My Sister Dilly (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: respite worker, Sugar Creek, Tom Boyle, Coffee Spot (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

For six and a half years, a guilt-ridden Hannah Williams has focused all her efforts on returning to tiny Sugar Creek, Illinois, to help her sister Dilly readjust to life outside prison walls. Hannah sets aside her highly successful career as a respected investment counselor in California and her best friend, Mac, to do what she thinks is right. But she has never discussed her plans with Dilly and is shocked and hurt when her sister seems unappreciative. Hannah is also dismayed by her sister’s newfound faith, since years ago as children they agreed never to buy into their parents’ religious fervor. Lang’s contemporary Christian novel thoughtfully explores family obligations and differences within the context of a dysfunctional upbringing and its legacy of distrust and unhappiness. --Lynne Welch

Product Description

Hannah Williams couldn't get out of her small hometown fast enough, preferring the faster pace, trendy lifestyle and beauty of California's Pacific Ocean coast. Only when her younger sister, Dilly, makes a desperate choice and commits the unthinkable does Hannah realize she never should have left her behind in rural Illinois. Hannah returns home to make up for letting Dilly down, leaving the one man she's ever loved in California. But Dilly is a changed woman, and when Hannah's plans don't go as expected, the bonds of sisterhood are tested like never before.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (September 10, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1414322240
• ISBN-13: 978-1414322247
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #322,798 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sister Loyalty, October 3, 2008

By	Chandra Lynn "Chandra Lynn" (PA) - See all my reviews

Maureen Lang is rapidly becoming a favorite in women's fiction. She tackles difficult family situations, childhood illnesses and disabilities with honesty and grace. My Sister Dilly is a beautiful book that touches your heart with peace like walking down a country lane on a summer day.

Hannah and Dilly Williams grew up on a hog farm with strict parents. Hannah couldn't wait to leave and did as soon as she graduated. Years later when her sister Dilly is starting over again after some difficult circumstances, Hannah takes it upon herself to come and care for Dilly. Guilt over not being there for her little sister years earlier drives Hannah's life. She leaves behind a career and the only man she's ever loved to go back to a town she hates and people she is sure don't care. Hannah's journey to care for Dilly becomes a personal quest for peace and contentment. Dilly and her daughter Sierra teach Hannah more about herself than she ever knew. Will Hannah find the way to unravel the guilt that tangles her heart and make room for perfect love to heal the wounds?

Maureen Lang has written a surprising story that waves grace on every page. She gives the reader and honest look into the lives of people who face daily struggles, sometimes make wrong choices, and find their way through mistakes to second chances. Her characters are believable and endearing. I highly recommend My Sister Dilly. And if this is your first Maureen Lang book, be sure to check her others also; Pieces of Silver, Remember Me, Oak Leaves, and On Sparrow Hill.

5.0 out of 5 stars My Sister Dilly: Guilt has many faces. Forgiveness has one., May 12, 2009

By	Linda Wichman - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Snatch up the tissues, readers! Coz between the overflow of sibling estrogen and, whichever way the winds blows across the Illinois hog farms you're going to need them. And did I mention there's a handsome, bewildered Californian named Mac with great frequent flier miles, who sticks by his woman, Hannah, no matter how bad she's PMSing? What a guy!

Ms Lang has written a poignant account of two sisters finding their ways back home; each for a different reason. My Sister Dilly is centered on the powerful, relevant topic of what constitutes productive human life in this postmodern world, and the absolute necessity of family. Her believable characters demonstrate how our premeditated plans are often blindsided to God's sovereign design, and His unconditional love and forgiveness.

I embraced this book! My Sister Dilly is a heart opener. And a little girl named, Sierra, is the can-opener.

5.0 out of 5 stars Must REad for Sisters, April 7, 2009

By	Sherri Gallagher "Lektor's handler" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Maureen Lang places you in the heart of a small midwest town. With just a few words you are surrounded with the smells, heat and wind. The reader understands Hannah's feelings as she gropes through the uncharted territory to help her kid sister and rejects her own dreams to "be there" for Dilly. Every kid sister will identify with Dilly's love and frustration at big sister, Hannah's well-meaning interference.

The subject was a difficult one I generally wouldn't have selected, but I trusted Maureen Lang to put forward a good story and was glad I did.This is a great read.