That strange, snoring, legroom-invading person next to you on the airplane -- have you ever imagined owing your life to him? Nancy Moser tells the gripping story of five passengers and their seatmates who get casually acquainted -- then plunge headlong into an icy river in a sudden plane crash. The moments that follow are more intense than any they have ever lived, changing the way the passengers see God and the meaning of life itself. This book reveals the eternal impact a brief interaction can have and the drastic measures it takes for some to reexamine their souls.
The Seat Beside Me
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Where is God in the midst of appalling tragedy? Moser follows up her inspirational Mustard Seed series of novels by exploring the timely topic of random chance versus divine will. In a few seconds, Sun Fun Airlines Flight 1382 goes from takeoff to nightmare, as the plane crashes into a heavily trafficked bridge, then plunges into a frigid river. Ninety-seven people are dead, and five passengers are left to wonder why they are alive. The survivors, three women and two men, re-examine their priorities and ideas about God, while journalist Dora Roberts struggles with the temptation to indulge in sensationalist exploitation of the disaster as she covers the aftermath for the Chronicle. Despite writing from multiple points of view, Moser keeps the story line clear and the pacing steady. However, like many recent Christian fiction releases, the novel is too long; it also includes a seven-page dialogue between Tina and another character that mostly functions to present the plan for salvation. Readers will have to stretch their imaginations to believe that the characters share as much personal information as they do with their seatmates in the long delay before takeoff. However, Moser makes the stretch worth the effort. As the survivors mull over why they were spared, Moser admirably demonstrates that tragedy is a life-changing opportunity, in which reassessments and changes for the better are possible. This is upbeat news that many Christian readers will appreciate after recent tragic events.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Moser wrote a spiritual warfare trilogy several years ago that has been widely popular. Her The Seat beside Me is that old story of the fatal air crash and the tragedies and triumphs it occasions--the woman who desperately wants some time away from her family and then finds them seated next to her on the plane; the old fellow flying off with a plan for suicide; the unscrupulous executive whose schemes finally do her in. The plane takes off in a storm and shortly crashes in frigid water. Some become heroes; others demonstrate their selfishness. All who survive are profoundly changed. The publisher is promoting Moser's novel as good reading in the aftermath of planes crashing into the World Trade Center, and at least for evangelicals, it is. John Mort
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Product Details
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More About the Author
Nancy Moser is the award-winning author of over twenty novels that focus on the characters discovering their unique purpose. Her genres include both contemporary and historical stories. Her latest release "An Unlikely Suitor" was named to Booklist's "Top 10 Romance Novels of 2011". Both "An Unlikely Suitor" and "Masquerade" are set in the Gilded Age of New York City (see a book trailer for "Masquerade" below.) Coming out in 2012 is a Christmas/Quilt antholgy,"A Patchwork Christmas", containing three novellas by Moser, Stephanie Grace Whitson, and Judith Miller. Moser's contemporary books are known for their big-cast utilization of multiple points-of-view and intricate plotting. Some titles are "John 3: 16", "The Sister Circle", "The Good Nearby", and "The Invitation." Her historical bio-novels allow real women-of-history to share their life stories: "Just Jane" (Jane Austen), "Mozart's Sister" (Nannerl Mozart), "Washington's Lady" (Martha Washington) and "How Do I Love Thee?" (Elizabeth Barrett Browning.) Her time-travel novel, "Time Lottery", won a Christy Award and "Washington's Lady" was a finalist. Nancy and her husband Mark live in the Midwest. She's earned a degree in architecture, traveled extensively in Europe, and has performed in numerous theaters, symphonies, and choirs. She gives Said So Sister Seminars around the country, helping women identify their gifts as they celebrate their sisterhood. She paints canes voraciously, kills all her houseplants, and can wire an electrical fixture without getting shocked. She is a fan of anything antique--humans included. Find out more at www.nancymoser.com, www.sistercircles.com. and her historical fiction blog at: http://footnotesfromhistory.blogspot.com/
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Timely and Inspirational,
By
This review is from: The Seat Beside Me (Paperback)
Would you die for a stranger? In light of the horrible events of September 11, 2001, this question has been asked over and over again. Everyday people have been heroes as well as those who have occupations where saving a human being is often an everyday occurrence. IN THE SEAT BESIDE ME, Nancy Moser explores this question and much more via the survivors of a tragic airplane crash and the lessons they learn from those who died who were sitting next to them. Sun Fun Airlines flight 1382 to Phoenix has been delayed because of snow. As the airplane sits on the tarmac being de-iced, several of the passengers begin to talk to those sitting next to them. Merry Cavanaugh is a young wife and mother who wants more. She has a friend in Phoenix who is footloose and fancy-free and she is looking forward to spending some time partying with her and forgetting her real life for awhile. Imagine her shock when her husband and young daughter join her on the flight as a surprise. George Davanos is going to Phoenix to kill himself. His wife of many years died of cancer seven months previously and he is still so grief-stricken that all he wants to do is join her. The man sitting next to him is a man who has just received a new awakening in his spiritual life. He is on a business trip, taking the place of a co-worker who has a wedding to attend. Schoolteacher Tina McKutcheon is traveling to Phoenix for some fun in the sun and a break from her boyfriend and her students. She is so tired of surly teenagers. When she spots a teenage girl entering the plane she looks at her decides she wants anyone BUT her to sit next to her. Of course, she doesn't get her wish and instead teenager Mallory sits next to her and starts up a conversation. Sonja Grafton is on the plane because she pulled a dirty trick on a co-worker, causing her superiors to select Sonja to go to the convention in Phoenix. She would rather just relax on the way to Phoenix and not talk to anyone. Her seatmate, Roscoe Moore, has different ideas. Plastic surgeon Anthony Thorgood is a pompous, arrogant man who thinks he is so much better than anyone else. When he sits next to a rather large, unkempt woman he makes several preconceived observations of her. When the plane crashes into a bridge and then into a river on take-off, there are only five survivors. Those five survivors, Merry, George, Tina, Sonja, and Anthony, are forced to take another look at their lives. In addition, who was the mysterious man -- dubbed a hero by the media -- who passed a lifeline to others not once, not twice, but a total of four times before disappearing in the icy water? In addition to the survivors, playing a significant role in the story is reporter Dora Roberts who had been scheduled to be on that same flight in order to be with her mother in Phoenix who was to undergo surgery. Just before she's to leave, her mother calls with the news that her surgery has been cancelled as she apparently has been miraculously cured. Of course Dora just figures that the doctors had been wrong initially. But instead of being a victim of flight 1382, she writes about it. One of the words one could use to describe THE SEAT BESIDE ME is intense. It is also fast-paced and a quick read which is ultimately uplifting as lessons are learned and the characters learn what is truly important in their lives. Evangelistic Christians are the targeted readers of this book. Others may find this book more than just a little bit "preachy" and feel that with the focus of the book being as it is, that the author is mainly "preaching to the choir." But as a more liberal Christian myself, I still found the story compelling and worthwhile. I only bristled one time, and that was when one of the minor characters was criticized for her Buddhist faith. I believe it would have been more effective for the book to leave out this aspect rather than risk turning off anyone who is sympathetic to those of other faiths. That reservation is rather small, and can be overlooked in view of the "bigger picture." I read the book in a day, and that is high praise indeed for someone who is normally a slow reader. My recommendation is for readers to keep an open mind and enjoy the story itself, for the lessons the characters learn are very worthwhile and speak to everyone
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Influence,
By Janie (Joplin, MO, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Seat Beside Me (Paperback)
Others may write reviews with details of the characters of the book, but I think that this book is more than the sum of its parts. The book is fascinating, the characters are more than likeable (except one) - that is, we all know all of these people. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hated putting it down at night; but I couldn't wait to finish it so that I could loan it to others. All in all, I think the theme is that we can never know the effect we each individually have on someone else. Whether we sit beside someone for just a few moments and speak only one sentence or we are best friends for a lifetime, we do exert some influence. Similarly, they influence us. Sounds a bit simple, but it truly is profound to realize the possibility of the influence we have, one-on-one.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent, thought provoking book!,
By Margaret "Margety" (Martinsburg, WV USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Seat Beside Me (Paperback)
The Seat Beside Me was a book that kept me wanting to go back and read, read, read! I was sorry when I was finished with it. I felt as if I
got to know the characters and felt the tension, cried and rejoiced as events progressed. I have loaned it to different friends, who have loved it, too.
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