Val Brelinski

I loved this book. The characters were very human - Brelinski did a great job of drawing out the strengths, quirks, and flaws of all the characters in a beautiful was - and the story took you around twists and turns without feeling like a completely non-realistic thriller or fantasy. I also enjoyed reading and experiencing the story through Jory's perspective because she seemed to embody the tension between countercultural faith and "fitting in;" while the context was that of a high school show more girl, the complexities of finding your place and your self can translate to a number of life situations.

While the subject matter could have easily lent itself to ridicule, I thought Brelinski handles it in gracefully and offers a respectful critique of faith, culture, and relationships. I look forward to more from Val Brelinski. Go read this book! show less

Coming of Age in Crisis

In Val Brelinski’s well done and often moving debut novel, readers see the world through the eyes of a girl (Jory) just reaching puberty (13 turning 14), raised with two sisters (little Frances and older Grace), in rural Idaho, as a member of a small evangelical church, by parents who eschew the modern world of the 1970s. As she comes of age, she has to deal with 17-year-old Grace’s return from a mission in Mexico pregnant and claiming it to be the work of God, show more with parents (Oren and Esther) in turmoil and at odds, and with an older man (Grip, in his 20s), of dubious background, who befriends her, a relationship not a few may find creepy (though Grip reveals himself to be a noble character).

You’ll find the strengths of the novel in Brelinski’s gently melodic tone, upon which you’ll find yourself drifting, as if on the Enya’s “Orinoco Flow” (Pure Moods, Vol. I), and the change in Jory, both in her maturation, her personal strength, and the world beyond her church and insular religious school. In other words, this is a novel not so much about the mystical, which you might expect from the title, but one grounded firmly in the experiences of families dealing with crises and young women grappling with their new roles as young, social women. Read with this in mind and you’ll find it an impressive first effort. show less

Coming of Age in Crisis

In Val Brelinski’s well done and often moving debut novel, readers see the world through the eyes of a girl (Jory) just reaching puberty (13 turning 14), raised with two sisters (little Frances and older Grace), in rural Idaho, as a member of a small evangelical church, by parents who eschew the modern world of the 1970s. As she comes of age, she has to deal with 17-year-old Grace’s return from a mission in Mexico pregnant and claiming it to be the work of God, show more with parents (Oren and Esther) in turmoil and at odds, and with an older man (Grip, in his 20s), of dubious background, who befriends her, a relationship not a few may find creepy (though Grip reveals himself to be a noble character).

You’ll find the strengths of the novel in Brelinski’s gently melodic tone, upon which you’ll find yourself drifting, as if on the Enya’s “Orinoco Flow” (Pure Moods, Vol. I), and the change in Jory, both in her maturation, her personal strength, and the world beyond her church and insular religious school. In other words, this is a novel not so much about the mystical, which you might expect from the title, but one grounded firmly in the experiences of families dealing with crises and young women grappling with their new roles as young, social women. Read with this in mind and you’ll find it an impressive first effort. show less

It takes a little while, but the characters grow in you deeply. Give this book the time it needs.

The main character is Jory, middle daughter in a fundamentalist Christian family, so devout that they are the oddballs in their oddball community. The story revolves around eldest daughter Grace. She goes off to Mexico on a church mission, comes back pregnant, & insists it was an angel of God who came to her. Now she has a true mission from God, growing in her womb.

The parents, with no real show more skills to confront this conundrum - how do you teach your children to have total faith in God but doubt them when they say God has called them? - send Grace to live across town, in a house out of the way. And they send Jory with her, which puts Jory in a new school. Putting Jory in a public school is akin to sending Grace to Mexico - neither girl is prepared for what she'll face, nor has the guidance to get through it. It's a trap, for both girls. And both girls get ensnared.

Grace's pregnancy is a test for the whole family & for their community. It also draws in supporting characters like Grip & Hilda. How everyone deals with it stays with each character for the rest of their lives.

Brelinski carves a place in your heart for this story. You'll carry Jory & Grace with you for some time. You'll marvel at how you find yourself rooting for small acts of defiance & odd pairings. You'll wonder if there's something you missed as you ruminate over this, as the characters do. And you'll love this book a little bit more each time you mull over the ideas & themes Brelinski explores here. show less