My Thoughts:
When we Last Spoke is a delightful visit to the days of Elvis, drive-in movies,
Necco Wafers, and dressing up and dancing to the Supremes. This step back in time revolves around Juliet and Evangeline Cranbourne, aka Squirrel and Rabbit, whose mother drops them off at their grandparent's house when she decides to pursue a Hollywood career. Ruby and Walt (Popo) generously raise the girls as their own and hilarity, heartbreak and lots of memory making ensues. I truly loved this book for many reasons. The writing was beautiful,:
"Time seemed slower back then. One hour felt like five. A week equaled a year. Christmas was always an eternity away. We marked days by rainfall, by the mysterious births of white-faced calves, and by how many buckets of maize we'd hauled to the chicken yard where we gathered eggs. Mealtimes were spent around Ruby's oval table, picking the tender white meat off of friend chicken wings and eating spoonfuls of sweet butternut squash, sliced red tomatoes and green peas, all vegetables from her blue-ribbon garden." (The words just make you want to jump into the story.)
the stories were heartfelt and the characters were incredibly memorable. Small town antics involving eccentric old ladies, jealous church busy bodies and a mysterious single "floozy" with teased hair, frosted lip stick and go go boots keep the story rolling at a cleverly quick pace. I was charmed by the way the author delighted her audience with the point of view of a 9 year old girl. The only negative point is the cover if the book. It's boring, in my opinion, and this story deserves so, so much better. It's a charmer that will make you laugh- a lot- and will also deeply touch your heart.
****Marci will be giving away a
FREE Kindle version from
Feb. 20-24 on Amazon.*****
About When We Last Spoke (back cover):
"Humor, heartbreak, and triumph are served with whipped cream and lots of
local nuts in this heartwarming tale of family, friendship, and forgiveness in
Fireside, Texas.
Meet Juliet Cranbourne, local radio personality and owner of a whimsical
kitchen gadget store, and her sister Evangeline, a fruit tree geneticist who
works for Oregon State University.
When a rift due to their orphaned past affects their sisterhood, Juliet
convinces Evangeline to come home for Christmas and choose headstones to honor
grandparents Walt
(a tenderhearted, good looking rancher) and Ruby (a blue-ribbon fiddler,
fabulous cook, and expert in the art of making family feel loved). As
they cruise through Fireside in Ruby's
Thunderbird, Juliet hopes that healing memories will somehow smooth rough
roads ahead.
Does the tremendous love that marked Walt and Ruby's lives still have the
power to renew their sisterhood and help them find their place in the
world?"
About the author:
Marci Henna was born in
Austin, Texas and lived as a child in Kenya, East Africa with the Wakamba tribe
where her parents managed a medical research station. She later moved to the
Hill Country ranch which has been in the family since the 1800's and currently
lives in Austin.
*I was given a copy of this wonderful book by FlyBy Promotions. The words and thoughts expressed on my blog are my own.*
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