Our Simple Gifts

November 4, 2002
The traditional lessons of Christmas are revisited in this set of four inspirational stories from novelist Parry, creator of the Abel Jones series of Civil War–era suspense stories (Honor's Kingdom, etc.). Here, Parry offers other perspectives on the tragic conflict. In "Star of Wonder," the widow of an Irish coal miner takes an injured, sick officer into her modest home during a blizzard. The wealthy officer finds his notions of the Irish turned upside down, and takes pleasure in returning her kindness. "Tannenbaum" features a German immigrant reminding his battle-weary fellows of the mystical power of the Christmas tree. A Confederate soldier dreams of his grandmother, who persuades him to reconcile with his Union-supporting father in "Nothing but a Kindness." Only when he returns home does the soldier realize that he's been visited by a ghost. "Christmas Gift" explores the theme of forgiveness as a newly freed slave feels sorrow for his fallen masters. These deeply Christian stories display the solid writing and period detail Parry is famous for, and are studded with acute observations of the era's stratifications and politics ("Yankees weren't the whipping kind any more than they seemed the praying kind," a freed slave observes as his plantation is being overrun by Union soldiers). However, they may strike his fans as too saccharine. Though Parry's previous books also have a religious influence (Abel Jones is a staunch Methodist), they're told with a touch of irony that's missing from this collection, which is unabashedly full of holiday sentimentality.

November 15, 2002
Parry, author of the popular Abel Jones Civil War mysteries, offers four heartfelt Christmas tales set amidst the spiritual and physical hardships of the Civil War era. Each short story stands alone as an uplifting tribute to the ultimate ascendancy of human decency and kindness during times of conflict. The author, a master of mid-nineteenth-century dialogue, delivers refreshingly old-fashioned messages of love, faith, and generosity couched in a variety of authentic dialects, as immigrants, emancipated slaves, Union soldiers, and Confederate loyalists are all respectfully represented. Steeped in history and goodwill, this Christmas treasury should enter the ranks of timeless holiday classics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)