Richard Paul Evans and his characters's diaries--I'm a little over the whole diary thing.

The novel is loosely based on the Bibilical story of Joseph found in Genesis. In that sense, if you're familiar with the story, the outcomes are not a surprise. There are also some elements that Evans includes that are not part of the Biblical story.

After a slow start, I grew to care about Joseph ("JJ").

(WARNING: SPOILERS MAY LIE AHEAD--READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION)

Israel Jacobson has 12 sons and 1 daughter from 4 marriages. (The number of sons jibes with the Biblical account.) Though this book mostly focuses on the two oldest (Rupert and Simon) and the two youngest (Joseph and Benjamin). (Note: Some of the sons's names are a bit modernized in Evans's story.) As in the Biblical story, Joseph has dreams--and sometimes the ability to interpret them.

Israel has founded a regional advertising agency in Colorado--and apparently all of his sons (and I think his daughter too) work in the family business.

Joseph's and Benjamin's mother is the current wife. Israel dotes on Joseph (or "JJ" as he is often called).

When JJ comes up with an ad idea that saves the account of a client for the firm, Israel hosts a family dinner, reveals JJ's dream, and gives JJ a prized jacket that JJ always assumed would be passed to the oldest son in the family. Jealousy ensues. Simon uses a blunder by JJ's only full brother Ben to blackmail JJ into leaving not only the business, but the city and his family as well. (A bit of a change from the Biblical story where Joseph is sold into slavery.) I think they both assume that JJ's soon to be fiancee (a change from the Biblical story) will go with him. As in the Biblical story, Rupert (Reuben in the Bible) attempts to mitigate the plans of his brother, though in the Bible, Reuben took an action in going back to the pit to try to free Joseph, and here, Rupert only offers severance pay to JJ. Also unlike the Bible, Simon finds JJ gainful employment at another (larger) advertising agency in a bigger city (in the Bible, Joseph is sold into slavery so he has a job but probably not a paying one).

JJ excels early in his new job, again pulling a winning campaign from a dream he has. He gets promoted and manages other people. It took me a while to connect Peter Potts with Potiphar--I don't know why since the names are similar--maybe only because it's been some months since I've read that story. In the process of JJ's promotion, Tim, who was JJ's boss, gets demoted a step and works under JJ and Len, one of JJ's coworkers, gets sent to the New York office.

JJ meets April at a diner and quickly falls in love with her--only to be told that she's a member of a polygamist marriage in Utah.

Potts is not married (in the Biblical story, Potiphar has a wife), but he is engaged to Brandy. Like Potiphar's wife, Brandy is willing to be unfaithful to him under the right circumstances--and she thinks JJ is the right circumstances. JJ resists her attempts, being wise enough to know that it would be a great way to get on his boss's wrong side, however, Brandy doesn't let up and eventually gets him in a compromising position--unfortunately one her fiance discovers. And apparently despite him knowing that Brandy is lying (in the Bible, we're not told if Potiphar knows his wife is lying or not), Potts banishes JJ to New York also.

In New York, JJ discovers that there is a smaller second New York office where "banished" people get sent to. There are 3 others there when JJ arrives--one being Len. The female was once the assistant to a CEO but was banished when she badmouthed a client CEO while being unaware he was behind her. Bryce was a senior ad exec who fell into the bad graces of his boss. Strangely, they all, other than Len, work well together. Len, knowing some of JJ's history, reveals that JJ has dreams. The others all badger JJ to reveal his dream.

JJ correctly predicts that the female and Bryce will be restored to their former positions. He knows what he saw in Len's box but not what it means: smashed pots. (I connected the pots in the box with Peter Potts long before the author revealed its meaning in the novel. I wasn't quite sure how the author would handle the Peter Potts/Len Sykes dynamic.)

Unlike in the Biblical story, the females showing of JJ's sample ads to her boss happens fairly quickly after she's restored to her assistant status. (In the Biblical story, Joseph languishes in prison for a time until the Pharaoh has a dream that can't be interpreted--there isn't a literal dream from Mr. Farrell in this novel, though Farrell does have an idea he wants to implement in the advertising agency.) In the meantime though, JJ comes to appreciate that Len does have some talent even if it is inconsistent at times, so I was a bit miffed that as JJ rises in the corporate world, he never seems to remember Len and pull him out of the "outcast" office. Perhaps Len would not have been suited for the corporate world even as an assistant. Perhaps Len would have been offended at being offered a lesser job. Perhaps Len is happy where he is because he has less corporate oversight. We don't know because there's never that reveal or conversation. (Of course, as we later find, there is poetic justice in Len staying where he was.)

The program that JJ and Ferrell devise succeeds. Farrell gets promoted to the worldwide office--which is back in Chicago--and takes JJ with him. Farrell also asks JJ to investigate acquiring his family's firm (not realizing that JJ once worked there or was part of the family). So instead of having the brothers traveling to Egypt because of famine, we have two brothers traveling to New York to discuss someone else buying the family firm. As in the Biblical account, JJ takes pains so that his brothers don't easily recognize him. He tests them to see if they tell the truth (to what they perceive as a stranger) and if they are remorseful. Then he reveals himself to be their brother--JJ ends up reunited with his family.

In Chicago, Ferrell and JJ meet with the CEO of the Chicago office and that CEO finds out what Potts did to JJ in the past. Potts still doesn't seem to have faced up to Brandy's actions or forgiven JJ when the two meet--but now Potts finds himself on the receiving end of being on the wrong side of a higher up with a poetic justice twist on who his new boss will be!

JJ also decides he needs to come to terms with the loss of April--but of course, when he goes back to the diner, she's there--because of course, this is fiction, and we need the "happily ever after" ending.

I do agree with Israel's advice to Joseph that when the girl (or guy)'s the right one, you know, you don't have to keep asking if it's right--if there's true doubt, then it's best to not get engaged or married until you are sure. I'm not saying that there won't ever be doubt in a relationship, because there will be. But I think what he means is that deep down, you have to know that the other person would stand beside you no matter what comes and defend you if you needed defending etc. rather than running off and taking the easier path when trouble comes.

I also agree with some of the epilogue ideas. Adversity can shape us in ways we won't understand until we can look back at the times we went through and see where it helped us grow and where it took us. It's easier to see that in hindsight than it is when we're in the midst of the problem, so we need to trust that there's a reason for it until such time as we can look back and see it more clearly. ( )

Joseph Jacobson is the favorite of 12 children. They have a successful business and dad wants to turn over all for him to run. The jealous brothers bribe him and force him to leave. Find out what happens and you will enjoy the path. ( )

A winter dream by Richard Paul Evans
Family fate and forgiveness. The thirteen children all work for the family business but joseph, the 12th. It comes to a head one day when his parents are traveling and the others have found one brother has stolen money from the company.
The others want to prosecute the brother. One brother has a solution.
He has to start a new life in another city-a rival to the family business and it's interesting how this resembles Joseph and the coat of many colors. Love the walking tour of the city as it's yet one we have visited.
What I especially like is that he's able to help those in family business.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device). ( )

As I listen to more audio books I learn that they are all different in when one CD is coming to an end and the next one is starting.

I don't like the ones that repeat from the previous, I don't like the ones that there is just silence but I do like the ones that play a little music.

This story was modern day Joseph and his brothers. I thought it was well done and loved how I visualized the past Joseph with current. ( )

A couple of years ago my book club read an Evans book around Christmas-time, so I did kind of expect this to be a fluffy book. It did not fail me in that regard, but I have come to expect that with most Holiday themed books. I think that Evans did a good job of creating a modern day story with parallels to the bible story of Joseph and the coat of many colors. He created very believable circumstances, which you don't always find in fluffy novels.

I think Berman did a great job of narrating also, helping to encourage me to continue listening with an acceptable amount of enjoyment. He really embraced the characters, encouraging me to love and dislike the characters that fell into those categories.

Joseph is a young, hard-working man and probably mostly appreciated among his other siblings by his father. This creates a tremendous amount of jealousy and turmoil between his siblings, and at the first opportunity they decide to cast Joseph into a life of exile. This sends him on a journey across the country that will help him to grow both emotionally and intellectually. The last thing he expects is to fall in love along the way.

Of course, several obstacles come up along the way, allowing him to grow from the challenges he must overcome. This was a nice story that I'm sure many people will enjoy. My biggest complaint about the book is that the dialogue drove me batty at times. With themes of family, forgiveness, and love, I think many fans of Richard Paul Evans will enjoy this book. I recommend this novel for Evans fans and those looking for a quick and fluffy read. ( )