Just Shy of Harmony [Audio CD]

Philip Gulley (Author), Norman Dietz (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: 2002

Quaker pastor Sam Gardner is discouraged. He just hasn't felt the same since Goal Setting Sunday, when the church elders ignored his suggestion to help a local medical clinic and voted to install a new vanity for the women's restroom instead. Even worse, Pastor Jimmy at the Harmony Worship Center down the road is delivering sermons like "Ten Mutual Funds Jesus Would Die For," and drawing Sam's flock away in the droves. What else can Sam do but quit the ministry?

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Recorded Books (2002)
• ISBN-10: 1402538146
• ISBN-13: 978-1402538148
• ASIN: B001QN3WPU
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,592,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Philip Gulley has become the voice of small-town American life. Along with writing Front Porch Tales, Hometown Tales, and For Everything a Season, Gulley is the author of the Harmony series of novels, as well as If Grace Is True and If God Is Love, which are coauthored with James Mulholland.

He hosts "Porch Talk with Phil Gulley" on the Indiana PBS affiliate WFYI television's flagship show Across Indiana.

Gulley lives in Indiana with his wife, Joan, and their sons, Spencer and Sam--in a rambling old house with Gulley's eclectic chair collection (64 at last count) and a welcoming back porch.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner from Philip Gulley, January 13, 2003

By 

Katie F. "kayters" (Marietta, GA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Just Shy of Harmony (Hardcover)

In this wonderful sequel to Home to Harmony, Sam is beginning his second year as pastor of Harmony Friends Meeting. This sequel, as the first book, follows a year in Harmony. Dale Hinshaw is still getting on Sam's (and everyone else's) nerves and has a new idea for witnessing - scripture eggs. Deena Morrison, owner of Legal Grounds, returns and plays a bigger part as does Wayne Fleming.

I enjoyed this book even more than the original. Instead of the vignettes of small-town life that the original had, the sequel follows a more traditional storyline and I found that the characters came even more to life for me in this fashion!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just Shy of Satire, August 19, 2002

By 

Mamalinde "mamalinde" (Dallas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Just Shy of Harmony (Hardcover)

Mr. Gulley takes an irregular route to the very heart of things, complete with a test of faith. The reader returns to Harmony where once again the author shines up the mediocre and the mundane and turns it into a miracle. A very sympathetic look into the discouragement of leading a church of willy nilly believers, with one or both feet in the past and blinders on their eyes. The reader will learn why goal setting and a gymnasium aren't necessarily a good thing for a church, and how a run-away wife and mother can pull people together. The accidental lottery winners and scripture eggs and yes - gossip - keep things interesting, when life isn't always harmonious. Believe it or not, there is something for everyone here in this story of a Quaker minister challenging faith and depression. The well intentioned, as well as the goofier members of this congregation, are kindly and humorously set out in caricatures that leave you laughing or shaking your head (and I'm betting you'll recognize some of these folks). The Friendly Women taking on the liberal press and hijacking the hospital kitchen was simply a touch of genius. The gentle people of Harmony occasionally practice the fine art of indifference, but joy and faith, steadiness and kindness carry through. A thought provoking and profound ending that challenges the reader to come up with their own explanation. Might giving thanks be more important than seeking the truth?

Don't miss Gulley's other warm, wonderful and charming books: Home to Harmony, Front Porch Tales and For Everything There A Season ... divided into easy to digest chapters for all ages.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Storytelling, February 26, 2002

By 

Dan Whipple (Avon, IN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Just Shy of Harmony (Hardcover)

Last weekend I spent a wonderful year in Harmony reacquainting myself with the good citizens of this simple Indiana town. This is the second book in a series about the small town of Harmony, Indiana. Brought to life by a master storyteller,the common folks of Harmony will make you laugh, cry, pull your hair out in disgust, and leave you with a warm feeling. Phil Gulley will lead you down a path of character assassination and, just as you have passed judgment, facts are revealed to reverse your feelings 180 degrees. A subtle lesson in prejudging others results in a paradigm shift that leaves you rooting for the underdog. I can't wait for the next book in the Harmony series to find out what Dale, Sam, Jessie, Deena, Fern, and all the other great folks of Harmony will be up to.