A Search for Purple Cows: A True Story of Hope
Author: Susan Call
Publisher: Guideposts
Date: October 1, 2013
About The Author
Susan Call is a speaker and author who enjoys sharing her insights from
life's valley, offering hope and wisdom to her audiences. She holds an MS in
Marriage and Family Therapy from Eastern Nazarene College and a BA in Computer
Science from Susquehanna University.
From Victim to Victor
As a young wife and mother, Susan Call found herself in a a cycle of abuse and betrayal. Her husband was handsome and charming but he also had a dark side. He was an alcoholic and controlled his wife with verbal and emotional abuse. The last straw came when Susan discovered that her husband was having an affair with their former nanny.
God spoke to Susan's heart as she listened to a Christian radio station. As her faith strengthened, Susan had the courage to take her children and leave her abuser. This is the story of her journey of faith, courage and hope.
My Thoughts
Research shows that the most dangerous time for an abused woman is when she is preparing to leave her abuser. This is a true story about how Susan Call was able to leave a very abusive marriage and start a new life with her children.
Ms. Call gives God the glory for guiding and protecting her during the difficult days of her separation and divorce. She describes how she feared for her life and the lives of her family members because of the threats that her husband made.
It seemed like helpful people always showed up in Susan's life when she needed them the most. She knew this was no coincidence. God protected her and had a good plan for her future.
Susan Call lived with her children as a single parent for several years. She was able to work with her ex-husband so that the children would be able to visit him on a regular schedule. God provided a job that she could work from home and she eventually met her new husband through her work team.
Susan described how she has forgiven her ex-husband and moved forward in her life. Susan is not a victim. She has found victory through her faith in Jesus Christ.
This book will provide hope to other women who find themselves in an abusive relationship. It is a testimony to God's faithfulness and grace. Highly recommended!
My Rating: 5 Stars Out of 5
FYI ~ I received a complimentary print copy of this book from B & B Media Group for an honest review.
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Laura McHale Holland has written a poignant memoir about her childhood. "Reversible Skirt" tells the story of how Laura and her two sisters survived years of emotional and physical abuse after their mother committed suicide. This book is a heart-wrenching account of a family gone terribly wrong. The author is sharing her story with the hope that readers will be reminded of the depth and complexity of children. No matter how things appear to an outside observer, one never knows what the child is really experiencing at home.
About The Author
Laura McHale Holland is a writer, editor and occasional storyteller living in southern Sonoma County, California. She currently heads the editorial department of a trade publication covering the electronic payments industry. She belongs to Redwood Writers and the Storytelling Association of California.
A Sad Story
One evening, Laura and her sisters come home from a neighborhood Halloween party and find their mother hanging from the rafters of the basement ceiling. This is the beginning of a long, tragic saga for the young girls.
The older two sisters are sent off to a Catholic orphanage and little Laura is taken in by her maternal grandparents. In a desperate attempt to keep the family together, their father marries a mean, cruel woman and tells the children that this is their mother.
Things get worse...much worse. When the girls are still in their pre-teen years, their father becomes ill and dies. The wicked stepmother continues to be a "mommy" to the girls so that she can collect social security benefits and not have to get a job.
Laura Holland describes many experiences that took place in her childhood home that were frightening, humiliating and painful. The good news is that the girls survived and went on to live the normal lives that they dreamed about as children.
My Thoughts
Ms. Holland has done an excellent job relating the difficult emotions and thoughts that she experienced as a child. It must have been very difficult to relive the devastating pain that she experienced at the hands of the adults in her early life.
This book was very hard for me to read. I know that I should not stick my head in the sand because there are many children in the world who are suffering the same kind of abuse that Laura endured for so many years. The author wrote the book to make a plea for good people to be alert to bad situations. She also acknowledged that her father was doing what he thought was best for the family at the time. Her stepmother was abandoned as a child and was abused by her caregivers. So...history repeats itself.
I can't say that you will enjoy reading this book, but I can say that you will gain insight and understanding into the plight of abused children.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the book's publicist to read and review.
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