Sometimes there’s a fine line between comedy and tragedy—and Katie Parker is walking it.School is winding down for the summer but Katie Parker is having a bad day. After leaving the drive-in, where her imploding love life was the main attraction, Katie arrives home to a big surprise on the Scott's front porch.
Her mother, Bobbie Ann Parker, a former convict and recovering addict, wants to take Katie away from her family, friends, and church. Now Katie's life will be changed by a series of dramatic choices as she struggles to understand what family and home really means.
Katie is forced to walk away from In Between, leaving behind a family who loves her, a town drive-in to save, and a boyfriend who suddenly can’t take his eyes off his ex. When the life her mother promised begins to sink faster than one of Maxine’s stuffed bras, Katie knows she needs to rely on God to keep it together.
But where is he in all this? Can Katie survive a chaotic life with her mother—and one without the Scotts? And if God is there, will he come through before it’s too late?
A Katie Parker Production series offers teen girls real-world fiction balanced by hope and humor. The The Big Picture helps us realize that the difficult chapters in our journey are only part of God's big story for our lives.
You can read the first chapter HERE
"A heroine to love. Jones just gets better with every book, and The Big Picture is her best one yet."
~BARBARA WARREN, author of The Gathering Storm
MY REVIEW:
Jenny B. Jones has created a trilogy of books called The Katie Parker Production series. Act 3 of this series is entitled the Big Picture, and it was my first introduction to the writing of this incredible author. The series “star” is a young teen named Katie Parker, and apparently the series chronicles a very difficult journey for this young lady. By the time you reach the big picture, Katie is a fledgling Christian because her foster parents lovingly introduced her to Christ through their church ministry and daily care of her injured soul. Her new faith is tried by fire in this novel, and it will leave your heart changed.
See, Katie’s mom is an addict. She has just been released from prison, and she wants to resume her role as Katie’s mother. Or does she? This book deals with a very heart-breaking and real problem within today’s society. Unfortunately, Katie’s story – albeit fiction here – is a very real scenario that many teens must endure. The life of drug addiction is strewn with many broken hearts and lives, and Jenny Jones has cushioned the telling of this raw emotional story in a couch of lovable, eclectic characters and set them down in a small town in
Yet there will be tears amid the laughter in this book. Katie must make decisions at the age of 17 that no teen should ever have to make. She learns that even though her earthly mother has failed her in many areas, that God has surrounded her with the deeper love of His family, and with His strength and abundant grace, Katie finds her way through. Jenny created a very realistic teen community, and their angst and romance fill the pages with some of the freshest, funniest, youthful insights and opinions I’ve ever read! Nothing is held back, and Katie becomes a strong and courageous young lady with help found in many unexpected places.
This story was especially poignant to me, because I serve as a volunteer for a ministry that provides an in-house rehab facility for recovering addicts. I’ve seen this story played out from both sides, and in my opinion, the parent-child relationship becomes a hellish battleground in this evil war on drugs. I’m glad to know Jenny Jones is living out God’s grace amid the teens of today! She is a gifted writer, and I feel like God will use these stories to reach a lot of broken hearts. I highly recommend this book! Share the entire series with the teens in your life! You won’t be sorry!
1 comment:
As per usual, great review. I gave my copy to my 16 Y.O. who devoured number 1 in the series. She won't have a review ready, but I am posting an interview.
: )
Post a Comment