I’M RUNNING A GIVEAWAY OF CATHY GOHLKE’S BOOK!

Comment below to enter the giveaway.

The parable of The Prodigal Son is powerful for numerous reasons, including the fluidity of the story roles as it applies to our lives. We can be the prodigal or the self-righteous older brother. But honestly, it’s unnerving how easily I find myself going back and forth between these two roles, depending on the situation. 

Tim Keller’s The Prodigal God so aptly illustrates this, as does Cathy Gohlke’s novel This Promised Land.

Cathy joined me in April 2023 as we discussed Night Bird Calling.

She wasn’t an official endorser of A Hundred Magical Reasons, but she wrote a lovely review in February:

In thanks, I’m running a giveaway of her book!

Blurb

When she ran away as a young war bride, she was cut off from her family forever . . . or so she believed. Decades later, maybe the only way to move on is to go home.

Ginny Pickering Boyden can’t wait for her last day of work, when she’ll be free to pursue a lifelong ambition through a master gardener apprenticeship. But an unexpected letter brings shocking news: Ginny has inherited her family’s Christmas tree farm, a dream she’d long ago given up.

Facing a past laced with memories and lies she’s tried hard to bury, a furious nephew who thought the land would be his, and a failing farm with a mountain of debt, Ginny returns to New Scrivelsby, Virginia, determined to sell. But when her younger nephew, a Vietnam vet, appears with demons of his own and three young children in tow, Ginny isn’t sure what to do. Too much of their story reminds Ginny of her own. She has little hope, however, that three generations of warring Pickerings can set aside their differences to restore all that’s broken, both on the land and in their hearts.

Set against the beautiful and rugged landscape of the Blue Ridge Mountains, This Promised Land is the story of a daughter’s longing to make sense of the past and of the unbreakable bonds that bring prodigals home.

************************

My Thoughts

I loved these characters and the way the Prodigal Son motif was illustrated from all angles through the family members’ respective situations. Complicated family dynamics grew out of pain, shocking revelations, failed expectations, and/or rejection. Three main perspectives were employed, including that of Arlo, a ten-year-old girl. 

The young girl’s point of view definitely added more depth and a richness to the story, similar to the child’s perspective in Cathy’s Night Bird Calling. Each person had a believable character arc, even young Arlo, a tough nut to crack. Spunky and smart, she isn’t ready to trust anyone. The keen responsibility she feels for her siblings takes her to extremes.

This multi-generational drama and its dysfunction is rooted in the 1940s and the rift between Ginny and her brother Harold after Ginny Dee leaves at age eighteen.

The prologue plunges us into 1940. Then there’s a huge gap between that scene and Chapter 1 in 1992 with Ginny. I wanted to know Ginny’s story earlier, but the blanks were gradually and deftly filled in as needed. 

In the 1990s, Ginny is so estranged from her family, she doesn’t even know she has two nephews or great-nieces and a great-nephew. But by virtue of inheriting the Wetherill Pickering’s Christmas Tree Farm, she’s suddenly at odds with them all. Only Will Skipwith, the family lawyer, is able to keep any peace and order among them at first. 

Yes, this story has a “save the farm” motif, but it’s more than that. It’s about the people, the family. Some are shaped by war, some by abandonment, some by alcohol, by dissipating  dreams, and some by hard work and entitlement. These complicated relationships have no easy resolutions. 

Perhaps I can air just one complaint without it being a spoiler. I do wish a particular scene would have been shown in person rather than as a phone conversation! This merely shows how entwined I was with the characters. 

A  touch of romance sweetens the story without taking the helm. Most importantly, a  strong spiritual thread prevails, full of grace, forgiveness, and second chances. There’s room at the table for all.

Comment below to enter the giveaway for Cathy’s book.

Join me for some Q & A with Cathy Gohlke. 

Questions about This Promised Land

What inspired you to write a story so connected to the themes of the Prodigal Son parable? 

My brother loaned me his copy of Timothy Keller’s book, The Prodigal God. Reading it may have been the first time I recognized myself in the role of the wayward and desperate prodigal son, as well as the older, jealous, judgmental, and unforgiving son from Jesus’ parable in Luke 15.  

Keller’s book woke in me the realization that we all hold traits of both brothers, and a heart’s desire to remain neither but to become more like the running father. I wanted to share the roles of each of those characters from Jesus’ parable in a story that shows we are all composites of both brothers at one time or another, but that we all have the opportunity to seek forgiveness and become more like the running father.

Your story demonstrates that well. What is your personal connection to the setting? 

The setting for my story was inspired by Milltown Creek Tree Farms, a Lovettsville, Virginia family-owned Christmas tree farm set amid the beautiful rolling hills of Virginia near me. We cut and buy our annual Christmas tree from this farm—a trek over hills we always look forward to.

Sounds like a place with sweet memories—and the perfect inspiration for a story setting. How well did you know your main characters (particularly Ginny and Arlo) at the beginning of the novel? Did they hijack the story?

I felt as if I knew these characters personally—especially Ginny, Arlo, Marley, and Cooper. I patterned Ginny’s love for and relationship with the children after my love for and relationship with my three grandchildren, who at the time of writing were similar in ages to the characters of my story.  

It was an absolute pleasure to write the viewpoints of the children and to include fun things my grandchildren did or said. I don’t know if Arlo hijacked the story, but she certainly found her voice. I love writing competent and feisty young characters.

I wonder if your grandchildren will read the book someday and recognize themselves in it! How did you decide on the characters’ backstories and situations?

Each of the main adult characters—Ginny, Luke and Mark—needed to portray at different points in their lives aspects of both the younger and older brothers found in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. They also needed to mature enough to either embrace or consider embracing the attitude or role of the running father.  

Given the time period of the story (WWII and 1992) and the ages of the characters, I looked at what might have influenced their lives—family, nature, environment, culture, nurture, current events. WWII and the Viet Nam War greatly impacted the characters’ backstories.

There’s plenty of fodder for building their character arcs. What would Ginny and Arlo think of you?

I think they would find in me a kindred spirit and an enthusiastic supporter of their interests and endeavors.

That’s sweet! What unusual or interesting thing did you do or discover while researching for this story?

In researching the Jewish culture in which Jesus’ Parable of the Prodigal Son—better known to the original listeners as the Parable of the Running Father—was told, I learned that the younger son faced great danger in returning to his father’s home. He had sold 1/3 of his father’s estate (his inheritance) to Gentiles, thus publicly and shamefully losing the land and diminishing the family’s/community’s livelihood.  

The family/community considered such a one as dead to the community. Should the prodigal try to return, the community performed a cutting off ceremony called kezazah.  Every family member would throw bitter herbs and sometimes burnt beans in a clay pot, then smash the pot in the road at the feet of the person, signifying he was not welcome but cut off from the community.  Thus intercepted, he might be beaten or in some cases worse.

So, the father, watching for his son and running to embrace him not only showed great love and compassion, but acceptance, mercy, and protection from those who might harm the young man. That’s exactly what our Heavenly Father has done for us by providing for our redemption through Jesus’ sacrifice.  

He has shown us great love, compassion, and mercy as well as protection from the consequences of our sin—and a way to reenter His presence and be welcomed as sons. Learning of that historic cultural practice thrilled me, giving me an even greater understanding of all that God and Jesus have done for us.

Such wonderful reminders. I did not know the Jewish custom of cutting somebody off from the community. That definitely enriches the meaning of the parable. 

Comment below to enter the giveaway for Cathy’s book.

**********************

Back to Laura . . . On a similar note . . . 

If you like dual timeline fiction about family dynamics in a small town Midwest (Wisconsin) setting, try The Broken Weathervane (launched September 2). Two co-workers seek the same information. One wants to publish it; the other has good reasons to keep it hidden. The timeline alternates between 2015 and the 1950s. Check out the reviews and book trailer here.

If you like historical fiction, you might enjoy A Hundred Magical Reasons (launched January 2025). This story spotlights L. Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, his friendship with a young girl, and his impact through the decades. Set in Holland, Michigan, this dual timeline novel alternates between 1980 and the early 1900s. Read more and watch the book trailer here. 

If you like Southern fiction and small town/rural stories about family dynamics and secrets, you might enjoy my novel All That Is Hidden. Set near North Carolina’s Smoky Mountains in 1968, the story spotlights the bond of family and the connections of a tight-knit community. Northern exploitation threatens as a father’s hidden past catches up to him and tests family ties. Learn more and watch the trailer here.

All That Is Hidden is now an audiobook! 

I invite you to join my monthly newsletter for writing updates, freebies, and giveaways. Sign up and I’ll send you 7 Oz-inspired recipes: A-Taste-Of-Oz-Cookbook-Sampler.com

*******************

Cathy Gohlke bio

Bestselling, Christy Hall of Fame, and Carol and INSPY Award-winning author, Cathy Gohlke writes novels steeped with inspirational lessons, speaking of world and life events through the lens of history. She champions the battle against oppression, celebrating the freedom found only in Christ. When not traveling to historic sites for research, she and her husband of 40 years, Dan, divide their time between Northern Virginia and the Jersey Shore, enjoying time with their grown children and grandchildren. Visit her website at www.cathygohlke.com, and find her on Facebook at CathyGohlkeBooks; on Bookbub (@ CathyGohlke); and on YouTube, where you can subscribe to Book Gems with Cathy Gohlke for short videos of book recommendations.

*****************

Join me next time for a visit with author Heather Kaufman.

Meanwhile, have you read This Promised Land or other books by Cathy Gohlke? ANSWER IN THE COMMENTS BELOW TO BE ENTERED IN THE GIVEAWAY!

Ever reading,

Laura

Sign up for my monthly newsletter and receive the 7 free Oz-inspired recipes: A-Taste-Of-Oz-Cookbook-Sampler.com