Free Downloads Watermelon Days And Firefly Nights: Heartwarming Scence Of Small-Town Life
Annette Smith has been blessed with the ability to observe and find beauty, meaning, and humor in seemingly ordinary situations. Within a sentence or two, readers are captivated by her delightful, descriptive writing style, connected with the characters, and eager to hear more. Watermelon Days and Firefly Nights is Smith¹s fifth book of original short stories. In this charming collection, adults of all ages enjoy a behind-the-scenes peek at the lives and loves of a few of the 3,482 folks who proudly call Ella Louise, Texas, their home sweet home. These quirky and loveable characters include twelve-year-old twins whose "creative" pet care is appreciated by neither their mother nor their geriatric poodle, George; Faye Beth and Harvey Newman, a married couple who has lived for seven years with a gaping hole in the roof of their house and have no plans to fix it; and the industrious deacons of Grace Baptist Church, whose decision to paint the sanctuary uncovers a shocking, twenty-year-old secret. Watermelon Days and Firefly Nights celebrates the simple, small-town goodness of neighbors helping neighbors and friends caring for friends. Through glimpses of ordinary people exhibiting extraordinary love, forgiveness, and humor, readers gain a renewed sense of kinship and love and are reminded of life¹s sweetest hours.
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: Revell (June 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 2906340472
ISBN-13: 978-0800757991
ASIN: 0800757998
Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (196 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #1,862,603 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #79 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Religious & Inspirational > Short Stories & Anthologies > Short Stories #594 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Literature & Fiction > Collections & Anthologies #1357 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Literature & Fiction > Science Fiction
Five stars isn't enough! I'd give it 10 if I could. I loved Annette Smith's latest book-Watermelon Days and Firefly Nights, and didn't want to leave the delightful town of Ella Louise, Texas (which I predict will soon join the ranks of Jan Karon's Mitford and Andy Griffith's beloved Mayberry.) And I'm in good company, too. Publisher's Weekly also likens this wonderful book and Smith's charming, poignant writing to the bestselling Mitford. So don't take just my word for it. These Southern-fried slices of life are alternately hilarious and heartwarming. I laughed and cried at the antics of the eccentric characters peopling this small Texas town and so will you. It made this Yankee gal--by way of California--long to move to Ella Louise...except I couldn't find it on the map. Bless her heart, Annette has done such a masterful job of writing, I thought it was REAL! You will, too. I can't wait for the sequel. Please, Annette, write more. I want to know more about Faye Beth and Harvey Newman, Millard and Sugar, and I'm dying to know if newly widowed Bessie Bishop and her handyman neighbor Crow Buxley get together! Don't keep me in suspense.
After a stressful day at work, this is a book to curl up with on the sofa. It warms you like a cup of tea and a cozy quilt; little snipets of neighbors and friends and their every day but important events that may change how you view those around you. A real treat! I enjoyed every word.
I love my Southern heritage and Annette Smith makes me love it even more. Keen observations lead Annette to write with great meaning and wit. Her celebration of love and care through her wonderful stories is a message that we all need to read and share.
Heartwarming characters and cozy stories that bring the residents of Ella Louise, Texas to life. Smith has a gift at storytelling and these friends you will meet in this book are real and ones you would like to know.
This is a lovely book.These are short stories about people who live in a small town in Texas.The reader is first introduced to the town during the Okra Festival. Most of the stories are heartwarming and humorous. Some are sad. But every story makes the point of the care and friendship and love the people in this town share with one another.There is support for one another no matter the situation. There is a generosity of spirit.This is a book written from the outlook of a narrator who is a spiritual person. Many of the stories use a Christian perspective. But, it is not preaching so much as showing how a small town functions in regard to participating in church events and the sharing of the Christian rule to âLove Thy Neighbor'.If you want a book which will lift your spirit and renew your faith in your fellow man this is the book for you.Read and enjoy and wish you were living in a small town in Texas.
A look at the human heart the amazing things it can overcome and how faith in God and faith in each other builds goodness. Then these stories show how the overflow of that goodness can change lives. The book makes you feel good.
Ella Louise, a Texas boomtown 40 years ago is now a sleepy town of 1200 people. As you read the sixteen stories you become involved in the locals lives, see how they intertwine. Not all joy and happiness but real, down to earth life situations with some funny segments (just as in real life) thrown in. Curious to read more of what the author includes? Then read on :)1. A woman and a wellNewlyweds Rocky and Rochelle are in town for the annual Okra Festival and Quilt Show. Read how Rochelle falls in love with the place, what allows them to move there and the history of the well they find in their new backyard.2. Hot Dog's on the HouseShe's called Georgia and yes, she is on the roof? How did she get there?3. Let her eat cakeA new slide and Daphne's fight with sobriety. If you have ever had a relative with an alcohol problem you will totally relate to this story.4. Magic MoneyThe gift that keeps giving.5. Spanish LessonsFrom infertility, treatment and 5 miscarriages read how one couple adopts a baby from Honduras finally realizing the dream of becoming parents. Laugh at how Grandma thinks she has to learn Spanish!6. Angel IncognitoCamp Road Runner ,a boy with Down's Syndrome (Trey) and a beloved dog called Maggie. What will the doc's twins, Josh and Kevin, plus the other kids do when Trey is so upset after Maggie dies?7. Millard and MillieWill Millard forgive his unwed pregnant daughter? Will he love his new grandbaby?8. Blind Man's BluffBe ready to laugh in this one! Is it Polly or Molly. A wonderful story of elderly identical twins.9. Pinkie and the ChiefThe chief's 14year old nephew, Pinki, comes to stay. Do they get on? What happens? Appearances can be deceptive.10. Scared CrowCrow thinks there's a snake in his pants leg! LOL!11. Wise WomanHarvey and Fay's marriage tales. A wise woman builds her house but a foolish one tears it down.12. Butter upMemories and a lost cat.13. A Pinch of SugarThe best of friends, brain hairs (yes, you read that right) and a kidney donor.14. Sweet GeorgiaFrom divorce to rebuilding their friendship.15. Old SpiceRocky and Rochelle's love story. Literally fell head over heels!16. All the right ingredientsThe Gumbo cook offEasy read, bringing home the fact that our own lives and the lives of the people around us are not much different to those we read about.
Annette Smith is a storyteller par excellence. Her tales of Ella Louise, Texas will melt your heart, tickle your funnybone, and tug your heartstrings, as they give you a glimpse of small town life. Big-city dwellers may find her stories fun but too fantastic for reality, while those who have lived in town the size of Ella Louise will smile and nod their heads. This anthology of short stories reads like the yarns and anecdotes one might collect at family reunions, homecoming weekends, or any gathering where life slows down long enough for memories to be shared, embellished, or created from whole cloth. And every such gathering should generate fresh fodder for the next round of memories.
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