Healing Ruby
Author: Jennifer H. Westall
Publisher: Jennifer H. Westall
Pages: 369
Genre: Christian Historical Fiction
Format: Hardback/Paperback/Kindle
Book Description:
Ruby Graves, a
young girl in Depression-era
Alabama, faces the hardships of
poverty and loss with as much faith as she can muster. At only the age of
thirteen, she’s already lost a younger brother to illness, and now faces losing
both her father and the boy who’s stealing her heart to illnesses as well.
Armed with her beloved Scriptures, she prays daily for their healing, only to
have her tender faith shattered by her father’s death.
Through her pain, she’s able to connect with her
long-lost Uncle Asa, who’s mere presence at his brother’s funeral brings
murmurs of a scandalous past involving her parents and a prominent local
pastor, Irwin Cass. When Ruby discovers that one of Asa’a many secrets is an
ability to heal, and that she may be next in line for the “gift,” she vows to
find the faith that has eluded her so far, a faith that could mean never losing
loved ones again.
But faith and doubt can’t reside in the same
heart, not according to her father, and doubt is Ruby’s constant companion. As
she struggles to find the true meaning of faith, she’s opposed at every turn by
the pastor who would see her family destroyed and a community that can’t see
deeper than the color of one’s skin. Through her search for a faith that could
move mountains and a true understanding of her gift, can Ruby trust in a God
that may require the ultimate sacrifice?
“A fast-paced story
that will leave readers wondering what’s next for Ruby Graves. This soulful,
often poignant novel explores difficult subjects such as death, racism and
religious hypocrisy, while still remaining hopeful. One of its greatest
strengths is its cast of well-drawn secondary characters, including
the...vengeful preacher who tries to thwart Ruby at every turn. Ruby’s unlikely
friendship with a cast-out African-American woman and her child is a
particularly bright spot in this often heavy novel."
-- Kirkus Reviews
Buy Links: