I also recommend: •• THE PRAYER OF HANNAH by Kenn Gividen ••

A delightful anthology of Christian romances by four very talented writers. The four novellas tell wholesome, heartwarming stories of holiday love in Currier & Ives classic American art settings.

DREAMS AND SECRETS by DiAnn Mills tells of the tender romance between Emma Leigh Carter and Thad Benson, who work together at the Jones Inn outside Philadelphia in the 1850s. Thad struggles with his dream of medical school and his growing attraction to Emma. Emma puts aside her feelings for Thad because she must help her family during her father's illness. Then Emma oversees a Christmas gift exchange for the Inn's owner and Thad draws her name. In her marvelous easy-to-read storytelling style, DiAnn Mills blends the young couple's faith and their tender love into an enchanting story that will warm the heart of readers from eight to eighty-eight.

Lynn A. Coleman's THE SNOW STORM sets the love story of Angela Harris and Michael Farley in the middle of a blizzard and uses the holiday season to draw the lovers together.

JoAnn A. Grote offers a delightful glimpse of life after the Civil War in her IMAGE OF LOVE as she tells how Lane Powell softens Mantie Clark's resolve never to love again after losing her love and one of her brothers in the war.

Deborah Raney's CIRCLE OF BLESSING centers on a family holiday tradition. Ms Raney's heroine Stella Bradford is determined to win the love of James Collingwood, her University professor with a dark secret in his past. You'll receive a blessing along with Stella and James.

A CURRIER & IVES CHRISTMAS would be a wonderful addition to anyone's library and a great holiday gift.

I also highly recommend MAIL ORDER HUSBAND by DiAnn Mills and BENEATH A SOUTHERN SKY by Deborah Raney.

A delightful anthology of Christian romances by four very talented writers. The four novellas tell wholesome, heartwarming stories of holiday love in Currier & Ives classic American art settings.

DREAMS AND SECRETS by DiAnn Mills tells of the tender romance between Emma Leigh Carter and Thad Benson, who work together at the Jones Inn outside Philadelphia in the 1850s. Thad struggles with his dream of medical school and his growing attraction to Emma. Emma puts aside her feelings for Thad because she must help her family during her father's illness. Then Emma oversees a Christmas gift exchange for the Inn's owner and Thad draws her name. In her marvelous easy-to-read storytelling style, DiAnn Mills blends the young couple's faith and their tender love into an enchanting story that will warm the heart of readers from eight to eighty-eight.

Lynn A. Coleman's THE SNOW STORM sets the love story of Angela Harris and Michael Farley in the middle of a blizzard and uses the holiday season to draw the lovers together.

JoAnn A. Grote offers a delightful glimpse of life after the Civil War in her IMAGE OF LOVE as she tells how Lane Powell softens Mantie Clark's resolve never to love again after losing her love and one of her brothers in the war.

Deborah Raney's CIRCLE OF BLESSING centers on a family holiday tradition. Ms Raney's heroine Stella Bradford is determined to win the love of James Collingwood, her University professor with a dark secret in his past. You'll receive a blessing along with Stella and James.

A CURRIER & IVES CHRISTMAS would be a wonderful addition to anyone's library and a great holiday gift.

I also highly recommend you include MAIL ORDER HUSBAND by DiAnn Mills and BENEATH A SOUTHERN SKY by Deborah Raney when you purchase this book.

Readers will "experience" history as seen through the eyes of girls and boys their own age. Combining "The American Adventure" books - numbers 6 thru 12 cover the American Revolution --with a couple of non-fiction books, such as the excellent "Brown Paper School USKids History: Book of the American Revolution" (ISBN 0-316-96922-2), your reader will have a very comprehensive knowledge of this period in our country's history.

From the back cover of "The American Revolution" -

"Stephen Lankford and his cousin, Anna Allerton, are shocked when they see a group of men dump a shipment of tea into the Boston Harbor. Then they overhear a British admiral threaten revenge as a result of this "Tea Party." Soon all of Boston is suffering.

Stephen's parents and older brother are Patriots, willing to risk everything to gain independence from England. Anna's parents are Loyalists, who feel honor-bound to support the king. When Stephen's older brother, Will, asks him to spy for the Patriots right in Uncle Cuyler's shop, Stephen is torn.

Then Anna discovers what Stephen is doing. Will she report his actions to the British soldiers? And will the approaching war destroy Anna and Stephen's families?

This volume is part of the Revolutionary War Leaders series, which also looks at the lives of Nathan Hale, John Paul Jones, and Betsy Ross among others. Of all the volumes I have read, this particular one has a reading level that is geared more towards younger students. Having read other books about Revere I know that we know more about the things Revere made over his life than we do most of the details of his life. Young readers will get a sense for how he was one of the most trusted couriers of the revolutionary movement in Boston. More importantly, they will understand that Revere's patriotic endeavors had to do with much more than just sounding the warning when the British regulars marched to Lexington and Concord.

Since I must rate the entire book at once, I have to average the "stars." There are four stories of romance in strange circumstances. First is Bride's Song in which Dora Grant, a nurse and city girl has to decide whether to keep her good job in the little town or follow her heart and become what she has vowed she never will - a homesteader's wife. This one would get 3 stars.

Second, The Barefoot Bride is a touching, moving short story about a widow, Emma, whose odd mannerisms and talking out loud to animals and nature have caused the townsfolk to believe she is insane. She is shunned and feared and terribly alone, unable to keep her large farm going. She advertises locally and unsuccessfully for a husband of any kind just to keep her farm. Finally, Matt Tolivar, a widowed doctor, comes through town and is looking for a place to hide and start his life over. A very interesting relationship occurs and this is my favorite of the four novellas. I give it 4 stars.

Third, A Homesteader, a Bride, and a Baby concerns a city gal, Lorette coming to take over the raising of a baby orphaned by diphtheria and realizing she knows nothing about operating a farm turns to a male helper with resulting ugly gossip from the townspeople. IF I could vote on Chase Lankford alone this one would get 5 stars because of his strength, wisdom, patience and his faith in God. Since I have to consider the whole story, this one gets 1-2 stars from me.

The last, A Vow Unbroken, is a story of deceit and mystery, unusual deaths and a mail-order-bride story gone wrong. Very wrong. Pregnant, widowed Abby finds herself being exchanged from her expected housekeeper job to that of mail order bride, with horrible consequences and suspense. I give this one 2 stars.

These four short stories have a decided Christian theme with all decisions coming about only after those involved spend considerable time in prayer and Bible reading. All the stories take place in the 1800's and obviously from the title, on the prairie - just as it was being settled.

I think this book would make excellent required reading for female homeschoolers or church groups perhaps for ages 13 - 18.