Helpful Score: 5
As I kept reading this book, that old saying about an onion having many layers was repeated over and over in my mind.
An elderly widow named Hennie Comfort has a sign on her front fence that says "Prayers for Sale" and one day a very young newly married girl asks Hennie to prayer for her and thus begins a very unlikely friendship.
Set in small minding town called Middle Swan, Colorado during the 1930's, the friendship and mentorship of 80 year old Hennie and and 17 year old Nit Spindle begins. Between ranch living, and quilting, and life dramas, the lives of these two women and the community they live in slowly come together.
Hennie sees a lot of herself in Nit, and Nit in turn, sees in Hennie the strong woman that she one day would like to be. They have each had their hardships and each will come out a better person for what they have had to endure and because of the gamblers, and moonshiners and soiled doves and corrupt business practices, they will each in turn be a stronger person for it.
Sandra Dallas does a wonderful job in setting the historical feel, with enough lore and truth to keep you turning the page.
An elderly widow named Hennie Comfort has a sign on her front fence that says "Prayers for Sale" and one day a very young newly married girl asks Hennie to prayer for her and thus begins a very unlikely friendship.
Set in small minding town called Middle Swan, Colorado during the 1930's, the friendship and mentorship of 80 year old Hennie and and 17 year old Nit Spindle begins. Between ranch living, and quilting, and life dramas, the lives of these two women and the community they live in slowly come together.
Hennie sees a lot of herself in Nit, and Nit in turn, sees in Hennie the strong woman that she one day would like to be. They have each had their hardships and each will come out a better person for what they have had to endure and because of the gamblers, and moonshiners and soiled doves and corrupt business practices, they will each in turn be a stronger person for it.
Sandra Dallas does a wonderful job in setting the historical feel, with enough lore and truth to keep you turning the page.
Helpful Score: 4
Sandra Dallas just keeps getter better and better! What a wonderful read this is! I wanted to linger with the characters and listen to all of Hennie's stories again and again. I became emotionally invested in the author's characters of Hennie and Nit. Love, loss, redemption and forgiveness...it is all here in spell-binding prose that will make your heart sing. This book is a thing of beauty!!! One of my top reads of the year!
Helpful Score: 3
Prayers for Sale is a sweet story of women's friendships in a 1940s Colorado Mining town. Hennie Comfort is an 86 yo woman who has lived in Middle Swan most of her adult life. Nit Spindle is a young woman, newly married who has just arrived in the town. They meet in Hennies front yard over her sign offering prayers for sale. As the women become friends and share stories, secrets are revealed and life unfolds. While somewhat predictable, I enjoyed this book. The story is told in an authentic voice with a satisfying conclusion. This was the first book by Sandra Dallas that I've read, and I'll definitely be reading more.
Helpful Score: 3
Well written. I liked how the the story was told in a series of stories. I enjoyed the scenery Sandra displays in her writing. I did not want the book to come to an end.
Helpful Score: 2
This is a very enjoyable book to read, set during The Depression. Its told from (mainly) one characters perspective and reveals much about her life and the mountain town she lives in though the stories she tells. There are turns and surprises throughout. This is a book I wanted to go on and on and not end!
Helpful Score: 2
This is the first book by Sandra Dallas I have read. Highly recommend it for anyone who needs a 'cozy' read. It is not a romance book, just a good book about how strangers in an out of the way town can become more that best of friends.
Helpful Score: 1
Sandra Dallas is a simple, beautiful writer. This story is touching and unsentimental, with a unique and admirable heroine. It stays with you.
Helpful Score: 1
Quite a heartwarming story!
Two women, Hennie Comfort and Nit Spindle meet because of a sign on Hennie's house that reads "Prayers For Sale." Nit approaches the house very tentatively but Hennie makes her feel at home and invites her in. Soon they develop a lasting friendship. Hennie is 86 years old and has lived in Middle Swan, a Colorado mining town, for most of her life. 17 year old Nit and her husband have just moved to town after her husband got a job there. It is not an easy place to live due to the weather, altitude, dangers, noise and some of the men workers and inhabitants.
Hennie sort of takes Nit under her wing and loves sharing her endless fount of "stories" that help pass the time as well as teach the listener a little something about life at Middle Swan and life in general. They both realize they have had a similar tragedy and that fact only serves to bring them closer as friends. At the end of the Great Depression, women folks help one another when they can if any of them need something to help them get better or to lighten their load. Real camaraderie.
I actually loved this story and found it to be my favorite book by Sandra Dallas. It made me wish I had a friend like Hennie when I first married. She is a whirlwind of activity and a source of information as well as knowing almost everybody in town and asking for their help if someone needs it. We are also treated to Hennie's life before moving to Colorado and when her name was not Hennie. Secrets that have been never revealed before.
If you enjoy good well-written stories about women folks in the 1930s and of them living on the land, birthing, doing all the household chores and quilting, you will like this story. Give it a chance. You will leave with a better feeling for reading it.
Two women, Hennie Comfort and Nit Spindle meet because of a sign on Hennie's house that reads "Prayers For Sale." Nit approaches the house very tentatively but Hennie makes her feel at home and invites her in. Soon they develop a lasting friendship. Hennie is 86 years old and has lived in Middle Swan, a Colorado mining town, for most of her life. 17 year old Nit and her husband have just moved to town after her husband got a job there. It is not an easy place to live due to the weather, altitude, dangers, noise and some of the men workers and inhabitants.
Hennie sort of takes Nit under her wing and loves sharing her endless fount of "stories" that help pass the time as well as teach the listener a little something about life at Middle Swan and life in general. They both realize they have had a similar tragedy and that fact only serves to bring them closer as friends. At the end of the Great Depression, women folks help one another when they can if any of them need something to help them get better or to lighten their load. Real camaraderie.
I actually loved this story and found it to be my favorite book by Sandra Dallas. It made me wish I had a friend like Hennie when I first married. She is a whirlwind of activity and a source of information as well as knowing almost everybody in town and asking for their help if someone needs it. We are also treated to Hennie's life before moving to Colorado and when her name was not Hennie. Secrets that have been never revealed before.
If you enjoy good well-written stories about women folks in the 1930s and of them living on the land, birthing, doing all the household chores and quilting, you will like this story. Give it a chance. You will leave with a better feeling for reading it.
Helpful Score: 1
I liked the book which was mainly about life in the early days of the mining town of Breckinridge, Co. Life was pretty rough and women stuck together and talked while they were quilting.
It was an easy read--nice to read before bed. It was not that mentally challenging but I ordered it mainly because of its location as I have an elderly friend who grew up nearby. It is now being passed around among her neighbors.
It was an easy read--nice to read before bed. It was not that mentally challenging but I ordered it mainly because of its location as I have an elderly friend who grew up nearby. It is now being passed around among her neighbors.
Helpful Score: 1
Great Book!! Fast read!!!
Helpful Score: 1
Wonderful book!
Helpful Score: 1
I really like the writing style of this book. Each story told was so good, I could not jump to the end of the book for fear that I would miss a good story.
Helpful Score: 1
very lovely story about love, friendship& survival. The characters are so
wonderful. a good read
wonderful. a good read
Helpful Score: 1
This book will move you and entertain you. Hennie is 86 and has lived in Middle Swan,CO for a long time. But this year will be her last in Middle Swan, because her daughter has insisted that she stop living in the harsh mountain winters and come home to live with her in Iowa.
Hennie life is so blessed she has no need to pray for more, so hence her prayers for sale. Hennie befriends a newcomer, who needs a true friend and a few prayers. Hennie and Nit (and some other ladies) quilt, while Hennie tells a series of great stories, that eventually all intertwine, and introduce other characters. It is beautifully told. Hennie has some loose ends to tie up before she can leave, and it all comes together beautifully and in a surprise ending I didnt actually expect.
This is not the first book I have read by her. It was the best. There is a few pages of book club info and some questions to the Author, that revealed that some of the characters were from other books. I had not caught the connection and it didnt make a difference to the plot or make me feel lost. Zepha Massie is from the Persian Pickle club which I have read twice. I did suspect she was from the book somehow.
Tom Earley from The Diary of Mattie Spenser, and Emma from the Chili Queen, both of which I have not read, but now plan to read. I will probably read the Persian Pickle Club again.
Hennie life is so blessed she has no need to pray for more, so hence her prayers for sale. Hennie befriends a newcomer, who needs a true friend and a few prayers. Hennie and Nit (and some other ladies) quilt, while Hennie tells a series of great stories, that eventually all intertwine, and introduce other characters. It is beautifully told. Hennie has some loose ends to tie up before she can leave, and it all comes together beautifully and in a surprise ending I didnt actually expect.
This is not the first book I have read by her. It was the best. There is a few pages of book club info and some questions to the Author, that revealed that some of the characters were from other books. I had not caught the connection and it didnt make a difference to the plot or make me feel lost. Zepha Massie is from the Persian Pickle club which I have read twice. I did suspect she was from the book somehow.
Tom Earley from The Diary of Mattie Spenser, and Emma from the Chili Queen, both of which I have not read, but now plan to read. I will probably read the Persian Pickle Club again.
Helpful Score: 1
I loved this book. Hennie Comfort is an old, wise and spry old woman. She is at peace with her age but not at peace with losing her home of 70 years. She loves her life, the town and the people of the town so much she grieves the empending move to her daughter across the US.
We watch Hennie develop a new friendship with another woman 60 years her junior. Through that friendship, we learn more about Hennie all the people of the town. Soon, I found the town became a character of the book as Hennie wove wonderfully satisfying stories.
I fell in love with Hennie. I want her for my friend, grandmother, my mother, and my guardian angel...as she seemed to be so so many.
As Hennie weaves her stories to her new young friend Nit, Hennie also crafts her artistic and beautiful quilts, which serve to warm, comfort, decorate. I am not a quilter but my grandmother was. I could never understand the attraction...but this book changed that. I suddenly understood the tapestry of life that a quilt can be.
I discovered by reading this book that I love stories of strong females with strong friendships. Prayers for Sale is about just that...strong yet feminine women bonding, loving, caring, nurturing, sharing, giving and relating. The book made me feel happy.
We watch Hennie develop a new friendship with another woman 60 years her junior. Through that friendship, we learn more about Hennie all the people of the town. Soon, I found the town became a character of the book as Hennie wove wonderfully satisfying stories.
I fell in love with Hennie. I want her for my friend, grandmother, my mother, and my guardian angel...as she seemed to be so so many.
As Hennie weaves her stories to her new young friend Nit, Hennie also crafts her artistic and beautiful quilts, which serve to warm, comfort, decorate. I am not a quilter but my grandmother was. I could never understand the attraction...but this book changed that. I suddenly understood the tapestry of life that a quilt can be.
I discovered by reading this book that I love stories of strong females with strong friendships. Prayers for Sale is about just that...strong yet feminine women bonding, loving, caring, nurturing, sharing, giving and relating. The book made me feel happy.
Helpful Score: 1
This is the first book I have read by this author and I must say I am impressed. Dallas is able to weave a tale of love and loss with out the story becoming too depressing. Hennie befriends a young girl Nit who is new to the area with her husband and Nit wants to buy a pray from Hennie. From that moment on there is a strong bond between these two woman and soon Hennie beging to tell stories of live on the mountain. I laughed at parts of this story and wanted to cry other times, by the end of the book I felt as though I knew Nit and Hennie personally. This is a warm tale of survival of love, loss and friendship. This is an wonderful book a must read!
Dallas returns to her thematic home, the notion of the community of women who support and defend one another in trying times. This time the main characters are an aging widow and a young bride, living in a remote Colorado mining town during the Great Depression. The plot is fairly straightforward, and everything works out for the best, as is typical in a Dallas novel. The worth is in the characters themselves and in their unique voices.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book - the characters, the stories, the setting, and the "feel" created by the author. However, later in the book, it seemed to become somewhat monotonous and seemed to drag on. Another situation - another story. I still really liked the characters though.
My favorite Sandra Dallas book! Not at all what I thought when I read the title. I got it from the library and enjoyed it so much that I bought my own copy. It's a book that I'll visit again!
When Hennie told her husband her life was so full of happiness she had prayers for sale, he made a Prayers for Sale sign to hang in front of their house as a joke. That sign drew in a young wife named Nit who had just moved to the Colorado mountain mining town to give Hennie a nickel for a prayer even though Hennie told her her prayers were free. This meeting was the first of many that turned into a loving friendship between a young wife and an old widow woman. As Hennie told Wit story after story on their adventures to pick berries, quilt, etc., Wit learns how to survive in the mountain town. This is a great story set in the depression where life for these women was extremely tought. The characters are well developed, life like and both funny as well as sad.
I was disappointed in this Dallas book, it was ok, but didn't go anywhere. I enjoyed her "Chili Queen" and several others much more.
This is not my type of book at all , I'm more of a thriller and mystery person, but I thought this book was great. It was a pleasant surprise and I really enjoyed this book.
This was an excellent read! Hennies stories draw you further into the story! Enjoyed it so much I bought more of her books
I've never read a book by Sandra Dallas, but if all her books are like this style, I will
be buying all she has written.
I really fell into the story, I was pulled in from the 1st chapter.
Also I enjoy a good story teller and Hennie was one to put them out there. She befriends
a newbie to the mountains (a young grieving girl, Nit) and they bond instantly. Hennie and Nit have something in common, their (1st)child dyed at a very young age.
Hennie's 2nd daughter has insisted that Hennie cannot stay another winter by herself in the mountain and has asked her to move to Denver to live with her. Hennie doesn't want to leave the mountain place she has known for 60 years. Hennie has been widowed for more that 30 years but has a good friend Tom that has been there for her since the death of her husband Jake. Tom has a love for Hennie that she never knew, Tom asks her to travel the world with him and to marry him. Hennie says yes! But before she
leaves the mountain with Tom theres something she must due, she must forgive a man that had let her child die in a river, the very hardest part after all these years is to forgive this man, but she does and a whole lifes burden has been lifted. Hennie is ready leave the mountain and start a new life with Tom and travel the world she has always dreamed
be buying all she has written.
I really fell into the story, I was pulled in from the 1st chapter.
Also I enjoy a good story teller and Hennie was one to put them out there. She befriends
a newbie to the mountains (a young grieving girl, Nit) and they bond instantly. Hennie and Nit have something in common, their (1st)child dyed at a very young age.
Hennie's 2nd daughter has insisted that Hennie cannot stay another winter by herself in the mountain and has asked her to move to Denver to live with her. Hennie doesn't want to leave the mountain place she has known for 60 years. Hennie has been widowed for more that 30 years but has a good friend Tom that has been there for her since the death of her husband Jake. Tom has a love for Hennie that she never knew, Tom asks her to travel the world with him and to marry him. Hennie says yes! But before she
leaves the mountain with Tom theres something she must due, she must forgive a man that had let her child die in a river, the very hardest part after all these years is to forgive this man, but she does and a whole lifes burden has been lifted. Hennie is ready leave the mountain and start a new life with Tom and travel the world she has always dreamed
I really enjoyed this "storyteller" story. It was interesting telling challenges of the seasons of life and I liked the suspense and surprise ending. It was a heartwarming story. I highly recommend it as a good read.
This is a wonderful book told in layers.
The main character Hennie reveals the story of herself and history of the town to a new young bride that has come to town.
Each story she tells brings the history to life and teaches Nit about life and other.
Shows the toughness of those women and men who worked in the mining industry in the early start of the century.
The main character Hennie reveals the story of herself and history of the town to a new young bride that has come to town.
Each story she tells brings the history to life and teaches Nit about life and other.
Shows the toughness of those women and men who worked in the mining industry in the early start of the century.
I am more of a Mystery fan and thought I might have a problem getting into this book but I was hooked after the first page! The reading was not simple yet not intense. I loved every word. I could relate to parts of the story having had a similar situation in my life. I had a hard time putting the book down. Very GOOD
A young woman (16 yr old) meets with tragedy following the Civil War when her husband is killed, she is attacked and her toddler daughter drowns in a creek. She agrees to marry, sight unseen, a man in Colorado and begins a new life. At the age of 86, she's now a widow, and meets a young woman who just moved to the mining town with her husband. They instantly form a bond and she teaches the young bride the ways of being a woman in the mountains. Heartwarming and touching story with a wonderful ending!!!
Loved it!
As a storyteller myself, I had a special appreciation for this book, which is about a Colorado Rocky Mountain gold camp, during the Great Depression. Hennie, the main character, has lived in the camp for 60 years, and knows all about the inhabitants present and past, and is adept at telling their stories. This book is especially about the hardships faced by women in that time and place, and how they gave help and support to each other and their children, often through a quilt-making club - so the book will appeal to quilt-makers as well, as readers interested in women's history.
This is the story of an older woman and the young girl she takes under her wing in a gold minning town. It is also interwoven with stories that the older woman tells. It is a quick read and very nice story.
