A passionate teacher enjoys her work but can't help thinking of the wedding anniversary she should be celebrating. She funnels her disappointment with romance into energy for her students. Elle Dalton, however, isn't the typical teacher. She teaches adults with Down Syndrome how to function in the larger world, with the goal of enabling her students to one day "graduate" to independent living. She teaches them to cook, budget, navigate bus routes, hold social conversations, and sometimes read and write. "Life skills," she calls these studies. But the most important life skill, she says, is praying. Read more or get the quick scoop. ( )

My favorite Karen Kingsbury novel yet! It's the touching story of widower Cody Gunner and his brother, Carl Joseph who was born with Down Syndrome. CJ attends a "living skills" centr for people with Downs and "finds his wings," Cody wants to protect him, but CJ's teacher, Elle Dalton, champions CJ's cause. Cody doesn't realize that Elle's sister Daisy -- an CJ's best friend -- was born with Down Syndrome also. This common connection leads him to a new understanding of the opportunities that await CJ and Daisy and the realization that they can function in society in a meaningful and eventually, independant, way. This book opened my eyes as well as Cody's! ( )

Very uplifting

A woman with Down Syndrome sister has a program to develop independence for such. A man has a similar brother, but is overly protective and opposes such risks. The reader learns much about handicapped people and their lives and about family relationships, as well as loneliness and grief at lost relationship in this Christian nove. ( )