"The Sparrow Found a House" - Review and Giveaway! (and we all know how I love giveaways!)

Today, I have a book review for you, followed by a GREAT giveaway, sponsored by Elisha Press and hosted by yours truly. :-) {I solemnly swear that I was in no way persuaded to positively review this book due to fondness for my new little nephew Elisha. ;-)}

 

The Book:

The Sparrow Found a House by Jason McIntire. Published 2013 by Elisha Press. {My thanks to Elisha Press for providing me with a review copy.}

The Back Cover Description:

Fifteen-year-old Jessie Rivera is living every teenager’s nightmare. Her widowed mom has married a man who wears his heavy Christian values like his sergeant’s stripes – on both sleeves.

Glenn Sparrow is persistent, immovable, and not afraid to be firm. Worse than that, he’s loving, kind – even fun – and he has Chris, Moe, and Katie completely won over.

But Jessie is determined that she won’t be won over, or give up her “freedom” without a fight. She knows what she wants, and it isn’t what they’ve got.

Or is it?

My Thoughts:

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. Author Jason McIntire shows how the Gospel can transform a family that is "broken" like the Rivera-Sparrows, and he does it in a often funny, down-to-earth way.

Author Jason McIntire

I enjoyed every character in the Rivera-Sparrow family, not without reservation but with the negative-positive connections you feel toward people in real life. Though the back cover mentions only Jessie, The Sparrow Found a House delves into each child in the Rivera-Sparrow family, which makes it a great read-aloud for a family with children of various ages and genders. There's somewhat passive older brother Chris, determined and straightforward older sister Jessie, bright and cute little sister Katie, and little brother Moe. Each of the children caught my interest quickly, and I found myself rooting for them to "win" their individual battles, whether over violent video games {Chris} or over conceit {Katie}.

McIntire places quite a number of secondary characters in the story as well, but I found it easy to keep track of them. Each of these secondary characters helped move the plot along and further developed the theme of how the Gospel transforms family life, working from the inside to the outside. We find that once a person has been changed by Christ, he or she cannot keep that alteration to themselves; it will affect everything he or she does and says.

The writing is easy and quick-paced and enjoyable. I found myself looking forward to how the story would twist and turn. I'd love to see a sequel that followed one or all of the Rivera-Sparrow children into their teen years/adulthood. I applaud Elisha Press for striving to create wholesome books that the entire family can relish.

Any Reservations?

Well, I have the blessed situation of having experienced public school, private school, and homeschooling, all for approximately the same amount of time. I enjoyed all three and saw negative attributes in each that could have benefitted from the others' positive points. Thus, while I personally favor homeschooling and most likely will homeschool my own children in the future, I can't "cotton" to the way in which McIntire dramatically glamorizes homeschooling and vilifies public schooling. His portrayal of the public school system as a whole and its teachers seems unrealistic in an otherwise lifelike novel, and his implicit equation of homeschooling with Christianity rings false, in my opinion.

Overall:

I recommend The Sparrow Found a House for a good family read-aloud or for teens {its intended audience} to read by themselves. The book includes a little violence and frightening elements: Two thugs threaten Chris and Jessie on their way home from school; a neighbor tries to scare the Sparrow family with illegal fireworks; a burglary occurs. There are no romantic elements, unless you count the eldest son's crush on a girl at his school, but this is undetailed.

Special Notes:

Elisha Press provides free e-copies of their titles through their website: ELISHA PRESS. Their current titles make great read-alouds {as mentioned above}. You can also sign up for their e-mail list to be apprised of new releases, etc.: click here.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher Elisha Press in exchange for my honest review. I have received no other compensation for this review and was under no obligation to provide a positive review.

 

Now it's YOUR TURN! :-) Would you like to an Elisha Press book for free?

Elisha Press is generously providing a paperback copy of ANY of their titles to one WINNER of the GIVEAWAY below! {Winner will be notified by e-mail.} Feel free to enter and SHARE!a Rafflecopter giveaway