Among the Gentler Books

A great bonus of being in a bookstore on a regular basis is the opportunity to overhear, and often partake in, fascinating conversations. A frequent theme is the difference between books and movies, as well as reading versus watching television. I hear many a bibliophile declare – with at least a little hint of pride – that they don’t have TV at their house.

The other day, I heard a variation on this conversation about the American television diet, and it still has me thinking. A new author commented how his book is about the rural American life, in part because he wants to give rural people the chance to read a story to which they can relate. He said that, of late, the only programs on nightly TV are about murder, sex, drugs, and criminals, or the lifestyles of the spoiled and metropolitan. Almost every single one of these popular shows is set in a city.

This is an excellent observation. Gone are the days when we came home to watch the Waltons, or Little House on the Prairie, or the Andy Griffith Show. There’s not even any more Seventh Heaven or Northern Exposure. I guess “rural” isn’t in right now for “Must-See” television. This may have resulted in another recent trend – the genre of Christian fiction becoming a major financial force over the last five years. Several years ago, there were only a few popular, contemporary writers regularly publishing bestselling Christian fiction. Moreover, there were only one or two authors writing “Amish” Christian romance. In the last year, that number has increased exponentially. Suddenly, readers are faced with a plethora of books about “Rachel’s Choice” or “Leah’s Redemption”. If rural isn’t hip, then why the demand for stories about a simpler life?

The need for an alternative to nightly scenes of forensics and cleavage became even more clear to me as I read Gentle Forbearance, the first novel from Christian author Rachel Castellanos. Though the plotline is fairly predictable, that’s not unusual for a romance book, even by the most experienced of authors. Surprise twists and deep symbolism are not really the reasons people pick up a romance. With Christian romance, readers expect a gentle love story, with lots of references to the hand of God at work in the characters’ lives. Rachel Castellanos delivers these within a well-developed setting and amidst a network of believable and likeable characters. In Gentle Forbearance, the main romantic leads, Cassie Wilson and Jacob Dawson, do fall in love, but Castellanos credits her readers with more intelligence than many of the “Love Inspired” or “Steeple Hill Café” series books, allowing her characters to struggle through old hurts and other relationship challenges before coming to a satisfying resolution.

Although I only dabble in Christian fiction, I found myself drawn to this book, wanting to see how Castellanos would show God’s path in the lives of her characters. This reminder of faith, of believing that God is working in one’s life even when it seems painful or difficult, represents some of the best of what Christian fiction has to offer its readers. I have hesitated to write a review of Christian fiction in general, because I don’t want to offend in my observations that too many Christian authors dumb down their stories, or rely on too-neat “coincidences” to make their stories work, or do little justice to the real pain that people suffer – even people of deep faith. I have enjoyed books by Karen Kingsbury, Bodie and Brock Thoene, and Janette Oke; however, these criticisms can be fairly directed at a number of chapters in these authors’ works. While readers may want to read stories of gentleness, a simpler life, less ugliness and maliciousness, fewer crimes, and more heroes and heroines who strive for the deeper and higher meaning of hope, love, and faith, the bottom line for me in critiquing Christian fiction comes down to this: Christians aren’t dumb. Or, at least, they are no dumber than the rest of the population, or of the representatives of any other faith.

Rachel Castellanos’s first book shares some of the same problems as those from her sister authors in Christ, but she is just as good as Janette Oke and Marta Perry – if not better – and each of these women has thirty plus published books on their resumes, with literally hundreds of thousands of copies sold. Just like her main character, Cassie, it is my guess that Rachel did not believe in herself and her talent as much as she should have, and so went with a publishing firm that offers “author-financed” plans, giving Gentle Forbearance a higher cover cost than is usually comfortable for buyers. Nevertheless, I highly recommend that fans of Oke, Perry, Lewis, or Kingsbury take the plunge: we’re sure to see more from this talented new author, and you can say you knew her when.

Beverly Hillbillies or 90210? Check out Hobo’s past zip codes at his blog, http://frommyshelf.blogspot.com. City Christian or country Christian? Tell Hobo about your creeds at frommyshelf@epix.net. Watch for Hobo’s new Amish book, where he travels to an Amish farm.

Huck Finn Goes to Pennsylvania

Kasey Cox

Imagine this recipe: you take the tone of a classic story like "Little House on the Prairie"; the voice of a woman like Marty, of Janette Oke's "Love Comes Softly" series; set her down in north central Pennsylvania just as the 1800's become the 1900's. Then, add in a character who just may be the Huckleberry Finn, after several decades of wandering and mellowing, and for a finishing touch, give it just a hint of "Jane Eyre". You just might end up with something that tasted like Larry Kimport's "A Small Harvest of Pretty Days."

The book hooks the reader at the beginning with a plot device unusual for this type of story - Clara, the first-person narrator, describes how the first time she saw the man she came to know as Mr. Finley, she was running for her life. In the opening scene, Clara hints at how she knows, from personal experience, that the man she was running from meant her harm. As she hides inside a fallen tree - and this is a nice touch, since the trees of that era were big enough for a grown person to fit inside - she witnesses a murder. From my perspective, the questions surrounding this murder continue to pull the reader through the story, and change it from just another novel for the historical fiction shelves.

Indeed, Kimport blends the techniques and topics of contemporary fiction with the milieu and voice of a bygone era. The setting of the Twin Tiers (that's northcentral PA and southcentral NY, to those of you outside the area) in the 1890's is effectively woven into Clara's story, using details of the chores of daily life, the discussions on the lumber business heard around the dinner table with important male guests, the descriptions of clothing and tools, the leisure activities of the well-to-do, and the hardships of most travel. Occasionally, this historical setting and the voices of the characters are out-of-sync with the frank discussion of rape and murder that drives the plot. Nevertheless, Kimport is usually able to smooth this over by prefacing these revelations with how utterly Clara's life is devastated by her experience and the community's opinion of her as a result, or by having male characters say, "we shouldn't be talking about this gruesome murder in the presence of women and children."

"A Small Harvest of Pretty Days" is marketed as a fictional love story, and as a "what-if" sequel to Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." While those ingredients are in there, that's not the strongest flavor. I felt the author did a better job evoking rural America at the turn of the last century, and of leaving the "why" of the murder open. I was more intrigued with the information on the railroads coming through the Williamsport area, and the lumber being moved down the Susquehanna River, and the day-to-day activities necessary for running a farm. The development of the love story and the mystery as to whether or not Mr. Finley was Huck Finn were a little obvious to me, although the love story is nice in and of itself. Any fan of Janette Oke or Lori Wick or Judith Pella's Christian historical romances will enjoy this aspect of Kimport's novel. And I did like reading a love story that wasn't all convoluted with war stories, or full of vampires, for once. What kept me reading, however, was wanting answers to the same questions that bothered Clara - why would this seemingly nice man, this Mr. Finley who was so kind and helpful to her, kill a man? And why didn't it seem to bother him? Was he responsible for the other brutal murders that were shocking the entire area?

The answer is a creative one, and doesn't resolve until near the end of the book, in just the plot structure your junior high English teacher explained to you. I found the resolution, as well as the epilogue of Clara's life, ultimately quite satisfying. At 181 pages, and reasonably priced at $12.97, I'd recommend Kimport's book to any reader looking for a good recipe with more to it than expected.