Hope Rising: Stories from the Ranch of Rescued Dreams [Paperback]

Kim Meeder (Author)

Book Description

Release date: August 5, 2003

Kim Meeder has seen horses go where no one else can tread - stepping through the minefield of a broken child's soul in a dance of trust that only God can understand. From a mistreated horse to an emotionally starved child and back again, a torrent of love washes away their barren places. Kim's ranch is a place where this miracle happens over and over again. It is a place where the impossible flourishes, where dreams survive the inferno of reality - a place where hope rises.

Where Wounded Spirits Run Free

Follow a horse where no one else can tread, through the minefield of pain that surrounds a broken child’s soul. From a mistreated horse to an emotionally starved child and back again, a torrent of love revives their barren places.

In the presence of unconditional love, a mute girl speaks for the first time. A defiant teenager teaches a horse to trust again...and opens his own heart to love. A rescued horse gives a dying man his last wish. A battered girl finds love and protection in the friendship of a battered horse...

Come visit a place where the impossible flourishes, where dreams survive the inferno of reality—a place where hope rises.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A 16-year-old girl, mute since the loss of her parents, speaks her first words-to an abused and emaciated horse. This moment was really the birth of Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch in Oregon, writes Meeder, the founder and operator of the ranch that rescues abused horses and gives disadvantaged children a chance to care for them. Readers will need an entire box of tissues handy for this collection of real-life stories of incidents at the ranch: two tough-as-nails boys minister lovingly to a horse that has, like them, suffered terrible neglect; in an answer to prayer, strangers donate hundreds of dollars so an impoverished girl can have a pony for Christmas. Most stories are emotional, even cloying, though some are comical and a few-such as one about a horse that was rescued too late to avoid being put down-sidestep the obligatory happy ending. The writing can at times be maudlin; far too many people are described as having "hollow eyes," for example, and the vignettes are encumbered by gratuitous adjectives intended to drive home a dramatic punch. Despite the over-the-top writing style, the emotions are real and intense. Readers will recoil from Meeder's gritty descriptions of the devastating neglect of horses and children, then cheer when it seems their interaction provides healing for both. Meeder laces the stories with her testimony of God's faithfulness and providence, making this an earnest and loving gift book for the Christian market.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Kim Meeder owns and operates Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch in central Oregon with her husband, Troy . Crystal Peaks is a nonprofit organization that rescues abused and neglected horses and pairs them with disadvantaged children, offering the children a place of safety, peace, and learning.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Multnomah Books (August 5, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590522699
• ISBN-13: 978-1590522691
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (91 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54,849 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #48 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Social Sciences > Children's Studies

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Hope Rising - be careful! November 7, 2004

By J. Campbell

Format:Paperback

Be careful? Yes, because this book can grab you and change your life...especially if you love horses and kids. After it was given to me by a friend, I passed it on to my daugher in law, who is an outstanding horsewoman. Like wildfire, everyone in our family read the book and now there's this plan brewing to start a ranch on the east coast to do what Kim does there in Oregon.

I loved the transparency with which she shares her (and her husband's) struggles. The way that her faith emboldens her to keep on doing her "little bit" to make a difference in a world of indifference, neglect and abuse motivates me to do the same.

This book was written in Kim's heart before it was written on paper. How many times do we get to look into someone's heart? Not often.

So be careful....when you look into hers, you might just get inspired to look into your own.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Hope Rising" within me January 17, 2005

By Deborah Olson

Format:Paperback

This is truly an incredible book. The underlying theme throughout is that we are all broken, hurting people, but that through our own experiences, we become equipped to reach out and offer love and compassion to others. Mistreated and neglected horses become instrumental in the healing of abused and hurt children, and the children offer healing to the horses. Even the very land where the ranch is located was undesirable and "mistreated," and they planted "rejected" trees from local nurseries. The short stories give glimpses of countless miracles worked by the hand of God and how a little faith can go a long way in turning something broken and seemingly undesirable into a beautiful place where healing and absolute miracles are seen every day. This is definitely a book to read with tissues in hand, but it is well worth the tears.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars What a powerful book! September 29, 2003

By Krista Meyer

Format:Paperback

Having recently re-entered the world of horses, I'm constantly on the lookout for quality books about all things horse-related. When I came across Hope Rising at a local Christian bookstore, I knew this was one book that I had to get. From the cover art to the comments on the back, to the brief selection I read through, the book grabbed my heart.

Kim has a gift of being able to relate the stories of Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch in a powerful and beautiful way. Her heart for the Lord and for His children and creatures shows through in every story. She addresses the horrors of what she's seen and experienced in a way that's honest, but doesn't overdo it with graphic details. Her focus remains on the Hope she refers to in the book's title. She always comes back to the fact that God can make beauty from ashes, no matter how hopeless a situation seems.

This book is one that anyone would benefit from reading, regardless of their feelings about horses. I know for me, it's already been life-changing. Kim and her husband's work at Crystal Peak is an inspiration for anyone who wants to impact the world for Christ, no matter what the arena in which they choose to do so.