Hope Road

Grace at Low Tide by Beth Webb Hart ****

A tender coming-of-age story. Fifteen-year-old DeVeaux is faced with choices and changes when her father, a formerly affluent and respected Charleston resident, goes bankrupt and moves the family to a much more isolated and much less refined life an on island nearby. DeVeaux, the youngest of the family, deals with her father’s breakdown, her mother’s illness, and her older siblings’ and cousin’s troubles, as well as her own relationship and friendship intricacies.

The story is understated, peaceful, intimate. You feel as though you’re sitting on the front porch swing with DeVeaux as she relates the saga of the past six months to you. It avoids cliches without being overly cynical. And in my opinion, it is more well-written than many other contemporary Christian novels.

Recommended age level: 15+. There is nothing qualitatively inappropriate in the novel, but it does deal with some very real-life situations that are best suited for older readers.