A Search for Purple Cows by Susan Call - REVIEWED

About the Book:  (from Guideposts publishing)
A whimsical comment from a kind stranger, 'Be sure to search for purple cows,' brings hope to a woman and her children fleeing from a life filled with trouble. In A Search for Purple Cows, Susan Call reveals to the world how painful a relationship can be when love deteriorates into a cycle of abuse and betrayal. Her moving memoir chronicles how she first met her husband, a handsome, stylish, generous man with whom she worked. Eventually they fell in love, married, and had two children. Their life seemed idyllic -- they had a beautiful home and everything a family could desire. But soon, inside those walls, Call was tormented by her husband's alcoholism, domestic abuse, and infidelity that cast her family into a world fraught with fear and despair. God found her in the midst of her pain, and showed her, through the unlikely source of a Christian radio station, that a journey toward Him was possible even in the most unthinkable circumstances. Call eventually found the strength to move on and start anew. Written with candor and grace, A Search for Purple Cows will leave you laughing, crying, and believing that God is present and able, ready to bring hope and healing.

My Thoughts:

“God was slowly helping me shift my focus off of myself and my difficult situation on to Him.” (p. 46)

“And while I call this “my journey,” I believe in reality it is His story; it is a reminder that God still performs miracles, He still answers prayers, and He still very much cares about each one of us.” (p. 224)

This was a story that I was meant to read. A God-appointment in my life.  While my story is very, very different, and not anywhere near as traumatic in many ways, I recognize many aspects of Susan’s story.  She tells a story of deliverance.  She gives God all of the praise and honor for her life and her  - well, her everything.  Truly, she has been faithful to share one of the most honest, painful stories I’ve read in quite some time. It is a true story. It is her story.

And it is the story many, many women understand because they too have walked the same or similar path.  I have lived through the ending of a 22-year marriage, and I can truly say with Susan that “…God still performs miracles, He still answers prayers, and He still very much cares about each one of us.”  I can say this because I too have experienced His tender care and provision in miraculous ways time and time again over the course of the past 2 ½ years.  Susan’s story has now become part of my healing.

I thank God for her obedience to tell the story of her journey!  

About the Author:
Susan Call is a speaker and author who enjoys sharing her insights from life's valley, offering hope and wisdom to her audiences. She holds an MS in Marriage and Family Therapy from Eastern Nazarene College and a BA in Computer Science from Susquehanna University. She also studied at Uppsala University and Vilundaskolan in Sweden. She lives in New Hampshire with her current husband Jim and their five children.