A Wreath of Snow |
(WaterBrook Press, 2012)
I ordered this beautiful hardcover Christmas Novella after seeing a postcard of it, sent in the mail. Between the gorgeous picture and Liz Curtis Higgs writing it--I had to have this book! So I ordered it and copies for our two American contributors. Then I received an AUTOGRAPHED copy from Liz herself- WOW!!! How very special and I will treasure this book!
Set in Scotland, this novella (the length is more of a short book length, however) presents the problems that come when we deceive others. In terms of bibliotherapy, I would recommend this book to someone who has either been deceived by someone or who is having difficulty forgiving themselves for having been less than honest with someone.
A drunken young man engaged in the sport of curling severely injures a boy whose sister has brought him to the event. Still single at age twenty-six, Meg is somewhat estranged from her family. Her brother, Alan, who was injured as a child, revels in his role as invalid and has become an embittered young man. So much so that his only sibling, Meg, attempts to return from home back to Glasgow early during her Christmas holiday--not even staying to celebrate Christmas with her parents and brother, and feeling mighty guilty.
On board the train, Meg unwittingly engages in conversation with Gordon Shaw, who injured her brother and is now a journalist. He fails to correct her misunderstanding of his name, and who he is, finding himself very much enjoying the young woman's conversation aboard the snow-surrounded train.
Later, Meg does as Alan had done--deceiving her parents by allowing them to misconstrue his true name and identity. But the ultimate deception comes from another character. I will be honest, early on I guessed what likely would happen with this specific character later. I still enjoyed the storyline and the way Liz brought about the expected behavior (that aspect was unique.)
A drunken young man engaged in the sport of curling severely injures a boy whose sister has brought him to the event. Still single at age twenty-six, Meg is somewhat estranged from her family. Her brother, Alan, who was injured as a child, revels in his role as invalid and has become an embittered young man. So much so that his only sibling, Meg, attempts to return from home back to Glasgow early during her Christmas holiday--not even staying to celebrate Christmas with her parents and brother, and feeling mighty guilty.
On board the train, Meg unwittingly engages in conversation with Gordon Shaw, who injured her brother and is now a journalist. He fails to correct her misunderstanding of his name, and who he is, finding himself very much enjoying the young woman's conversation aboard the snow-surrounded train.
Later, Meg does as Alan had done--deceiving her parents by allowing them to misconstrue his true name and identity. But the ultimate deception comes from another character. I will be honest, early on I guessed what likely would happen with this specific character later. I still enjoyed the storyline and the way Liz brought about the expected behavior (that aspect was unique.)
This is not truly novella length (which usually run closer to 20,000 words), despite the cover indicating that A Wreath of Snow is a Victorian novella--so plan to spend more than one evening reading unless you are a quick reader. This is a lovely Christmas read--full of redemption and forgiveness. I highly recommend it!
Question: Have you ever deceived someone to "save the peace?" Did this action backfire on you?
Giveaway: We are giving away a hardcover copy of this book to one commenter this week. And a second giveaway for the week for any of Liz's books, choice of format.