A Whisper Of Peace by Kim Vogel Sawyer
This book is one of the best I’ve read in 2011! If you haven’t read this book then you need to rush out and buy a copy now! Better yet, download a copy on your Kindle or your Nook!
Lizzie is half-Indian and half-White. One striking feature that shows her mixed race is her vivid blue eyes. Due to her mixed parentage, she’s been shunned and ostracized by her village – which include her own grandparents! She lives apart from the village, alone. Her White father left Lizzie and her mom when Lizzie was twelve. Growing up, her father taught her to read and Lizzie can speak both her native Indian language as well as English. After her mother died, Lizzie has had to survive on her own. She’s lonesome, and she only has her guard dogs for companionship.
When missionaries Clay and Vivian arrive in the Indian village near Lizzie’s home in Alaska, her life takes an interesting turn. During a comical incident where Lizzie is making sugar cookies, she encounters Clay and Vivian for the second time. She longs for companionship and since those in her Indian village have shunned her, she feels she needs to leave Alaska and travel to California where her father lives. Lizzie doesn’t know a whole lot about being White and living in the outside world, so she convinces Vivian to give her lessons that will make her more knowledgable about the outside world – Lizzie longs to be White.
Meanwhile, Clay and Vivian cause turmoil within the Indian village. Their friendship with Lizzie, a shunned Indian, is against tribal rules and they’re ordered to stop communicating with their new friend.
This book was phenomenal! I think Kim V. Sawyer did an awesome job dealing with the issues of race and forgiveness. Plus, the Alaskan setting was wonderful! I also think she did a really great job with her character development! I felt that Lizzie was the strongest, most appealing, character of all. She’s been ostracised, she’s lonesome, and she doesn’t know the love of Jesus. She’s brave and she hunts and fishes, supporting herself, and she doesn’t have the companionship of any other humans. I especially loved seeing her interact with her dogs and I loved the scenes with her working on the fur coat for her grandmother, hoping to make peace with her relative.
This book was emotional, really tugs at your heart. This book is definitely a winner and I highly recommend it.