Customer Reviews

Gown of Glory

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

 

 

This is a book about family ties, the heartaches and joys of a turn of the century family in Penn sylvania. The father is a minister who sees good in everyone. Mom is a stay at home mom and the children are like kids everywhere. The book takes us into the small village of Ladykirk where the inhabitants "drink from the same cup" of joys and sorrws. Things happen in Ladykirk, but as one person says "they have a way of settling down again." The characters come alive and make you want to be there to help when Lucy is expecting her beau and cries over the ragged carpet. Her father tells her that young men do not notice those things. Mary,the mom and the one with the sweet spirit, "hates the heathen" when asked to give up her birthday surprise but promises to try to grow in grace. This is a beautiful book. Read it if you can

This is a beautiful story. The daily life of a minister and his family are realistically portrayed in this tale. It will make you laugh and cry. It may remind you of Thorton Wilder's "Our Town."

What a wonderful book! I came upon it by accident, & I am so very glad that I took that first glance which drew me in. Not only is it a well written story, but the overall message is also a good one --- to be satisfied & succeed in whatever position God puts you in. The characters were so believable & so very likable. I hope to own a copy to read again & again, & I would love to be able to read anything else Ms. Turnbull has written.

This is a light-hearted, easy read which is sure to brighten your spirit. Not a dynamic book, but very simple, innocent and sweet.

The setting is the village of Ladykirk, Pennsylvania in the early 1900s. The main characters are the gentle village pastor, David Lyall, his wife, Mary, and their three children, Faith (24 years old), Jeremy (20 years old) and bubbly, sweet Lucy (18 years old), all three of whom are grown, unmarried and still living with their parents in the well-worn, cozy church parsonage. The book centers on this extraordinarily devoted family and their affectionate daily interactions with each other and also with the other fascinating citizens of the Ladykirk community, most of whom are also life-long members of Pastor David's Presbyterian congregation. It is a story of a family short on cash, but rich in everything else.

A darling part of the story centers on what happens when a very high society (RICH) Pittsburgh steel tycoon's only son falls in love with the poor minister's 18 year old daughter, Lucy.

Much of the book focuses on how the small town church dealt with the "sin" issue in that day and age. It was interesting to compare the "then and now" methods of handling church discipline problems.... drinking, theft, unwed mothers and so on.

The author wholeheartedly described scenery and people. I finished the book feeling as if I had visited this 1900's village and had become friends with each and every person in the Ladykirk community . The book also left me with a more optimistic view of life and people, but most important, it renewed my faith in a "Good God".