Jolissa Montoya believes God is calling her to work with the disadvantaged children in her inner-city neighborhood. There’s only one problem: The children wouldn’t be able to understand her. Jolissa suffers from a speech impediment and has a thick accent because Spanish is her first language. Ridiculed through much of her youth, she is quite shy and reticent to speak. She is convinced that what God has spoken to her heart is impossible. Impossible, that is, until one day when she shares her concerns with a confidante who shows her a quilt ― a quilt that depicts the life of a courageous woman. Can another woman’s courage move her to try the impossible to step out and follow God wherever He leads her? The Singing Quilt is set against the backdrop of the life of Fanny Crosby, who in addition to writing hundreds of songs was also a well-known public speaker and active in Christian rescue missions despite her disability. Readers will be inspired not to let fear or a disability prevent them from answering what they think is God’s impossible call.
Kathi Macias is a multi-award winning writer who has authored nearly 40 books and ghostwritten several others. A former newspaper columnist and string reporter, Kathi has taught creative and business writing in various venues and has been a guest on many radio and television programs. Kathi is a popular speaker at churches, women’s clubs and retreats, and writers’ conferences. She won the 2008 Member of the Year award from AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association) and was the 2011 Author of the Year from BooksandAuthors.net. Kathi “Easy Writer” Macias lives in Homeland, CA, with her husband. You can find out more about Kathi or contact her via her website: www.kathimacias.com.
My Impressions:
The Singing Quilt by Kathi Macias was chosen by my church book club because of its storyline featuring Fanny Crosby, the well-beloved and prolific hymn writer. The connection between the long ago woman of faith and a modern-day story was intriguing. Unfortunately, the novel fell a bit flat for many of our members. Macias is one of my favorite writers whose diverse characters and social justice messages combined with Christian faith make her an auto-read. But The Singing Quilt just wasn’t my cup of tea. The consensus of my group was that we loved learning about Fanny Crosby’s history, but felt the contemporary story and characters were a bit contrived and one-dimensional. The conflict described in the book was neatly and conveniently resolved, leaving us wanting more. The book also had a definite YA-vibe, although it is not billed as such.
No, I was not a fan of The Singing Quilt. Will it keep me from reading more from Macias? Not at all! Not every book an author writes will appeal to all readers, and her track record of writing insightful and thought-provoking fiction will keep me reading her works.
(I purchased this book from Amazon. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)
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