A Place Called Morning

Title: A Place Called Morning
Author: Ann Tatlock
Major Themes: Adoption, Forgiveness
Synopsis: When Mae accidentally forgets something that results in her grandson’s death, she can’t forgive herself.

A lot of the free books I get for my Kindle aren’t all that great, but A Place Called Morning was very good. I was highly impressed with the quality of writing, as well as with the storyline and the message conveyed by the story. And, most unusual of all, this was a novel for women that didn’t have any romance in it at all!

Mae had a good life. She had grown up in a loving family, although her father always paid more attention to her four brothers than to her. She had a husband who loved her, and wonderful children. Now, her husband had died, but she had a beautiful 2-year-old grandson and was still volunteering at the children’s hospital, and life was good. Until one horrible day when she was responsible for causing her grandson’s tragic death.

Mae knew she could never forgive herself for the carelessness which resulted in Sammy’s death. Nor could she trust herself to be with children ever again. She withdrew into herself and away from all her friends. Would she ever be able to be happy again? She was sure she didn’t deserve any happiness!

Every week, Roy came to work for Mae. He had been a close friend ever since she could remember, coming to her home for meals quite often from the orphanage in which he lived. His mind was not quite normal, but he was quite able to help out around her home and good company. When he made a mistake that ended up destroying Mae’s home and all the precious things she had saved from her past, could she forgive him?

I don’t know if everyone has trouble forgiving themselves for mistakes they have made, but I know I have had trouble in the past. I can easily relate to a story like this one. I appreciated what Mae’s daughter told her one day: “Then don’t try to excuse it, Mother. Forgive yourself. Let it go. Please just let it go, or you’ll never have any peace again in your life.” This is a powerful story, and very much worth reading.

No warnings!