Let me start off by admitting that the summary on the back of the book did not make me eager to read the book. It didnt seem like my style---but I decided to step out of the box and give it a go.
One of the first things that intrigued me was the way the chapters were titled. It wasnt chapter one but rather Saturday: Seven Days before the Carnival. Without even reading a word of the story, I was immediately sucked in! I started asking myself What carnival? And then I started speculating that something must happen at a carnival and eagerly sought references to it from then on as I read. I think this was a genius move by the author and one Ive never seen before.
The first sentence of the story is ripe with premonition
"In those long days between the towns death and its rebirth, everyone had a story of how the magic came to Leah Norcross." (p.1, Coffey)
And from that sentence I decided that this looming carnival must be related to the towns death and jumped into the story with both feet.
I would best liken the plot of the story to an onion. As the story plays out, more and more layers are shown until you finally get to the climax and then you realize how everything comes togetherand yes, as you peel it there will be tears!
The primary plot focuses on the character of Leah Norcross. Leah is a troubled introverted girl with a very strong stutter and she has an "invisible friend" whom she calls Rainbow Man.
The story really gets kicked off when Leah who, on an easel she just received for her birthday, paints a masterpiecea picture which seems to come alive in its depth and vibrancesomething a 9 year old girl should not be able to do. When questioned, she tells her speechless parents that she painted what the Rainbow Man sang to her. Through this painting, we get introduced into another layer of the plot onion in the form of Barney, the man who made Leah the easeland who wins the mega jackpot lottery because of numbers he sees in the painting Leah makes him. And from this point on the story kicks into high gear as it moves ever closer to the looming "Day of the Carnival"!
Through the course of the story we get involved in the lives of the Norcross family, Barney and Mabel Moore, Reverend Reggie Goggins and Allie (Leahs new best friend). The personal faith of each one and the faith of the town of Mattingly is put to the test because of Leah and her Rainbow Man. Like the back cover says, the story makes you question
What marks the boundary between a miracle from God and the imagination of a child?
You will be sucked into the story if you give it a chancemaking predictions about where the plot is going to goand then be shocked when it takes an unexpected twist. You will see the images in your mind because of the authors vivid vocabulary and word pictures. And when the story is over, you might be like me and just go wow.
Even though When Mockingbirds Sing is considered inspirational fiction, I think that even those who arent hot on this genre would still enjoy it because of the richness of the plot. For those who love this genre, I highly recommend it as well as the Reading Group Guide at the back of the book. This book will definitely make you ask questions about your own faith and allow you to ask yourself about your own thoughts on truly walking by faith and not by sightwhich is the underlying message of the story.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson press as part of the BookSneeze book review bloggers program. All opinions expressed are my own and I was not required to write a positive review.
One of the first things that intrigued me was the way the chapters were titled. It wasnt chapter one but rather Saturday: Seven Days before the Carnival. Without even reading a word of the story, I was immediately sucked in! I started asking myself What carnival? And then I started speculating that something must happen at a carnival and eagerly sought references to it from then on as I read. I think this was a genius move by the author and one Ive never seen before.
The first sentence of the story is ripe with premonition
"In those long days between the towns death and its rebirth, everyone had a story of how the magic came to Leah Norcross." (p.1, Coffey)
And from that sentence I decided that this looming carnival must be related to the towns death and jumped into the story with both feet.
I would best liken the plot of the story to an onion. As the story plays out, more and more layers are shown until you finally get to the climax and then you realize how everything comes togetherand yes, as you peel it there will be tears!
The primary plot focuses on the character of Leah Norcross. Leah is a troubled introverted girl with a very strong stutter and she has an "invisible friend" whom she calls Rainbow Man.
The story really gets kicked off when Leah who, on an easel she just received for her birthday, paints a masterpiecea picture which seems to come alive in its depth and vibrancesomething a 9 year old girl should not be able to do. When questioned, she tells her speechless parents that she painted what the Rainbow Man sang to her. Through this painting, we get introduced into another layer of the plot onion in the form of Barney, the man who made Leah the easeland who wins the mega jackpot lottery because of numbers he sees in the painting Leah makes him. And from this point on the story kicks into high gear as it moves ever closer to the looming "Day of the Carnival"!
Through the course of the story we get involved in the lives of the Norcross family, Barney and Mabel Moore, Reverend Reggie Goggins and Allie (Leahs new best friend). The personal faith of each one and the faith of the town of Mattingly is put to the test because of Leah and her Rainbow Man. Like the back cover says, the story makes you question
What marks the boundary between a miracle from God and the imagination of a child?
You will be sucked into the story if you give it a chancemaking predictions about where the plot is going to goand then be shocked when it takes an unexpected twist. You will see the images in your mind because of the authors vivid vocabulary and word pictures. And when the story is over, you might be like me and just go wow.
Even though When Mockingbirds Sing is considered inspirational fiction, I think that even those who arent hot on this genre would still enjoy it because of the richness of the plot. For those who love this genre, I highly recommend it as well as the Reading Group Guide at the back of the book. This book will definitely make you ask questions about your own faith and allow you to ask yourself about your own thoughts on truly walking by faith and not by sightwhich is the underlying message of the story.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson press as part of the BookSneeze book review bloggers program. All opinions expressed are my own and I was not required to write a positive review.
Mesmerizing and hard to put down. A wonderfully told story. Billy Coffey is my newest favorite author.
I'm usually not a fan of Christian fiction, but I have to say that this one will take your breath away. I received it as an ARC and when it arrived is when I noticed the genre it belonged in. I took a chance and I'm very glad I did. Billy Coffey is what I would call a magical author. There is something about his writing that makes you want to open up your mind that the world has endless possibilities. He makes you want to believe that certain events in our life happen for a reason. I believed that to begin with, but it seems more reinforced coming from the words of this author. Does that make sense? I'm not sure if I am making sense. His writing makes you hang on to every word he writes.
In this book Leah and her family are new to the town of Mattingly. Mattingly is a very small close knit town in the south that take care of their own and eye "away people" with suspicion and caution. Leah receives an beautiful wooden easel as a birthday present from one of the towns oldest resident, Barney. Leah starts to paint on this easel and her painting begin to foretell events that are coming towards the people and the town. She claims that The Rainbow Man is telling her what to paint. Some of the town folks look at Leah and believe, while others look at her as some sort of devil who needs to get up and leave town. I don't want to give to much away but I just have to say that those who had lost their faith find it in the end.
In this book Leah and her family are new to the town of Mattingly. Mattingly is a very small close knit town in the south that take care of their own and eye "away people" with suspicion and caution. Leah receives an beautiful wooden easel as a birthday present from one of the towns oldest resident, Barney. Leah starts to paint on this easel and her painting begin to foretell events that are coming towards the people and the town. She claims that The Rainbow Man is telling her what to paint. Some of the town folks look at Leah and believe, while others look at her as some sort of devil who needs to get up and leave town. I don't want to give to much away but I just have to say that those who had lost their faith find it in the end.
