THE HOMECOMING OF SAMUEL LAKE

Author:  Jenny Wingfield

Genre:  Fiction, Standalone

Published:  2011

Personal Rating:  5/5
(absolutely outstanding)

Format:  eBook

Yearly Count:  76

From NetGalley:

Every first Sunday in June, members of the Moses clan gather for an annual reunion at "the old home place," a sprawling hundred-acre farm in Arkansas. And every year, Samuel Lake, a vibrant and committed young preacher, brings his beloved wife, Willadee Moses, and their three children back for the festivities. The children embrace the reunion as a welcome escape from the prying eyes of their father's congregation; for Willadee it's a precious opportunity to spend time with her mother and father, Calla and John. But just as the reunion is getting under way, tragedy strikes, jolting the family to their core: John's untimely death and, soon after, the loss of Samuel's parish, which set the stage for a summer of crisis and profound change.

In the midst of it all, Samuel and Willadee's outspoken eleven-year-old daughter, Swan, is a bright light. Her high spirits and fearlessness have alternately seduced and bedeviled three generations of the family. But it is Blade Ballenger, a traumatized eight-year-old neighbor, who soon captures Swan's undivided attention. Full of righteous anger, and innocent of the peril facing her and those she loves, Swan makes it her mission to keep the boy safe from his terrifying father.

With characters who spring to life as vividly as if they were members of one's own family, and with the clear-eyed wisdom that illuminates the most tragic-and triumphant-aspects of human nature, Jenny Wingfield emerges as one of the most vital, engaging storytellers writing today. In The Homecoming of Samuel Lake she has created a memorable and lasting work of fiction.

Just finished and just amazed.  I loved this book.  Being that I was reading this eBook on my iPad (bedtime read = little spurts), I wasn't making a lot of progress - until I got to about 1/3 of the way through.  I, then, decided that I simply wanted to read more and zoomed through the remaining 2/3 during the day.  I just couldn't stop.  

The book has so much to offer.  It is filled with a family of terrific characters that in one way or another touch your heart.  You just can't help but let them in.  There is also tension, a bit of quiet mystery, and of course, daily life that is hard to turn away from.  Simply stated:  The Homecoming of Samuel Lake was never dull.  There was continual action of one sort or another, and I had a hard time moving my eyes from my iPad back to the big screen football games.  Now that's impressive!  (Not the Michigan game, though!  All eyes on Michigan!!!  Go Blue!)  This "best read" is now on my list of "must purchase" so I can add it to my personal bookshelves.

My thanks go to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for sending me this eGalley.


My Random Question:  For those of you that have read this book and The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (Bradley), what are your thoughts about Swan vs Flavia?  I LOVED Swan and did not care for Flavia at all.  Do you see similarities or are there glaring differences?  Just curious.