Janet Basurto

A testimony is someone's personal story. The teller doesn't have to be a talented storyteller or a skilled writer to share their experiences with their friends. The person sharing their past has only to tell it like it was, without embellishment, imperfectly, raw, and without polish if necessary. It just has to be from the heart, with a purpose; usually that purpose is to help someone else. That is what Never Forsaken is. It is the author's personal story, told with all the raw energy of unedited truth. Put aside your need for perfect grammar and syntax. Instead, the author invites you to feel with her the pain, agony, and loneliness of a person bulldozed by tough circumstances. For her, life was a train wreck.

Eleven short chapters take us back to Ms. Basurto's past beginning with the age of three years, all the way to the present. She was in a single parent home with boyfriends trekking in and out constantly. Her family moved around. Alcohol, drugs, parties, overnight guests and molestation were all factors in the story. She was subject to bullying in her younger years. In high school, she got pregnant. Bad people and circumstances dogged her steps. This story helps us to understand how God gradually moved her into a better way of life, an improved frame of mind, and brought peace to her heart.

This book is all about the message: God never forsook her, no matter how bad things got. Ms. Basurto gets down and dirty with the ugliness of her life but shares the hope she found as well. The publishers say it best at the beginning of the book: "[The] Publisher has allowed this work to remain exactly as the author intended, verbatim, without editorial input." It is the honesty of the tale that I like best. The intended audience is the author's former peers. Thus the book is perfect for that purpose. In a sense, it is like a Gospel tract in story format; it is meant to be shared and I believe will be effective in reaching many of the un-churched living in any village, town, and city. The only thing I would change would be to include more of the salvation message in its pages.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from BookCrash on behalf of Revival Waves of Glory and Publishing (www.revivalwavesofglory.com). I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”… (more)