Years ago, I read Tiger Lillie by Lisa Samson because, are you ready for this, I adored the cover. The girl on the front reminded me of one of my daughters. After finishing the novel, I knew I had found a Christian writer who could bring me to Jesus with laughter and grace and conviction.
In Quaker Summer, the characters were so real that when I had to stop reading I almost felt as if I should apologize for having to leave Heather alone. Heather Curridge has it all, but she has so much of it all that she doesn’t even know where to put it, what it is, or why she has it. Heather is the woman I thought I wanted to be. She has a seemingly charmed life–doctor’s wife, beautifully decorated home, smart son, great clothes, and on her way to building a tennis court.
But despite all the stuff she fills her life with, Heather still can’t fill her soul. Stuff can’t bury guilt or hide shame.
God, though, has a sense of humor and a plan. Heather begins to find her answers in the most unlikely places. Cakes and kangaroos. Go figure.
I loved the characters in this book. I wanted to meet them for lunch, have coffee, swap kid stories. I wanted one of Heather’s cakes and dinner with the Quaker sisters. That’s one of the gifts of this book, you’re pulled into Heather’s life. Lisa’s characters are real people who dare to say the things we only think.
Someone once told me that if you want to know what people value in their lives, look at their checkbooks. Well, I suppose, today we’d have to update that to their ATM cards receipts. I squirmed through some pages of Quaker Summer. Being confronted with the truth can do that.What do I value?
What am I willing to value? Has Christ called me to Prada or prayer?
(P.S. I like the cover!)
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