Monday, June 25, 2007

THE OAK LEAVES by Maureen Lang


I'd like you all to meet (relative) newcomer Maureen Lang, author of "The Oak Leaves," a new release. Please welcome her to the blog!

One writer’s take on the “book of her heart.”

Maureen Lang thought she’d write about her experience with Fragile X Syndrome (a genetic form of mental retardation) “someday.” After all, having a child who requires round-the-clock care doesn’t make for the upbeat, escapist reading most romance novelists prefer to write about. Still, Lang wanted to include Fragile X in a story because so few people have heard of the disorder that affects her 12-year-old son. So she put the tale in the middle of a love story.

The Victorian romance of Cosima Escott is interspersed between the pages of a glimpse into the contemporary life of Talie Ingram as her world is forever altered by her son’s diagnosis of Fragile X Syndrome.

From the back cover:

Talie Ingram has an ideal life: a successful, devoted husband; a beautiful one-year-old son; and another on the way. But her world is shattered when she discovers a shocking family secret in the nineteenth-century journal belonging to her ancestor Cosima Escott. Only in reading Cosima’s words can Talie make peace with the legacy she’s inherited and the one she’s passed on to her son.

Media Reviews:

From the very beginning, Lang, a romance novelist and author of Pieces of Silver, deftly navigates back and forth in history… It’s Cosima's lingering voice—her determination and faith—that inspires Talie to reconcile her son's diagnosis of fragile X syndrome (a disability Lang's own son suffers from) with her belief that God is merciful. -- Publisher’s Weekly
A tender account of unconditional love and the deeper joy that results from overcoming the odds, Lang's latest is recommended for all collections and is an essential read for those with fragile X syndrome in their families. - Library Review
“…A lush and moving tapestry of love, fear and faith…spellbinding… Flawlessly plotted, filled with flesh-and-blood characters and a radiant faith…Very highly recommended.” -Christian Book Previews

Available at a store near you or order The Oak Leaves online.

If there’s one thing Maureen Lang would like readers to take away, it’s this: God loves us all, even through the trials He allows into our lives. And one more thing…the next time you happen to see a family with a disabled child . . . send a smile their way!

Amen. I believe God sends us the exact trials we need to mold us into what He wants us to be--better equipped tools in His service. Thank you, Maureen!

~~Angie

3 comments:

Megan DiMaria said...

I'm in the middle of reading Oak Leave right now--it's wonderful. Maureen is a gifted storyteller.

A prisoner of hope,
Megan
:)

Pamela S. Meyers said...

I have the pleasure of knowing Maureen personally as we live in the same area and belong to our local ACFW chapter. She's not only a great storyteller, but a lovely person to know. I've told her that her writing has made me come back to reading historical fiction. She skillfully toggles between a contemporary family dealing with Fragile X and that family's ancestors in the 1800s dealing with something they call "feeble mindedness." She's currently working on a sequel to this story and I can't wait to read it.

This book is a great read!

Unknown said...

it's a good book for fragile x.my son is 11 and has fragile x and wow it hits close to home reading this book.i was young and never new fragile x before my son.and i love him with all my heart.and it's true god only give this kids to special people like maureen and my self,and all the mom's with kids like this.