Summer Snow

By Nicole Baart

Posted on October 1, 2008 12:00 AM MST by Sara Richardson

“God," I prayed, "if you’re listening to this pregnant checkout girl, if my still, small voice can be heard above Mr. Walker’s booming laugh and the roar of his oversize engine, grant me a little stability in my life. Change is overrated.”

Instead of continuing her college career like most of her friends, an unexpected pregnancy forces Julia DeSmitt to drop out, return home to her grandmother, and take a job at the local Value Foods. Just as she starts to accept the changes in her life and future, her absentee mother appears on their doorstep needy and hungry and not alone. For the first time, Julia is introduced to her younger half-brother Simon, and though she doesn’t want to, she falls in love with him. When her grandma suggests that they take the homeless pair in, Julia is forced to confront the anger and bitterness she’s continued to harbor since her mother’s departure ten years earlier.

As the three women learn how to coexist under one roof, Julia struggles to forgive her mother. Despite the tension at home, her grandmother’s love and support and the joy she finds in a special new friend provide rays of light that shine through the deeper issues she faces, giving the story a hopeful quality.

Once again, Nicole Baart has managed to capture the reader with a memorable story that transcends preconceived notions about grace, wholeness, and forgiveness. She builds on the themes from her preceding book, After the Leaves Fall, to bring Julia’s journey full circle—from being a child herself to giving birth to her own child and understanding more about God’s purpose in her life. 

The combination of a unique voice and artistic ability make Nicole Baart’s writing sensitive and profound. She goes beyond the surface to create a redemptive and memorable narrative that will deepen your understanding of divine hope and grace. This is a must read for grandmothers, mothers, and daughters.

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