Gloria Repp

Madeleine's life hasn't been easy, her father has died as has her abusive husband so when her aunt asks her to visit and help sort out an old property she is only too keen to start again.

Along the way she is forced to think about where God is in her life as she meets several people along her path.

Unlike many Christian books this one actually feels more realistic than many as Madeleine wrestles with her faith in a desperate attempt to make sense of her life rather than a simplistic show more unrealistic faith shown by many books.

The characterisation was done well and you didn't know who was on her side and who was the enemy at times.

I really enjoyed reading the cooking scenes as she tries different recipes for her cooking course. show less

The Story Shell by Gloria Repp is the second book in the Pibbin series and is just as delightful a story as the first book. As the book opens, Gaffer is preparing for his birthday party to be held that night and unlike most birthday parties, the birthday person gives gifts to all his/her friends. However, there is a big problem, Gaffer’s story shell is missing. He always has the shell beside him when he is telling a story. Pibbin comes to visit Gaffer and learns that the shell is missing. show more When he looks at the porch, he sees very large prints on the floor and begins to wonder what animal made the prints. Pibbin begins his search to find the shell and the story is about all the adventures he has trying to locate the lost shell. He faces danger in several places but there is always a friend ready to help him out of danger and also to help in the search. With help from an unexpected source, Pibbin is finally able to retrieve the lost shell. Not only is Pibbin searching for the lost shell, he is also trying to find his good friend Leeper who has been missing for quite some time. Leeper is found and rescued from a young beaver who was keeping Leeper for a toy. With Leeper and the shell both back where they belong, Gaffer has a wonderful birthday and delights everyone with the story he tells with the shell on the floor right next to his chair.

Gloria does it again in this second book about Pibbin. The personality of each animal was very skillfully developed and they almost took on human traits, the baby animals acted pretty much like baby humans and the old animals sometimes acted like grumpy old men or women. The wide range of ages in the animals added to my enjoyment of the book. At one point Pibbin said he “felt so small that he could hardly move or even think.” But this did not stop him from continuing to search for the story shell and for his friend Leeper. The dialogue of the animals was so realistic that I could almost forget that I was reading about animals. Gloria has the knack for making the little frogs and other animals come to life. This book also contained colorful, fun illustrations and in my opinion this added greatly to the story and I am sure that any young child would really enjoy the pictures. Since everyone was preparing for the birthday party, there was lot of cooking being done. My favorites were red bug cookies, dried beetle bars, and sweet and sour slugs. The slugs were Gaffer’s favorite.

I highly recommend this book to kids of all ages. It was written for young children but as a seventy-five year old, I enjoyed it very much and I don’t even like frogs.

Thanks to the author, Gloria Repp for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. show less

I am excited about this book. I was concerned that it would be dry, but Gloria Repp develops the characters and conflict so well that I was disappointed to finish the book. Hurray for well-written Christian fiction!

The Mystery of the Indian Carvings by Gloria Repp was written primarily for middle school age readers, but I thoroughly enjoyed the story even though I am many decades past that age. Julie is a new Christian but she still struggles with her quick temper. Julie’s stepmother does not want her around so she is sent to Bartlett Island, Canada, to visit her dad’s brother and his family. Uncle Nate is working on a top secret project and he demands that the house be quiet at all times. His wife show more seems to be in a constant state of nervousness and his daughter lets Julie know in no uncertain terms that she does not want Julie in the house. To add to the problems, two very valuable artifacts are stolen from the house. Julie begins to wonder if maybe Karin is the thief for one of the items shows up in Julie’s room. Julie loves the island and spends a great deal of time exploring with Siem, the dog, who seems to be her only friend. In her exploring she meets an Indian shaman who befriends her and she also becomes friends with the young Indian boy that Uncle Nate is tutoring. Julie’s life becomes more bearable when she starts reading her Bible and praying to God for guidance in dealing with her cousin Karin.

As is normal for Gloria, she did an excellent job in developing all aspects of the book. I really enjoyed the characters for she described them so well that they came to life on the pages of the book and I even felt as if Julie were a dear little friend. The dialogue between all the characters was right on target and definitely what one would expect the character to say and their actions were true to life also. The scenes were so well described that at times I was right there in the woods with Julie exploring and getting lost. There were several twist and turns to the plot but all the loose ends were brought together for a very satisfactory ending that was a complete surprise to me but a happy one. I thoroughly enjoyed all the Indian lore that was included in the story. I had only one problem with the book and that was that it ended too soon. I certainly hope that the author will write a sequel for I want to know what happens between Julie and her cousin, Karin.

I highly recommend this book to any age over ten but even some younger readers might enjoy the book.

Thanks to the author, Gloria Repp, for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. show less