Miracle in New Hope
Kaki Warner has presented us with a lovely novella that, although not overtly related to the holiday season, is a particularly heartwarming story and just perfect for this time of year. One of the many challenges of writing a novella is creating a story that feels complete and not rushed. I actually felt like I was reading a full-length novel, but not because it took a long time to read. Rather because of the slow thoroughness to the language Warner uses to anchor the story in backcountry living. You get the sense that life has a much slower pace – as one might expect when the fastest mode of travel involves horses. This does not translate as boring however, far from it. The writing style and language is engaging.
My favorite section of the book includes the first third or so of the story where the narrative firmly grounds us in Daniel’s character. I enjoyed getting to know Daniel, his daily life experiences and musings. Clearly, Daniel is an intuitive, something probably not really discussed or perhaps even fully examined back in 1871. I found Warner’s approach to this interesting. She chose a straightforwardness to it, presented it in a matter-of-fact way as I could imagine it being discussed (or not) during that time period. There was a brief sanity check and then an acceptance and life moved on. No navel gazing or wonderment at the specialness of it...
Read the full review as posted at The Book Pushers: http://thebookpushers.com/2012/12/05/review-miracle-in-new-hope-by-kaki-warner/