The
Rocking Horse of Tuscumbia
By
Kimberley Graham
Publisher:
Kimberley Graham
Publishing
Date: Aug. 29, 2013
ISBN:
9780989789806
Amazon
Synopsis:
A spiritually blind and deaf woman confronts her
long-buried past when she returns to her hometown, the birthplace of Helen
Keller.
Because Amanda Crosby shares her birthday with the town’s matriarch, Helen Keller, she feels no identity apart from Tuscumbia. When the pain of her past collides with her uncertain future, she realizes she’s spiritually blind and deaf--and teetering back and forth between her husband and her lost love like one of her rocking horses.
Because Amanda Crosby shares her birthday with the town’s matriarch, Helen Keller, she feels no identity apart from Tuscumbia. When the pain of her past collides with her uncertain future, she realizes she’s spiritually blind and deaf--and teetering back and forth between her husband and her lost love like one of her rocking horses.
My Thoughts:
This book is an exceptional work for a first
novel. It was about a woman revisiting her past and learning to see that the
life-choices she made long ago brought her to where she is today, and that
today’s life–choices will
shape the rest of her life. But it is so much more
than that. As we look in on Amanda’s life, we also delve into the lives of her
mother Tilly, her childhood friend Cecil and her sister Penelope. We also look
at the hard choices that some the women from the Refuge House make and how
those choices affect their lives.
The characters were well developed, complex and
flawed, just like in real life. They were easy to relate to, easy to laugh and
cry with. I found myself hurting with Amanda when her father died. I felt her
torment as she wavered back and forth between what she had, and what she had
left behind.
I liked the symbolism of the rocking horse. I
think at one time or another most of us have been in that position, rocking
back and forth between two life-choices, and getting nowhere.
Although this book could be labeled as Christian
fiction, in reality the lessons in it are for everyone. It’s about honour and
responsibility and making choices, recognizing that our choices will affect not
only our future, but the future of those whose lives that are entwined with
ours.
Kimberley Graham’s writing is engaging and draws
the reader into the story, making you feel like the proverbial “fly on the
wall”, watching everything that is going on. This book will keep your attention
as you turn page after page. You won’t want to put it down.
I gave this book 5 stars!
Thank you to the author, Kimberley Graham who
provided a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Link to Purchase
About the Author:
Kimberley Gardner Graham grew up in
Madison, Mississippi. She’s always been fascinated with the art of
storytelling, but for most of her life she studied the visual arts, not the
literary arts.
Before earning her BFA in
Graphic Design and Photography from Memphis College of Art, Kimberley studied
design at the School of Visual Arts in New York City and photography at Pacific
Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon.
She now lives in
Memphis, Tennessee with her husband and three wonderful children. She believes
that through writing, she’s able to use the creative gifts God’s given her to
tell stories that bring glory and honor to the Lord.
Contact Kimberley:
Kathryn, I am reading this right now and, from what I've read so far, you nailed it with your review. Thanks for not giving anything away to those of us still reading! :) I am especially relating to the flawed, real, characters.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your comment. Sometimes it is hard not to say too much. I hope you are enjoying the book as much as I did.
ReplyDelete