calling all readers...

yes, that means you! I have had the opportunity to read and now review a new book. The best part of this deal is that I get to give one away to one of my friends, anyone who stops by my blog and leaves a comment(see details below). YEAH, I love give aways. I was contacted by Anne, from The Book Report Network in New York. As many of you know, I love to read and who doesn't love a free book?

The book that was mailed to me was Whiter than Snow by Sandra Dallas . Sandra Dallas is also the author(among many other novels) of the Persian Pickle Club, a book that I really loved reading!

Whiter Than Snow, Sandra’s ninth novel,opens in 1920 on a spring afternoon in Swandyke,a small town near Colorado’s Tenmile Range. Just moments after four o’clock, a large split of snow separates from Jubilee Mountain high above the tiny hamlet and hurtles down the rocky slope, sweeping up everything in its path including nine young children who are walking home from school. But only four children survive. Whiter Than Snow takes you into the lives of each of these families. Ultimately, each story serves as an allegory to the greater theme of the novel by echoing that fate, chance, and perhaps even divine providence, are all woven into the fabric of everyday life. And it’s through each character’s defining moment in his or her past that the reader understands how each child has become its parent’s purpose for living. In the end, it’s a novel of forgiveness, redemption, survival, faith, and family.

I really enjoyed this book. When I finished it late last night, I really felt like I knew each character. I may not have related to each character or their situation personally but I came away with a better understanding of different people and where they have come from. This book covers all walks of life. Sandra Dallas dedicated a chapter to each character & that is what allowed me to really feel like I knew each character. Whiter than Snow made me really grateful to have been born when I was. Things have changed alot since 1920 and while I know the world is not perfect, I really do think we have come a long way since the early 1900's. I felt myself cheering on those characters who went out of their way to treat people with kindness even when society treated them different.
A powerful example of that kindness is on page 282 in Whiter Than Snow.

It reads " The book became a classic among folks who lived in mining towns along the spine of the Rocky Mountains, and there was not a house in Swandyke that didn't have a copy, most of them autographed by the author, back when she lived there. After she moved away, people in the town remembered her as the mine manager's wife, the woman who had opened her house to the town on the day of the April avalanche, who had asked that the bodies of the dead children be laid out in her home, who had taken in the prostitute mother and let her sleep in Grace's own bed".

That is how I want to be remembered...remembered as someone who was kind to everyone!

Another strong thread throughout Whiter Than Snow is that people can change. Hearts can be softened, friendships and families can be reunited even when all hope is thought to be lost. It may not be easy but it is definitely possible.

I thought I would rate this book the way I rate books over on Goodreads.
I give this book a 4...meaning I really liked it.

To be entered in the give away, please tell me what your favorite book of all time is. I will have my boys draw a winner in a few days, lets say on Thursday.

I want to thank Anne for the book and the opportunity to read and review it. What a treat.

Happy Reading.