Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Book Review: Blind Hope by Kim Meeder and Laurie Sacher/4 Stars

About the book:

An unwanted dog. An emotional rescue.

Sometimes the life you save may be your own.


Laurie had her own shattered dreams before she came to work at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch—the ranch of rescued dreams—where broken horses and broken children encounter healing every day. Reaching out to save a dog in need, Laurie soon realized that the dog was rescuing her.

An inspiring true story told through the engaging voice of Kim Meeder, Blind Hope reveals poignant life lessons Laurie experienced from her ailing, yet courageous canine friend. Despite the blindness of her dog—and her own heart—Laurie uncovered what she really needed most: authentic love, unconditional trust, and true acceptance, faults and all.

As Laurie and her dog, Mia, both learned to follow the lead of a master they couldn’t see, Laurie discoverd the transforming power of God’s selfless love even for imperfect and selfish people—and she experienced a greater love than she has ever known.

My thoughts:

Non-fiction is not typically something I read a lot of, but when I saw this cute dog on the cover of Blind Hope, I couldn't resist.  This was a story about a sweet dog and the woman she rescued.  Normally, you would see a sentence like that turned the other way around, and even though Laurie did rescue a sweet dog that she named Mia, Mia was the one that really made a lasting impact on Laurie's life.  Through Mia's sweet, but sometimes stubborn, personality, Laurie was able to see the areas in her life where she walked away from God, or didn't trust Him as much as she should have.  While reading about Laurie's past, I was able to draw parallels with my own life where I have strayed and needed to be brought back by God's grace. 

While the lessons are incredible and powerful, I have to admit that I wasn't crazy about the way the story was told.  Laurie told her story to Kim Meeder, who then told the story with introductions and conversations that, frankly, got in the way.  I think if the story had just been written from Laurie's POV, I would've enjoyed it a hundred times more.  I never had a problem getting the lessons from Laurie's life, but to have them retold after I've already read about them was a little annoying.

In spite of the layout, it was still a very good story.  The pictures of Laurie and Mia that were included were an added bonus, and many of them were quite beautiful.  One word of warning before starting this book....have a box of Kleenex nearby! 

4 Stars

Southern? No
Sass?  No

**Many thanks to Waterbrook Multnomah Books for providing a copy for review.




3 comments:

  1. Sounds like a cute story. I hesitate to read Kleenex-required books though. Cuteness factor may override in this case.

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  2. Well, I only needed the Kleenex once, Lee, so maybe that will tip the scales a little closer to the cuteness side. :o)

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  3. Unfortunately, this is one that I've avoided. If a book or movie has animals in it, I tend to cry a lot!
    I've heard great things about it, though, so maybe I should give it a try. :)

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