Monday, August 4, 2014

Woman of Courage by Wanda Brunstetter {Review & Giveaway}


About the book:  Jilted by her fiancé in 1837, Amanda Pearson gives up on romance and turns to her Quaker faith for reassurance. She becomes determined to follow the Rev. and Mrs. Spalding three thousand miles into the western wilderness to minister to the Nez Perce Indians. The trip is fraught with danger, and soon Amanda finds herself recovering from near death in a trapper's cabin. His Indian wife becomes Amanda's first convert, but the trapper and his intriguing half-Indian friend want nothing to do with Christians. Will they still help her reach the mission in the Lapwai Valley?

My thoughts:  
Wanda Bruestetter brings the reader another story complete with well-drawn characters, good dialogue, descriptive scenes that capture one’s imagination, and strong faith. Beginning slow and  gentle, the scene soon moves from adventure to miss-adventure to tragedy upon tragedy. It coils around depth of emotions and rank despair to dependence upon and grace given by an Almighty God.


Amanda and her father, both Quakers, leave their established home and go West. They are heading into unknown Indian territory and their destination is the mission where they hope to minister the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to the Nez Perce Indians. A mission is already established, and their goal is to bring themselves as additional helpers in the mission’s goal.

At one point, Amanda’s father dies of a heart attack. Soon after, her only guide dies when a storm crashes a tree onto him. Now Amanda is wet, cold, alone, sick, and completely desperate. She relies upon God, her faith is strong, but sometimes her spirit wavers.

Well, the story does end well, but there are more mind-boggling happenings that take place. The West was a hard place. And they were in a hard place in the West. 

This story is about the 1837 period when the West was being settled. The Mission in Lapwai Valley, Oregon was a long way from their New York home and its comforts. There were no comforts along the way. The journey was mostly on horseback. They traveled every day – snow, rain, wind, sun. They slept on the ground. It was hard.

Amanda proved to be a woman of courage from the onset of the story – just simply to undertake the journey  took a huge measure of courage. But for her to endure, day after day, and not say, “Enough! Enough is Enough!” took a strength of courage that is beyond measure.

A good book to read and one I heartily recommend.

GIVEAWAY: The good folks at Handlebar Publishing on behalf of the Wanda Brunstetter and Shiloh Run Press are providing one of Chat With Vera's readers with a copy of Woman of Courage. Use the entry form below. Begins August 4 & ENDS August 20 @ 12:01 a.m. EDT. Open to US addresses only. 
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Of interest.... My regular Chat With Vera readers know that  sometimes when reading fiction, I decide to learn a little more about the historical period, the peoples, the location, etc. Well, here is some information on the Nez Perce Indians. I just love to look at the pictures and then revisit the story in my mind with these pictures to flesh out the story. IMAGES  General Information Nez Perce Mission in Lapwai Valley Information


DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy of Woman of Courage from Handlebar Publishing on behalf of the Wanda Brunstetter and Shiloh Run Press in exchange for my honest review. Opinions expressed are solely my own & I was under no obligation to render a positive review. I received no compensation for this review.

19 comments:

  1. I like the 1800s and early 1900s. Love the Pioneer days. Maxie > mac262(at)me(dot)com

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  2. If I lived during that time,1837, just don't know what I would be capable of. But I love reading about it. Maxie > mac262(at)me(dot)com <

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  3. Wanda writes the best books. I doubt that I would have the stamina to be a pioneering type of woman. But of course, when you are determined you can do a lot of things you would not expect to be able to do.

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  4. I would say the pioneering time is of great interest due to the adventure and the trials that happened around the 1840-50 years.

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  5. I do not think I could have handled it. I barely spend time outside as it is.

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  6. I like the history from about 1890 through 1930ish. There's a book series by John Jakes that covers it...the history of Chicago, the beginnings of unions, German immigrants...all things that are a part of my personal history.

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  7. I think the Civil War era is my favorite. There is so much to learn about the tough times for everyone during this difficult timeframe.

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  8. Journeying cross country in 1837 would certainly have been a challenge. Since other women made the journey then, I could do it too.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

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  9. I like the 1940's era since that is the time of the Greatest Generation. They certainly demonstrated courage, patriotism, hard work, and loyalty for coming generations.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

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  10. I think all of us are capable of much more than we know. Faith and fortitude played a big part during that time period and it is still needed today!
    Connie

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  11. I love the Civil War period. It was such a terrible time for our country and hopefully, we have learned from it.
    Connie
    cps1950@gmail.com

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  12. I think all of us are capable of doing more than we would ever realize. Faith and determination can help you accomplish great things!
    Connie
    cps1950@gmail.com

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  13. Although it was a very sad time in our nation's history, I have always loved the Civil War era.
    Connie
    cps1950@gmail.com

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  14. I dont think I could have handled such a long journey. Unfortunately I am too spoiled with modern day conveniences and my health would probably not make things easy too.
    marypopmom (at) yahoo (dot) com
    Merry

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  15. I am interested in history and I enjoy reading about the late 1800's and the west.
    marypopmom (at) yahoo (dot) com
    Merry

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  16. I love the pioneer days like Little house on the prairie

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  17. I believe i could have handled it because i am so resilient

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  18. I really enjoy the Civil War era because I find it very interesting to learn about what they went through!

    andysavi.mom@gmail.com

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  19. I believe I could have handled the difficult time as long as I was with my family. We can do anything together!

    andysavi.mom@gmail.com

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