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Title: A Home for My Heart
Author: Anne Mateer
First Published: September 2013
Published By: Bethany House Publishers
Format Read: Kindle for PC, eBook
Genre: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction
Read: March 14 2015
Rating: 3/5
Life as the assistant matron for Raystown Home for Orphan
and Friendless Children has been very fulfilling for Sadie, while she awaits a
proposal from her beau Blaine. It was decided that they would wait to be wed
until Blaine had saved up enough money to buy a farm of their own. When the
head matron resigns from her position she offers the reigns to Sadie. Not
expecting a proposal anytime soon, she takes the position. She can’t wait to
share her news with Blaine, but it turns out that he has a surprise of his own.
He bought them a farm! This aspect of A Home for My Heart reminded me of the
book The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry. Unfortunately Sadie can’t have both the
title of matron and be a married woman, so she has a tough decision to make.
Determined to rise above her past (she was an orphan herself) and give the
children she loves so dearly a second chance at life, she stays with the
orphanage.
Set in 1910 Pennsylvania, Sadie doesn’t just inherit a house
full of children and a small staff, but an almost non-existent budged too. The
board in charge of the home stresses that in order to keep their doors open an
entire years worth of funds must be raised.
One way I was able to connect and relate with Sadie was in
the aspect that we are both terrible at math. I was able to feel her anxiety
when she struggled to make sure the ledger balanced. I only wish she would have
swallowed her pride and sought help sooner.
Looking back I don’t think that Sadie made for the strongest
protagonist, although her heart was certainly in the right place. She came
across as very fragile to me, always being knocked down, bumping into Blaine
and being helped along. I realise that this is how women were portrayed during
this specific time period (and those before it), however there are times that
this trait turns me off from the character.
All things considered I thought that Anne Mateer’s A Home
for My Heart was a sweet inspirational story that I would recommend to others.
