The Joy of Second Chances

What is your favorite Christmas memory? Christmas? You can't be thinking about this holiday already it only nearly Halloween for goodness sake! Still, did you know that Christmas is a little less than 75 days away? So, back to the memory question?

Have you ever taken a sleigh ride? I am talking about real one - in the snow drawn by horses with sleigh bells and all? Cindy Woodsmall's new book "The Sound of Sleigh Bells" makes me feel nostalgic for just such a Christmas. Although, living in Southern California I am more than likely not going to have that type of Christmas it is still a beautiful picture to conjure in relation to this wonderful time of year.

Enough about the season and on to the book. A touching novel that brings about a great deal of "letting go and letting God". At some point in our lives we have all experienced loss or regret and perhaps held on to those feelings of pain. The idea of second chances and starting over are sometimes things we think only happens once in a great while. Yet, many times those chances take place more often then we realize. Beth's story is a great example of just this type of second chance.

Woodsmall is a new Author in my library collection and I found her writing to be easy to follow, charming, and heart-warming. Her characters are vivid and real. Take look:

"Jonah laughed out loud, and the wind running through the leaves made it seem like the oaks joined him. Her truthfulness by itself kept him chuckling. He hoped Beth could see the majesty of the great outdoors."

Interested in ordering? Click here. And just for fun, I am giving away a hardcover copy of "The Sound of Sleigh Bells." (Just in time for Christmas!! This would make an excellent Stocking Stuffer) Email your "second chance" story to . (Remember I need your mailing address too!). Contest ends Nov. 2, 2009.