Customer Reviews

Beaded Hope

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I received Beaded Hope as part of the First Reads program. Let me admit that had I known that this was classified as "Christian Fiction", I probably wouldn't have entered to win a copy. Not that there's anything wrong with Christian Fiction. It's just that I'm not a particularly religious person so I tend to shy away from anything with a religious slant to it (unless it's non-fiction or horror). Probably due to my preconceived notions of Christian fiction, Beaded Hope ended up exceeding my expectations.

I thought that Beaded Hope was a great book. There was a bit of "The Lord will help you if you believe" type of praying, but I felt that was more about the characters personal problems and a part of what they did on their day-to-day life. I didn't feel like I was being beaten over the head with the preaching so that definitely made me enjoy the book more.

I ended up liking all of the main characters. They were all extremely flawed women and I was interested in whether or not they were going to solve their problems. The supporting characters in this book were amazing! I found myself shedding tears from one of their storylines and inspired by the countless others. Some of the book was a bit predictable (mainly the end to Gabby's storyline), but it didn't dampen my enjoyment of this book or its characters (mainly Cassandra, who I found hilarious).

So, in the end, I enjoyed reading Beaded Hope. It did drag a bit in the middle, it picked right back up after that. This was a great inspiring novel about the good of the human spirit and about what comes from helping one another. It's definitely recommended.

Gabby is fleeing a disintegrating marriage after years of fertility treatments and miscarriages. Heidi and her daughter Katie are hiding the secret of teen pregnancy that has ostracized them at home. Cassandra is a no-longer-up-and-coming reporter, hoping for the big story that will rejuvenate her career. The four of them end up on a missions trip to South Africa where they meet women whose faith and passion to help others transforms their lives.

I loved this book because the African women were like women I have met in my years living there. Liggett portrays them as heroes--women with strong faith in God who open their homes to orphans and children on the street, women who visit the sick and aren't afraid to talk out loud about AIDS, women who love their children as passionately as you or I.

Switches in point-of-view to introduce the various characters slowed down the beginning a little bit. And of course, three scenarios also necessitated three endings. (Fewer than Tolkien!) But once I knew these women, both American and African, I was committed to seeing their journey through.

Calling Mamelodi a "village" is probably intended to convey the idea of a supportive community, but I suspect most readers visualize a smaller, more rural setting than the sprawling, peri-urban community of nearly a million people that is the real Mamelodi. But in the end, "Mamelodi" is a just name. This story could have taken place anywhere in South Africa, urban or rural.

Beaded Hope is about women helping women--African women helping each other and reaching out with grace to their clueless American visitors. The Americans go home changed, and readers will be too.

The words that become stories can have such a huge impact on our daily lives. I am thankful for those who write such beautiful stories. Beaded Hope is one of those stories for me. This book was very inspirational and captured my heart.

This was an awesome story! I am not going to write about how I loved the characters as you can read the many reviews about that. I just wanted to say the book really opened my eyes to the great need in Africa. Especially to the children surrounded by the effects of Aids. I knew about Aids in Africa however it was a head knowledge not a heart knowledge. I want to Thank the author for giving me the heart knowledge! It left me wanting to do something to help! (which I think is exactly the effect she was going for)
I cannot afford to take a trip to Africa to help but I can help with bracelet sales. I have gone to the website to order bracelets.
Here was the idea God gave me. Buy the book on Amazon to give to a friend. Buy a bracelet from the website. When giving the book give a wrapped package and card that is to be opened only after they have read the book. In the card let them know which of the ladies made their new gift and ask them to do the same for another friend.
I am the church Librarian and this book is going to our library. I will put a note inside the book with this idea and God will provide the Blessing.
Many Thanks to the author for using her skill as a writer and doing the part God laid out for her!!!! May God Bless you abundantly!
I would love to hear from other readers any ideas they might have or if you used the idea God gave me.
Now that we have a small way to help let's make sure we do our part!

What a great and inspirational story! As I was reading, it almost felt like I was there, alongside the women. It was really hard to put the book down and once I finished it, I wish it hadn't ended.

Beaded Hope by Cathy Liggett was to say the least.... absolutely awe inspiring! To set the scene for you all, the book opens with a glimpse into the everyday lives of three women, and the teenage daughter of one of the women, who live in Ohio. They are all is facing some sort of conflict in their lives, and ironically, each of the women (including the teenage daughter of one of the women) decide to sign up for a two-week mission trip to South Africa. Cassandra, a highly acclaimed news reporter intends to turn in the story of her broadcast career when she returns to the states; Gabby hopes to escape the heartache that has turned her life upside-down; and Heidi and her daughter, Katie, who are still trying to get over the loss of their beloved husband and father are facing an adventure that could forever change their lives and the relationship that they have with each other.

Once they arrive in South Africa, these women are informed that they will all be working as a team to provide support to a remote village where AIDS is ravaging the women and children. There are no men left in the village as they have either succumbed to the disease or have abandoned their families after being infected. The women and children are living in rancid conditions and in places that one could hardly call home. The four women are mortified by what they see and suddenly, their personal problems back in Ohio seem to be forgotten.

The four women share a unit in a church compound, where the leader of the community, Mama Penny, welcomes them and informs them that she will be their guide for the next two weeks. They are introduced to an AIDS infected African American woman named Jaleela, who has come up with a way to help her community by selling beaded jewelry to people in the United States.

It is a story about commitment, community, family, and about how God comes through even in the most incomprehensible situations. It is a very family friendly book and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in sitting down and cuddling up with a good book.

I really hope that you guys choose to read/ review this book for yourselves; it was definitely worth it to me! I was provided with a complimentary copy of the book from Tyndale House Publishers

I just happened upon this book & was very happy to have read it! I don't usually read religious type books, but the summary sounded so interesting. Being a nurse, I'm so aware of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa. I'm so glad I did read this book. It has wonderful characters that come together from such different backgrounds. They band together for one goal - assist the women & their families afflicted with this horrible illness. I wish I had the ability to go on a mission of this nature also, to try & help people in other areas of the world that so desperatley need it. Excellent story by the author!

Four women from Ohio embark on a mission trip to South Africa. The trip is nothing like any of them planned or envisioned, of course.

These women went into their mission trip unprepared. They had no idea what to expect, for starters, but they each also come weighted down with secrets and fears, doubts and hurts.

Since I've been on a trip to Africa (not South Africa, though), I knew I had to read this book. At a few points, especially early on but also later, the bottom fell out of me, as I was sure I knew what was going to happen next and I was disappointed. But, happily, I was wrong about that most of the time!

The women work with a group of South African women with HIV/AIDS who are making beaded jewelry to support themselves and their children. The book is based on a real-life nonprofit organization that works in this arena, with the same name as the book: Beaded Hope.

The women in the book who take this trip are transformed, of course, but they also make a difference in the lives of those they serve.

My husband brought me a bracelet, which is crafted of beads made from recycled paper made by women with HIV/AIDS in Kenya. I'm sure this bracelet of mine isn't the same as those produced by Beaded Hope -- that organization is just in South Africa, it seems -- but the concept is strikingly similar.

OK, back to the book. Beaded Hope was an emotionally stirring read for me. After I got past my initial feelings of dread (The cover? The concept? I'm not sure.) I enjoyed this story. I didn't love this book, but at the same time, it was a book I couldn't *not* read.

This review was originally published on my blog. I received this book from the publisher.

"When four women embark on a mission trip to South Africa, they all have selfish reasons for going. What none of them expects is how profoundly their lives will be transformed by those they meet."

Four distinct women with four very different reasons for joining this trip are all moved beyond the momentary heart pangs we often feel when we hear the statistics that mean death for real people. These women are not different than most that I've met or even me. These are relatable women with lives that are less than perfect. They all join to go on this mission trip to help women of South Africa begin a sustainable source of income, but invariably are served more than they serve. Though the characters are fiction, one can certainly imagine the real circumstances that they face and imagine the faces of the previously known only by statistics.

One thing that I appreciated was that the author was able to bring perspective to the women's issues in comparing them with the women in S.A., but the women were still pressed to solve their problems. The strength of the women in Africa gave the American women the realization that God was bigger than they realized, and He is their strength.

The story was well put together and had an easy flow that made me want to keep reading. There was some predictability, but not so much as to feel like it was unrealistic. It had a clear sense of the Spirit, but was not over-the-top, and even exposed some of the feelings those of us who grow up in church often have. Again, it was very realistic. It was not a "happily-ever-after" tale and shared the heartache of different levels of pain and how God leads them through it. It is not heavy on theology or doctrine, so it's a light easy read.

I enjoyed the book and would recommend it. One of the things that I particularly enjoyed was that a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the novel will go to support the very real organization, Beaded Hope in South Africa. I plan to donate to the organization since I received this book without cost from Tyndale Publishers. A story that supports a worthy cause is definitely one to buy. Please learn more at [...].

Have a box of tissues handy as you reach the end.


Well written with strongly developed characters this book is one that truly tugs at the heartstrings.
Four women head off to South Africa on a mission trip to help a village deeply impacted by HIV/AIDS.
Little do they know that they will be helped more by the trip than the villagers.


All four leave from the States with problems of their own but find out that the problems they are facing have nothing on what the women in South Africa face.


What I especially liked about this book was the way that each character was introduced; slowly and individually. You learned why they were running away on this mission and you learned their core personalities first. That way when the transformations occurred they made sense and were true to the person.


The final chapters are heartrending and uplifting. It reminds you that even when a person acts with less than the best of intentions a good act can result in life altering changes.