Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate

 

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate grabbed me from the moment I started reading this book. Actually, even before that, when I looked at the beautiful little girls on the cover and wanted to know their story.

Their story starts out in Memphis in 1939 when 12 year old Rill Foss and her four younger siblings are waiting for their mother to give birth to another sibling on their little shantyboat. Only something goes wrong with the birthing and their mama has to go to the hospital. Little do they know that they not only won't get to see their new sibling, they won't get to see their parents either. Strangers come and take Rill and her siblings away to the infamous Memphis Tennessee Children's Home Society orphanage run by Georgia Tann. Will they ever see their parents again?

Alongside the story of Rill and her siblings, we also read the story of Avery Stafford in Aiken, South Carolina. Avery is the daughter of a State Senator and born into wealth and privilege. She is spending time with her father and family as he weathers a health crisis. She is also taking a break from her successful job as a lawyer and a prosecutor. Avery has a chance encounter with May Crandall  that compels her to learn more about May and takes her on a life-changing journey. You need to get a copy of Before We Were Yours to hear how the story turns out.

The stories of Rill and Avery are fictional but Before We Were Yours is also based on a true-life scandal. I don't want to reveal much more and give the story away. However, I will say that this book touched my heart, and I ache for those touched by the real-life scandal, along with the characters in Wingate's new book that will release on June 6, 2017. Some parts of this book were difficult to read quite honestly. But real life has some parts that aren't pretty to look at, doesn't it? 

I have read several of Wingate's books and they are all well-written tales. Before They Were Yours is not only well-written, but it will leave you feeling like you are living these stories right along with the characters feeling their pain and their joys. It is one of Wingate's best workis. Some parts of this book were difficult to read quite honestly because of the hard things the characters faced. However, I also emerged wanting justice for all of those families who lived through this awful stretch of history. I highly recommend it. It will touch your heart like few other books have. This is a story that will stick with me for a long, long while. I would encourage you to pre-order your copy of Before They Were Yours today.

I was privileged to read an advanced reader copy of this book through Lisa Wingate's Sisterhood of the Traveling Books group.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Loyally Luke by Pepper Basham

Image
  Loyally, Luke by Pepper Basham is the third book in the epistolary series following Authentically, Izzy and Positively, Penelope.I have been anxiously awaiting this book and pretty much squealed when it came in the mail! Luke Edgewood is a guy who works in the construction industry and has remodeling skills. He wears flannel and he likes his dogs and he likes his sisters--but he isn't romantic like they are. Or so he says.In Loyally, Luke, Luke goes to Skymar to work a construction job on a orphanage that happens to be in a castle. He also has a run-in with a Princess as he comes in to the country with a migraine in desparate need of coffee--so yeah, that didn't go so well. Later, he finds out that the Grace Kelly look-alike coffee snob is also his co-worker on the orphanage project.Thus begins his own adventure in Skymar, following Izzy and Penelope.  I really enjoyed Loyally, Luke . I enjoyed this whole series. I do think the series is best enjoyed read in order to truly a...
Read more

Love Overboard by Shannon Sue Dunlap

Image
Welcome to the Blog + Review Tour for Love Overboard by Shannon Sue Dunlap, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours ! My Review: Four older women retire and live year-round on a cruise ship. Together, they are called The Shippers, and they are the matchmakers on the ship. Lacey Anderson is the ship's hostess and Jonathan King is the Cruise director of the ship. Lacey and Jonathan knew each other from another ship. Sparks fly but there are some complications that seem to be difficult to overcome--but The Shippers are a determined group of ladies. At the same time, there is a mystery of who is smuggling cocaine on the cruise line. Are they on this ship? Love Overboard offers a mix of romance, humor, and mystery to the reader. I enjoy older people so I especially liked The Shippers in this book. I also was rooting for Lacey and Jonathan. I enjoyed getting to know the ship crew as well as the other characters. There was a couple of twists near the end of the book that I didn't ...
Read more

Essential Speed Reading Techniques: How to become a Better, Faster Reader by Katya Seberson

Image
Essential Speed Reading Techniques by Katya Seberson is a small book that could pack a big punch in your reading life. Essential Speed Reading Techniques starts out by explaining what speed reading is and what it is not. If you thought speed reading was just skimming a book like I did, Seberson will define what it really means in this book and how to use it to your full advantage. While I read this book, I am not yet a better, faster reader. I am improving, but as the author shares, this is a process that takes time and is a skill worth learning. Seberson offers both advice and practice exercises in this book to help you learn and grow into the reader you want to be. I was impressed with Essential Speed Reading Techniques . I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone who wants to be a better reader. I think that as I use the techniques in this book that I will continue to improve in both my reading time and my comprehension. Essential Speed Reading Techniques releas...
Read more