Hello everyone!
I absolutely need something to distract myself with tonight as I have just finished watching the latest episode of Arrow and let me tell you - that show knows exactly how to break my heart every single time it appears. There has to be a reason why it's the most prominent hero show on TV at the moment, right? Right.
Anyway.
I was reminded of this book because I caught something on the internet from the TV show itself, and then went back through my notes to see whether or not I'd actually ever read this or if I have yet to read it.
Luckily, I have!
It's the first book from Janette Oke's continuation to the Canadian West series, titled Return to the Canadian West, of course, and it's called Where Courage Calls!
I do believe that I have written about Oke before, and I actually had to go back and check, because by this point, there's A LOT of blog posts to sift through, but I posted twice! So, check it out here and here, if you please, and you'll see all about the author, and the beloved books that I can't help but go back and read every once in a while.
As to this one, it's just as good as the rest.
Where Courage Calls was written as a companion novel to the television series, and it portrays the decision of Elizabeth 'Beth' Thatcher t take up a teaching position on the Canadian frontier, in a rough situation at Coal Valley. Her family, who are well-off and are rather hoping she would follow the steps of her older sister to get married and have a family, are disappointed, but supportive eventually, still holding out hope that she'll marry childhood friend Edward, who, also from a prominent family, is basically the perfect fit.
Well, according to the parents, that is.
Actually, Edward is a bit too sure of himself; he does do the right thing in joining the Canadian Mounted Police force, but then while escorting Beth to her new home, he manages to get her luggage stolen.
Talk about silly.
Anyway, Beth comes to Coal Valley and has to face a lot of difficulties (it doesn't even start with her not having anything but the clothes on her back!), namely opposition from certain townfolk, aggression from the Grant couple, logistical challenges, and how people can't seem to treat other people right.
Of course, as this is an inspirational book, she perseveres; the children begin to enjoy coming to school to learn new things with her, the townsfolk start getting used to her, and she even starts English classes for the Italian miners who work in the mines but are basically pushed to the fringes of society, which she can't understand and so tries to help out. There are also Bible classes, reading, performing, etc., just trying to survive in life when it isn't all bread and butter.
And then, there's Jarrick Thornton, or Jack, who's the local Mountie and who she immediately feels drawn to (despite the fact he doesn't initially give off any of those good, date material vibes, but that's 21st century me thinking). In any event, he's a much better choice than Edward if you ask me!
Now, Edward redeems himself by finding some important and cherished pieces of her luggage, but eventually, they resolve their situation when he explains he's going to marry someone else, which leaves Beth free for Jack.
There has to be a danger moment though, where she's threatened by Grant and a child gets sick, only to have them find out Grant has been making alcohol and selling it in town despite Prohibition.
All's well that ends well though, and as her year draws to a close (after numerous alusions to her aunt Elizabeth and her own mountie, Wynn Delaney), Beth is ready to go home and wait on news whether or not she'll be asked to come teach again.
And what do you know? Jarrick takes a page right ut of Wynn's book and only tells her he has feelings for her on the platform, and that he would very much like to correspond with her through the summer (note: this is actually pretty hilarious in the continuation of their story since the first person he gets when phoning her house is her father ...).
As an ending though, with the train pulling away, Beth finds the box of roses Jack had placed in her compartment.
Awwwww!
As this is a book series, there will obviously be a blog post concerning others of it, but for a start, this is enough, I think. It's a typical Oke novel, written with the help of her daughter, inspirational, peaceful, and with a lot of lessons if you're willing to see them, but also enjoyable and just plain easy to read since there's no unnecessary drama. And since I loved the original series (and I enjoy the TV show, too), this one was a treat!
xx
*image not mine
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