Remember Box, The [Paperback]

Patricia Houck Sprinkle (Author)

Book Description

Series: Jobs Corner Chronicles, No. 4 | Publication Date: November 1, 2000

A Presbyterian pastor, his wife, and family move to rural North Carolina to pastor a church—and are met not just by a hostile congregation but by murder and abduction.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this Christian novel, Sprinkle (author of the Sheila Travis mysteries and When Did We Lose Harriet?) deftly addresses racial tensions in the segregated South in 1949. Carley Marshall, an 11-year-old white girl, is forced to move in with her aunt and uncle in their sleepy village of Job's Corner, N.C., after her mother dies. Having been raised under the influence of her racially conservative grandmother, Carley is startled by the attitude of her preacher-uncle, a firm advocate of biblical equality. The town has similar concerns about him. For the people of Job's Corner, eating meals prepared by blacks is de rigueur, while sitting down to table with them is another matter entirely. In Uncle Steven, Sprinkle has crafted a strong yet sympathetic character whose ideas on race and social justice are ahead of their time. In his wife, Kate, torn between her love for her husband and her fear of what people will think of them, Sprinkle allows readers to see the toll such visionary leadership can have on a family. Written as a flashback, the novel is aptly named as the grown-up Carley struggles to write the true story of what happened in Job's Corner in 1949 from a box of tangible memories. Readers will enjoy Sprinkle's memorable cast of characters and unexpected plot twists, and be challenged by her message of racial equality. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-A novel that captures readers in short order. Now adults, Abby gives her cousin Carley a "remember box" that had belonged to Abby's mother. As Carley lifts the objects from the box, readers are given hints as to the importance of each piece but must read on to learn the whole story that unfolded so many years before as recorded by Carley. In 1949, when her mother died, 11-year-old Carley was sent to live with her Aunt Kate, Uncle Steven, four-year-old Abby, and infant John in Job's Corner, NC, where Steven was the new Presbyterian minister. Feisty, brave, and aware, young Carley faces the racial bigotry in herself and others that is the social norm of the time, bred into children by blacks and whites alike. The treachery of some adults is brought home when her uncle stands trial after being falsely accused of molestation, again when a black family friend is nearly convicted of murder, and in the dangerous encounter she has with the father she had thought was dead. She also witnesses the uncommon heroics and self-sacrifice that can be found in the most unexpected places. The story lures readers along as the pieces fall into place. The characters are steeped in reality, drawn convincingly and full of the surprises inherent in ordinary people. The story should provoke some interesting discussion about situations that are as real today as they were then.

Carol DeAngelo, Kings Park Library, Burke, VA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan Publishing Company (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310229928
• ISBN-13: 978-0310229926
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,232,879 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A story that will touch your heart and soul!, January 8, 2001

By 

Sharon Galligar Chance (Wichita Falls, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remember Box, The (Paperback)

Patricia Sprinkle takes her readers back in time to the 1950s, an era that is as turbulent as it is gentle. She captures the slow friendliness of Southern hospitality and the cold cruel reality of racism and bigotry with startling realism, and conveys a wonderful story of growing up as seen through the eyes of a woman who is looking back at her past. Weaving an intriguing mystery among the remeniences of her young heroine, Carley, Sprinkle grabs her audience by the collar and doesn't let go until the final fascinating end. This is a great story!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I loved this book!, January 10, 2003

By 

Amelia Gill (Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Remember Box, The (Paperback)

This tale of Carley and her year with her aunt and uncle and cousin is so well written! I kept having to stop to read bits of it to others around me just to share the way Patricia puts her words together. The story put me right there in that little community the whole way through. I could not put the book down.

While I did not grow up in North Carolina, this story struck a real chord with me. I found myself flooded with memories of my own childhood from a time when I stayed often with my grandparents in their old house in Florida.

I enjoyed "The Remember Box" so much that I have shared it as a Christmas gift with several of my friends.

Thank you, Patricia, for another great read!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Southern small town struggles, July 25, 2002

By 

D. Cowling "Book lover" (Alberta Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Remember Box, The (Paperback)

I loved this book. It is well written and reminds me of "To Kill a Mockingbird" both in quality and style. This was a book that I did not want to finish and I fell in love with the characters. The descriptions of life in a small town in the late 1940's resonated with me and her characterizations of people were dead on. There was enough mystery to satisfy my love of that genre but it was so evocative in it's painting of "the south" and it's struggle with the racial issues that I was hooked from the beginning. Because I live in Canada, it was a treat to bury myself in this totally different world. I could almost smell the magnolia's and feel the heat.
I especially enjoyed her ability to get into the mind of an 11 year old and to see the world through her eyes. Rang true all the way through the book. Ms Sprinkle has written a winner and I look forward to reading more of her books.