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Review of The Memory Jar

(Seven Brides for Seven Bachelors)

byTricia Goyer

Every year, 30--40 young Amish men descend on the cozy little town of West Kootenai, Montana, arriving in the spring to live there for six months and receive 'resident' status for the hunting season in the fall. They arrive as bachelors, but go home with brides. Sarah Shelter has lived in West Kootenai for the last ten years and wonders if she will ever fall in love.  Since the tragic death of her best friend, she carries her memories in a jar along with the small items connected to them. For just as long, she's also been carrying around her emotions instead of allowing them to penetrate deep into her heart. Now she's met a kind and gentle man who may be able to break down the wall. But can Sarah risk her heart to finally achieve her dreams?

My thoughts about The Memory Jar:

I really enjoyed this book but for some reason, it was a bit slow for me to "get into".    As I got to know Sarah and Jathan, I was eagerly reading to see what was going to happen next for them.   This book deals with loss, death, grief, and living out one's dreams.   Sarah and Jathan both have some unusual dreams for their future and this creates conflict among the characters of the book.   It was very refreshing to see them having to work these conflicts out, in order to live their dreams.  The book also suggests that we must live in the present and plan for the future and let the past go.   The story begins in Montana and then the main characters move to Charm, Ohio.   I have visited the Ohio Amish country and so it was like getting to visit there again as I read.  I loved reading about the scenery and differences among the Montana Amish community.     I would highly recommend this book to readers.   

About the author:

TRICIA GOYER was named the 2003 Writer of the Year for Mt. Hermon Christian Writer’s Conference. Her book for teens, Life Interrupted: The Scoop on Being a Young Mom, was a Gold Medallion finalist in 2005 in the Youth category. 

Her novel Night Song won the 2005 “Book of the Year for Long Historical Romance” from American Christian Fiction Writers, and her novel Dawn of a Thousand Nights won the same award in 2006.

Tricia has published over 250 articles and YA short stories for national publications such as Today’s Christian Woman, Guideposts for Kids, Brio, Christian Parenting Today, and HomeLife, and is the co-author of Meal Time Moments (Focus on the Family). She has led numerous Bible Studies, and her study notes appear in the Women of Faith Study Bible.

She has written seven novels for Moody Publishers; From Dust and Ashes (2003), Night Song (2004), Dawn of a Thousand Nights (2005), and Arms of Deliverance (2006), A Valley of Betrayal (2007), A Shadow of Treason (2007), and A Whisper of Freedom (2008).

Tricia has also published Life Interrupted: The Scoop on Being a Young Mom (Zondervan, 2004) and children’s book 10 Minutes to Showtime (Thomas Nelson, 2004). She has written My Life, Unscripted (Thomas Nelson, 2007) for teen girls. She worked on 3:16 Teens w/ Max Lucado (Thomas Nelson, 2008)

Tricia has also written books for Gen Xers: Generation NeXt Parenting (Multnomah, 2006) and Generation NeXt Marriage (Multnomah, 2008).

Tricia and her husband, John, live in Montana with their three teens.

You can visit her website at: http://www.triciagoyer.blogspot.com

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for my honest review.