Digital content provided by hoopla. Read by Robin Ray Eller.
Summary:
To hear Beatrice Agnew tell it, she entered the world with her mouth tightly shut. Just because she finds out she's dying doesn't mean she can't keep it that way. If any of her children have questions about their daddy and the choices she made after he abandoned them, they'd best take it up with Jesus. There's no room in Granny B's house for regrets or hand-holding. Or so she thinks. Her granddaughter, Evelyn Lester, shows up on Beatrice's doorstep anyway, burdened with her own secret baggage. Determined to help her Granny B mend fences with her far-flung brood, Evelyn turns her grandmother's heart and home inside out. Evelyn's meddling uncovers a tucked-away box of old letters, forcing the two women to wrestle with their past and present pain as they confront the truth Beatrice has worked a lifetime to hide. To hear Beatrice Agnew tell it, she entered the world with her mouth tightly shut. Just because she finds out she's dying doesn't mean she can't keep it that way. If any of her children have questions about their daddy and the choices she made after he abandoned them, they'd best take it up with Jesus. There's no room in Granny B's house for regrets or hand-holding. Or so she thinks. My writing sprouts from my Southern roots. While sitting in my grandmothers' kitchens I learned what happens if you sweep someone's feet, how to make cornbread taste like pound cake, and the all-purpose uses of Vaseline. I also learned about the power of God and how His grace led my grandmothers to care for their large families after their husbands were long gone. Their faith and superstitions, life lessons, and life's longings all worked together to inspire my debut novel, A Long Time Comin', about man's timeless love affair with God. It shares one family's experiences in a relationship that crosses generations, cultures, and geography. I have corrected grammar up and down the East coast, starting with Houghton Mifflin Company. Since then, I've also edited for (then) Harcourt, Inc.; written for Family Digest magazines; managed Charlotte's Pride magazine; edited fiction and non-fiction; and served as a guest writer for Family magazine, on ChristianHomeschoolMoms.com, and on HEDUA.com. I was a finalist in ACFW's Genesis 2017 and First Impressions 2017 competitions and was selected from over one hundred entries as a top-ten semi-finalist in the Jerry B. Jenkins' Operation First Novel contest. At the heart of it all abide my love of God and the family He's given me. It's my focus as a wife and homeschooling mother of seven. It's what I write about on my blog, "Mommy, Concentrated," where I share my adventures in faith, family, and freelancing. And it's the source of all the characters currently living and breathing in my computer, in the stories waiting to be told about my belief in Jesus Christ, and the experiences at my own kitchen sink.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.