Sam Gardner, pastor of the Harmony Friends Meeting, returns for the sixth novel in Philip Gulley's well-regarded Harmony series. In this book -- rumored to be the last in the series -- Sam copes with an unexpected threat to his ministry, a leave of absence to care for his father after heart surgery. During this time, the Quaker meeting calls a student pastor to fill in, a woman.

The opportunities and challenges of a new pastor are told in Gulley's patient and humorous way, though there is obviously a lot of real sadness underlying this story. Worn down by Dale Hinshaw's latest off-the-wall evangelism technique -- one so bad that it infuriates the whole town -- Sam is not in the best frame of mind to deal with a very real pastoral crisis that occurs to the student pastor during his leave.

One senses that Gulley's own personal frustration with the church as a whole is at the root of this story. He has been challenged for his theological views, and he has been forced to defend himself publicly several times. In "Almost Friends" he implies that too often, faithful people in the church are silent in the face of overbearing troublemakers. The frustration is evident in the title, which is an indictment of the Harmony "Almost Friends" Meeting.

Despite the very real hurt in this story, it is still told with a delicate hope that the better angels will somehow carry the day. Unlike previous books, the novel ends in an ambiguous way: hopeful, but a little unsure of the future. ( )

Author Philip Gulley returns to Harmony for Sam Gardner's fifth year as pastor of his home Quaker church. The quirky and lovable residents of the Indiana small town are still causing Sam headaches, even as he sometimes looks at their example of love and forgiveness in amazement.

Like the previous books in the series, the story unfolds in chapter-length stories focusing on specific people; unlike previous books, there are three key storylines running throughout the full book. The most dramatic is the unexpected medical problems for Dale Hinshaw, the elder who is a persistent thorn in Sam's side. The most unexpected is the sudden return of Ellis Hodge's no-good brother Roger and his wife, who want another chance at building a relationship with their daughter who's been living with Ellis and his wife. The most charming is the love story of Deena Morrison and her marriage to the new doctor in town.

The book is written in Gulley's flowing, gentle style, filled with perceptive observations of church folk and people in general. There is an understanding warmth in his presentation of all the characters, and the situations are presented in simple, direct language, without melodrama or over-the-top emotion. And in this way, Gulley quietly approaches many significant issues: life and death; alcohol abuse and rehabilitation; marital discord; the negative power of gossip; the positive power of love and forgiveness.

In many ways, "A Change of Heart" is a book-length meditation on the nature of forgiveness, exploring the reasons why it is difficult to forgive and also the reasons why it can beneficial, and maybe even necessary, to forgive. Even so, it is never preachy, and never loses its wonder at the way we live our lives, from our foibles to our moments of grace. ( )

Delightful series, laugh out loud. Religion with a smile. I highly recommend this series ( )

The sixth novel in the Harmony series finds Pastor Sam Gardner struggling with the issues of faith, community and loyalty. His Quaker congregation (known as “Friends”) also struggles with similar issues when Sam takes a leave of absence to evaluate his future.

Philip Gulley paints a picture of a small town church community that fits into the mold of the “gentle read” genre perfectly. Filled with eccentric but endearing characters, humor and an uplifting story, Almost Friends is entertaining and satisfying. The reader will not find it necessary to have read the first five books in the series. Gulley re-caps his characters and traditions of the community in each novel without becoming redundant. Even though the setting is a church and Philip Gulley is, in real life, the pastor of the Fairfield Friends Meetinghouse in Camby, Indiana, the Harmony series is not “preachy” or “religious.” The characters give Gulley enough fodder for clever humor; his message of tolerance, self-discovery and the need for community is universal. ( )

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Plot Summary: What happens, When & Where, Central Characters, Major Conflicts
Gulley takes us back to Harmony, through the eyes of Pastor Sam. This time around his worries center around Deena Morrison's wedding, which Harmony is looking forward to as the event of the summer. Things get a bit riled up though when Amanda Hodge's parents return after a long absence. They claim to have recovered from being alcoholics and to have returned to the faith, but Amanda's Uncle Ellis is not buying this at all and is very angry at his brother and does not want Amanda to see them. Amanda and her Aunt Miriam, Ellis's wife, have other ideas though. Then there is Dale Hinshaw, the self righteous thorn in Sam's side who collapses from a heart attack and then undergoes a heart transplant. Despite their differences, Sam and the rest of Harmony need to learn to get along.






Style Characteristics: Pacing, clarity, structure, narrative devices, etc.
Sam's story is interwoven with loads of gentle humor, I found myself laughing out loud several times. The action revolves around the relationships of the people and their struggles to live in a peaceful, Christian-like manner with one another. The setting is important, as small town characteristics and values play a big part in the story. The characters are somewhat stereotypical, but in the way that you recognize them as being similar, if a bit exaggerated, to people you typically meet in real life.






How Good is it?
A nice gentle, humorous read, good for light entertainment. ( )