Tuesday Night At The Blue Moon by Debbie Fuller Thomas
Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Moody Publishers (June 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0802487335
ISBN-13: 978-0802487339
From Amazon.com:
When Marty Winslow’s daughter dies of a devastating genetic disease, she discovers the truth- her child had been switched at birth. Her actual biological daughter was recently orphaned and is being raised by grandparents in a retirement community. Marty is awarded custody, but Andie refuses to fit into the family, adding one more challenge for this grieving single mom that pushes her toward the edge, and into the arms of a loving God. For Andie, being forced to live with strangers is just one more reason not to trust God. Her soul is as tattered as the rundown Blue Moon movie drive-in the family owns. But Tuesday night is Family Night at the Blue Moon, and as her hopes grow dim, healing comes from an unexpected source- the hurting family and nurturing birth mom she fights so hard to resist.
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This is the first time that I’ve read a novel using such an unusual conflict due to circumstance. The first time I heard about a baby being switched at birth was back in the eighties. I recall it was on the news when this couple had a girl who died when she was a child, and the doctor confirmed that the child was not their biological child. There was a huge court case and I believe there was a made-for-TV movie about the incident.

The book was an unusual read, but unusual in a good way. The circumstances of the story made it unusual. It was hard for Andie to leave her grandparents, to live with a family that she’s never known. She now has two female siblings who resemble her. Plus Andie’s biological mother, Marty, is also struggling to raise three children alone, with no husband for support. Ginger, Marty’s “daughter” was mistakenly given to Marty at the hospital, (hence the baby switch). When Ginger gets ill and then dies when she’s a pre-teen, it’s discovered that Ginger is not Marty’s biological daughter. The baby-switch is discovered, and Marty finds out that Andie, her biological daughter, is alive and well and living with her elderly grandparents. These facts cause Marty great emotional turmoil. When Ginger originally got ill, Marty’s husband left her, not being able to take the pressure of caring for a dying child.

Andie’s life is full of turmoil, also. She’s recently lost her “parents” in a plane crash. So she’s living with her elderly grandparents when the case goes to court about her living arrangements. The judge decides it’s best if Andie lives with her birth family. Problems arise in Marty’s household when Andie moves in. Winnie, the youngest child, initially accepts Andie into her life, however, Deja, an older teen, has several emotional outbursts because she’s forced to live with her new biological sister.

Both Andie and Marty feel as if their lives are spinning out of control, and Marty bakes as a source of comfort. Her cookies, cakes, brownies and cinnamon rolls fill their kitchen with sweetness as she longs to make her dream come true: owning her own bakery. Andie continues to feel like an outcast in her new “home” as she refuses to unpack her clothing. She continues to leave her clothing in boxes and suitcases, refusing to use the dresser since she feels her stay will be temporary. Both Andie and Marty realize that their tumultuous lives can come under control as soon as they place their faith in Jesus.

~Cecelia Dowdy~