Where Do I Go? (Yada Yada House of Hope Series, Book 1) [Paperback]

Neta Jackson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 9, 2008

Sometimes you find hope in the last place you look.

Gabrielle Fairbanks has nearly lost touch with the carefree, spirited young woman she was shen she married her husband sixteen years ago. But when the couple moves to Chicago to accommodate Philip's ambition, Gabby longs for the chance to find real purpose in her own life.

A chance encounter with a homeless woman suddenly opens a dooor she never expected. The women of Manna House Women's Shelter need a Program Director--and she has the right credentials. Gabby's in her element, feeling God's call on her life at last, even though Philip doesn't like the changes he sees in her. But she never anticipated his ultimatum: quit your job at the shelter or risk divorce and losing custody of our sons.

In this moment, Gabby's entire foundation shifts. She must find refuge, as in the song they sing at Sunday worship: "Where do I go when there's no one else to turn to . . . I go to the Rock I know that's able, I go to the Rock."

For everyone who loves the best-selling Yada Yada Prayer Group novels comes a brand new series sprinkled with familiar faces and places from the Yada Yada world. It's the perfect novel to start with--or to meet friends from past Yada stories.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Jackson's Yada Yada series has sold half a million copies, and this new offshoot series—the Yada Yada House of Hope—promises the same. Gabrielle Fairbanks moves to Chicago with her businessman husband, Philip, leaving their sons behind at boarding school in Virginia. She literally stumbles over a homeless woman, an event that changes Gabby's life. She looks her up at Manna House, a homeless shelter, and first finds welcome and eventually a job. But her husband is hostile toward both Gabby and her job. Can she juggle her angry husband and his new business, her sons when they come home for the summer, her ill mother, her job and her growing interest in God? While the plot certainly generates interest, readers may become weary of Gabby's lack of grit when it comes to Philip, as well as his selfishness and anger toward his wife. But the book's dramatic ending highlights both, leaving readers eager for the next installment in the series. (Dec.)
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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (December 9, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595545239
• ISBN-13: 978-1595545237
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (65 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #190,659 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

As a kid I was crazy about horses and animals of all kinds and loved to draw (horses, mostly). Since I didn't have a horse, I wrote stories about them instead. My high-school English teacher sent one of my stories (about a couger) to a Scholastic magazine writing contest and it won First Place . . . and the rest, as they say, is history. I wanted to be a writer!

I grew up on the campus of a private Christian school in Seattle where my parents were teachers. A lovely childhood, though fairly sheltered. But college took me back to the Chicago area and a whole new world. My husband and I settled in the Chicago area soon after getting married, and even though we both grew up in solid Christian homes, our search to deepen our faith took the form of Christian community for much of our family life raising kids. Eventually the critical issue of racial reconciliation became the call of God upon our life, and we chose to immerse ourselves in African American and multi-cultural churches. Our world and our hearts expanded. What a gift these relationships of faith have been!

All during this time, my husband and I have been a writing team--writing books with expert resource people (as their co-authors) on a variety of topics (from medical ethics to stories of gang kids), then writing a whole series of historical fiction about great Christian heroes--40 titles in all!--called the Trailblazer books (and a series of "Hero Tales," five volumes in all). Now we are each writing adult fiction--the Yada Yada Prayer Group series for me, which was inspired by my real-life Bible study sisters, a multi-cultural group of feisty women going on 12 years now that God has used to turn my life upside down, or rather, rightside up! (I have to admit, sometimes my real world and my fictional world get a bit mixed up!)

I've been married for 40-plus years to the same wonderful man, we are truly partners in life. We raised two kids plus a Cambodian foster daughter, and together they've given us eight beautiful grandchildren! As one of my girlfriends and I agree: The best stress-busters in the world are pets, gardening, and grandkids!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I don't like christian fiction and I love this book!, November 26, 2008

By 

J. Pferdehirt "Julia" (Madison, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Where Do I Go? (Yada Yada House of Hope Series, Book 1) (Paperback)

Half a million people, according to Amazon.com, read the yada yada prayer group series books. So did I.

So, I wondered whether I would enjoy a second series. Yes! This book (the first in the series) introduces readers to a somewhat depressed woman who seems to be casting about for meaning in her life. She moves to a new city with her husband. Their children are back east, finishing the school year at a private school. No friends. No contacts.

And, as the author moves into the story, the husband reveals himself as critical and self-absorbed.
At first I felt annoyed at Gabby, the main character. I thought, "stop being such a wimp." Then, I realized that Gabby was trapped in a marriage with a verbally and emotionally abusive husband. Suddenly, I didn't feel so annoyed by her inability to stand up for herself. I began to see the spirit-crushing, self-esteem destroying effects of emotional and verbal abuse. Her story began to look more and more like the stories of so many women I've met during years of pastoral ministry. I began to be on her side - wishing I could take her out for coffee and say, Gabby, you deserve to be treated with love.

This book is long overdue in Christian literature. Emotional and Verbal abuse is rampant - and often women don't understand that the criticism, silent treatment, name-calling or dismissing of their presence and words is actually abusive behavior. * Neta Jackson has opened a window into this reality for all of us and for the Christian community.

What I love about this book is the unexpected places where Gabby does find love. The doorman in their Chicago high-rise. A homeless woman who hangs out at the nearby beach. Then, a shelter for homeless women. A college-age Latino newlywed with a cute, anglo husband and an adopted baby.

These people change Gabby. They also prop her up during the tornado that happens when her abusive husband escalates his control of her and her entire life....I won't tell you how - read the book and find out!

This book moves beyond the Yada Yada Prayer Group series as we get to know someone seeking love and needing a place to stand that's safe and whole.

Once again, Neta Jackson uses music (the title is from a great song about "where do I go.....I go to the Rock."


* If this sounds all-too familiar, you might read The Verbally Abusive Relationship by Patricia Evans

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Come Home, November 28, 2008

By 

C. Howsden - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Where Do I Go? (Yada Yada House of Hope Series, Book 1) (Paperback)

When the storms of life assail you, when life seems to be no more than a juggling act out of control, when all else fails, Neta Jackson's book gently reminds you to "Come Home." The characters are real and the situations of life all too familiar. The story encompasses all of life's trauma: verbal spousal abuse, elder care, homelessness, adoptive issues, relocation, parenting, floundering faith, etc. Everyone can identify with something in this story, especially the basic need to "Come Home." I loved this book and can't wait for the next one in the series!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable Read!, December 26, 2008

By 

Patrice Fagnant-macarthur (Springfield, MA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Where Do I Go? (Yada Yada House of Hope Series, Book 1) (Paperback)

(What's this?)

To the outside world, Gabby Fairbanks would seem to have it all - a wealthy, successful husband, a penthouse apartment, and two sons she loves, but appearances are not everything. She has just been uprooted to Chicago for her husband's new business venture, is having marital difficulties, and her children are hundreds of miles away at boarding school. She is lonely and lost. When she trips over Lucy, a homeless woman, at the beach, she is introduced to Manna House, a local homeless shelter for woman. She soon begins to spend more and more time there, to her husband's chagrin. The staff and residents there offer her acceptance and an outlet for her God-given talents. She also begins rediscovering a relationship with God. She is attempting to trust in God and do what God wants, but it isn't helping things go any smoother. Her marriage is even more on the rocks, her mother needs care, and her relationship with her sons is challenging at best. Gabby is a likable character and readers will truly care about what happens to her. It is a very enjoyable read. The only caveat in reading this book is that there is no definite resolution. As part of a series, readers will need to wait another year to find out what happens to Gabby. I'm looking forward to the next installment.