Summer Snow

by Nicole Baart

Book Overview

Julia DeSmit is finally learning to accept her new life. Optimistic and anxious to begin again after dropping out of college, she is taking fumbling steps down a challenging yet hope-filled road. But... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1414316232
• ISBN13: 9781414316239
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
• Length: 364 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Wonderful!

It is a beautiful story full of faith and hope. I didnt want this book to end! Julia DeSmit carries a great deal of pain and hurt from when her mother abandoned her. She never understood why she did what she did. As she is preparing to become a mother herself, she thinks about this a lot.

Another Blessing from Ms. Baart!

I was so excited to read the this sequel and really could not put it down! I have since passed my copy on to my mom, who in turn will probably pass it on to my grandmother, etc..the gift that keeps on giving! :-) This book made me want to hug all the important people in my life, made me laugh, made me cry, made me really think about relationships in my own life. Thank you Nicole!

Painful, Beautiful, Hopeful

Summer Snow is a story about loss and hungers, sorrows and loss of hope. Broken characters bounce off of each other in vain attempts to have the depth of their need quenched. Nicole Baart takes us into the midst of a family facing hard things and she weaves such a tapestry of poignancy and ache that at times I had to stop to breathe. Jesus is barely mentioned but He's there working in the lives and hearts of the characters. As I started into the story I wondered for just a few pages if Julia's voice wasn't a little old for a 19-year-old. And then I realized that Julia's soul had borne sorrow for so long that it fit well. Her journey is eased by her delightful grandmother, Nellie, and a tiny handful of friends. I didn't get to read Baart's first novel, but I read a review and knew that I had to put it on my to-read list, now it's moved up to the top. It's just a matter of time before Baart brings home a Christy award. She masters words and she masters story.

A beautiful story full of faith and hope

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (5/08) An unplanned pregnancy causes Julia DeSmit to drop out of college. She returns home to the house that she was raised in. Julia's father passed away when she was a teen. Abandoned by her mother ten years prior, her paternal grandmother has stepped into the role of raising her. Julia gets a job at a grocery store. The other employees are interesting in their own right. She finds herself having to deal with the interactions among them and her own physical limitations as her pregnancy continues to develop. Julia has resigned herself to the fact that the child will be raised without a father, by his choice. She also is dealing with the fact that the true love of her life, from her youth, is getting married. Having maintained a close relationship with his family, she is around while they are making the preparations. Julia carries a great deal of pain and hurt from when her mother abandoned her. She never understood why she did what she did. As she is preparing to become a mother herself, she thinks about this a lot. When her mother shows up on her grandmother's doorstep with a half-brother for Julia, she has difficulties accepting her presence. She is able to bond with her adorable little brother. Julia's mother tries to reach out to her, and her grandmother encourages this, but Julia is still very angry. As she gets to know her mother better she realizes that a lot of her mother's decision to leave was based upon her mother's problems and issues and not something that Julia did. This gives her a better understanding of why she did what she did, but she can't excuse it. Meanwhile, Julia continues to work and to prepare for her own motherhood. Work is not easy, but some of her newfound friends that she works with step in to try to help accommodate her needs. She also begins to feel her mother slipping away again. Julia's underlying faith helps get her through everything. "Summer Snow" is the sequel to "After the Leaves Fall." It stands well on its own, so it can be read and enjoyed without having read the other one first. It is a beautiful story full of faith and hope. It does not glamorize teen pregnancy, but it does show that it is not path to take. This would be an excellent novel for a woman's or teen's readers group.

An Amazing Sequel

Oh boy, has Nicole Baart done it again! Summer Snow, the sequel to last year's amazing After the Leaves Fall, is just as fantastic as it's predecessor, if not more so. The characters in these books are just so real, so relatable, that I couldn't help but form connections with these "people" I've never met. I even think, at times, Baart was channeling my thoughts as she was writing, as some similarities between my current situation and Julia's throughout the story are almost scary! Summer Snow picks up pretty much right where the previous book left off. Julia is pregnant and still living with her beloved grandmother, after dropping out of college. Constantly dealing with worry about the baby coming, finances, and overall life disappoint, Julia is suffering from an insane amount of internal struggle, but has learned to lean on God to help her through. When her estranged mother shows up one afternoon, completely unexpectedly with a little boy she claims is Julia's half-brother in tow, Julia has no idea how to react, except with her signature anger and frustration. She doesn't know what her mother wants, but does know it can't possibly be anything good. As she takes a chance at connecting with Simon, her new-found brother, as well as come to terms with the impending birth of her baby, Julia slowly begins to understand why her mother may have done some of the things she did, and starts to think that maybe through God's grace and forgiveness, a new relationship can be formed. I wish I had more of a talent at writing book descriptions. It is completely impossible to convey the amount of emotion and heart in this novel. The individual relationships between characters, whether it be between Julia and Simon, Julia and her mother, or anyone else, the feelings the characters are described as having are emitted in the most perfect way, truly allowing you to connect. Such an important part of enjoying a plot is to be able to put yourself into the story and with this book, that is definitely an easy task to accomplish. I loved the story, the writing, the characters, and the feelings I got after finishing each page and chapter.