellely's web site, Sarah's Promise closes the set. That makes me sad, but at least I can revisit my new friends at will!