This was my first Lisa Wingate novel, an author I’ve seen on the New York Times Best Seller list for years. But it certainly won’t be my last. Why I’ve passed over her books before, I have no idea, but from the moment I started reading, rather listening to the audio story, it drew me in.
My experience reminded me of a quote from Emma Thompson, “I think books are like people, in the sense that they’ll turn up in your life when you most need them.” The Prayer Box was that kind of book for me. It found me at a perfect time, blending the lives of its characters into a reflection of what, in the scheme of things, really matters.
Set on Hatteras Island it tells the story of a single mother and young newcomer, unraveling the life of a misunderstood ninety-one-year-old woman who recently died and whose house she has been hired to clean.
I found the story moving and the characters real, reminding me that the people who touch our lives, and whose lives we touch, may never know the positive difference they make with their everyday words and actions.
For me, The Prayer Box was a story with many layers to be savored, with interwoven messages of hope, healing, love, family, and grace. It made me cry with the good kind of tears and I would recommend the book to anyone who enjoys soulful stories like that.
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