Blessings of the Season: An Anthology

In The Holiday Husband by Annie Jones, the opening will grip you at the start. The delight of a man watching out for a boy who's parents don't have time to care about him. He will melt your heart as you read through this book. Annie is there to apply for a job and it looks like it won't happen. So she has to sell herself to even be given a chance. I like the way through all this she sees a side of Nathan, who is the Nanny for Jesse, the owner of the stores Grandson, that she could not have seen otherwise. I also like how Nathan has to make a lot of choices that will totally change the way his life was headed before. God puts events in our lives to draw us to the plan he has and not what we have planned. Also Addie didn't like to be embarrassed but through being embarrassed, she learns to appreciate more about her Mother. She thought her Mother's decorating was way too much. If you don't have the Christmas spirit and you are down, this will totally lift you up and delight you. In The Christmas Letter, a 12 year old Lizzie writes a letter to a soldier. She then begins to write the letters like they are from her Mother instead of her. Her desire to have a Dad blossoms throughout this story when the soldier shows up at her home and surprises her Mom. I live the life of the small town as it is described in this story. It is like the story is written about the place I live. One can see how God has a plan and sometimes it enfolds way different than one would imagine. You will have to read this story in one to two settings as it will keep you reading. So if you need something to put you in the Christmas spirit, both stories will do that.

The Holiday Husband by Annie Jones Addie McCoy has always wanted to work at Goodwin's Department Store, and has finally landed a job there. Then she learns to her dismay the store will soon go out of business. Goodwin's has always been a part of the town's history, and it breaks her heart to think of losing it. To complicate matters, she meets Nathan Brower. Nathan has just dropped by to deliver Jesse, the Goodwin's grandson, and he's in a hurry. He has a job interview in Los Angeles and the last place he wants to be is Star City, Tennessee. He's here to hand over the boy and get out of town. So how did he end up working with Addie to promote the store's Christmas celebration? Addie's mother, Bivvy McCoy, known in town as the Christmas Lady for her outrageous Christmas decorations has soured Addie on all displays of public emotion. But as events progress, Nathan and Addie are thrown together and she finds herself in situations she never expected, and some of them are rather embarassing. The Holliday Husband is a funny, flip story of two very different people, brought together by the real message of Christmas. God definitely has a sense of humor. The Christmas Letter by Brenda Minton Isabella Grant is a single mom with a twelve-year old daughter who is far too precocious. It's Christmas and Isabella is having a hard time making ends meet, and the only thing Lizzie, her daughter, wants is a Dad. Isabella isn't interested in dating, so Lizzie takes matters into her own hands. The doorbell rings and Isabella finds a man in a soldier's uniform standing on her porch. He hands her a bag of sand from Iraq and says, "Surprise." She's surprised all right. But the biggest surprise comes when she learns Lizzie has been writing to Chad Daniels, pretending to be Isabella. Now he's standing on her doorstep, and she doesn't have a clue what to do with him. If he'd just leave town it would help, but Chad won't go away. In fact, he buys a farm and moves in. Everywhere Isabella turns, he's there, and Lizzie thinks it's great. The Christmas Story is a warm, touching tale that left me smiling. I always enjoy Brenda Minto's books, but I think this one is her best yet. It's special. Celebrate the Christmas with Blessings of the Season. You'll be glad you did.