Joan Wester Anderson

Overall, very sweet and inspiring.
I take issue, however, with a (hypocritical?) admonition, after a story where praying for protection from unevolved Spirits was required, that "delving in the occult" invites unevolved spirits. There are many sensitive people who are attuned to that world and it is not involvement, but attitude and intention that matter. To my way of thinking, of COURSE there is more to the Universe than what we can register with our 5 senses. And for those sensitive show more people, involvement is natural. The only difference between being "interested in the occult" and "being open to Angels", is the nomenclature. Referring to the gentle well-intentioned Spirits as "Angels" doesn't disassociate one from the class of "people interested in the occult". What IS important in avoiding attracting unevolved spirits is entering any communication or attempt at it with love, respect, good will, and good intentions. show less

Not a true biography but, because it is a "authorized" biography is a whitewash of actress Loretta Young. Young was a decent actress and I loved her in films like The Bishop's Wife and Along Came Jones. However, the book doesn't really say a whole lot about actually filming or what she thought of her co-stars. It is well known that she fell in love with many of her co-stars and had affairs with both Spencer Tracy and Clark Gable (which resulted in a pregnancy). She was naive enough to not show more believe people who told her about Tracy's drinking even though it was a well known fact and the same is true for her denying that both William Holden and Robert Mitchum had drinking problems. So mostly we got to her about her faith and belief. However, at the same time, she did not support her daughter with Gable when husband Tom Lewis would be verbally abusive. And while we were told she was trying to live a good life, she essentially left her children in the care of others to the point that her sons opted to live with their father. While I admire someone who appears to have the faith that Young had, her "Swear Box" and other things she did to try to force others to be "good" was overbearing. The author also implies on page 82 that Gable had "difficulty breaking into films" until 1934's It Happened One Night. Not true - Gable had his breakthrough in 1931's A Free Soul when he slapped Norma Shearer and by 1932's Red Dust was considered the hottest male star in Hollywood. Additionally, the author misspelled Darryl F. Zanuck's name as Daryll F. Zanuck throughout the book. A simple fact like that makes me not believe much of anything else in the book. show less

If you believe in angels, then you will rejoice in this thrilling collection of stories attesting to angelic intervention in human affairs. If you do not believe, you may find yourself wavering as you read true stories of intervention. This exhilarating book offers overwhelming evidence that heavenly beings are very much with us -- combating evil, bringing news, warning of danger, consoling us in our suffering. It may even help you remember a time in our own life when an angel walked beside you.

I like Carrie's patience with Michael and her small-town trust (even of those who shouldn't have it). I like that she is willing to sacrifice to achieve her goals.

I don't like the deceit of the Jason character who takes advantage of Carrie or the vindictiveness of Barbara though at least in the end both have their actions brought out into the light.