- I picked this up as a bargain buy because Anna Quindlen never lets me down.
I also recommend:
- Every Last One by Anna Quindlen
- Peace Like a River by Lief Enger
Summary from GoodReads:
Late one night, a teenage couple drives up to the big white clapboard home on the Blessing estate and leaves a box. In that instant, the lives of those who live and work there are changed forever. Skip Cuddy, the caretaker, finds a baby girl asleep in that box and decides he wants to keep the child . . . while Lydia Blessing, the matriarch of the estate, for her own reasons, agrees to help him.
My Review:
Anna Quindlen is one of those authors who holds the power to knock the socks off of me. Every time I go to pick up one of her books I know that, at some point, I’m going to end up in tears – so I have to pace myself accordingly.
Blessings was no different. While it didn’t contain nearly the same amount of tragedy some of Quindlen’s other books have (Yes, Every Last One, I’m looking at you), it still had some heartbreaking moments, but, in true Quindlen style, I knew that these characters would be strong enough to overcome it.
Blessings is the story of a family, an unlikely family, but complete with all of the past wrong-doings, mistakes, loves and hurts that a “normal” family might have. This family consists of a Korean housekeeper, an 80ish year old woman, and a convicted felon groundskeeper… and one tiny, helpless baby. Of course, there is also the house, which is filled with history and memories and can’t be left out of the mix.
I was completely charmed by Charles “Skip” Cuddy and his treatment of the unlikely turn of events that culminated in his finding a baby in a box on the steps of “his” barn. I held my breath through each hurdle and ached for him as he learned the correct way to care for the child, and, when the end came (as it always does in these types of stories), my heart ached for him.
Blessings is a story of redemption, unlikely love, strength of character where there was none before and of making the right choices, no matter the pain involved to those making those choices. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it did wonders to “reset” me after reading a few bad books in a row.
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I’m glad you liked it. This is waiting on my TBR shelf. I also fell in love with Anna Quindlen’s writing after reading One True Thing, an amazing novel if you haven’t read it, and now I want to read everything she’s written! Thanks for the review
I read Every Last One last year and LOVED it – if I can use the word loved. Broke my heart, and actually replaced The Time Traveler’s Wife as my all-time favorite. She’s an amazing author, and it looks like I need to get my hands on this book, too! Thanks for a great review!
This book is very good. The story skips from Lydia’s past to her present alot. But the storyline of Skip and Faith is wonderful. I wish the ending would have been different but oh well…. Wonderful story!!