As she gets to know and like the reclusive woman healer whom some in town consider a witch, Laura realizes that Mansfield, Missouri, faces a much greater threat from a self-proclaimed religious leader.
I was unsure of reading this book, but it has redeeming qualities. Am I glad I read it? Yes.
The problem was that I didn't enjoy the other 5 books in the series before "Mountain Miracle". But that was about 4-6 years ago, and my reading tastes have changed over time. This year, when I saw that books #6-8 were still on my shelf, unread, I decided to do something about that... finish them, once and for all. When I started reading "Mountain Miracle" it was a much more fulfilling book than I remembered the previous ones in the series being. But that is probably because I was so young that I couldn't appreciated the plot back then. So I'm glad to give the series another try.
That being said, I still didn't "enjoy" this particular book because it has so many things that I usually don't care about reading of.
A misinterpreted old woman, targeted as a witch. A shady "religious" man who misguides his "Flock". A Friday-the-13th dare, along with too many superstitious acts.
The "redeeming qualities" I mentioned earlier?
The love of a family, arms outstretched to embrace. The strength of a community when it pulls together. And good, hearty, laughable moments.
Regardless, I'm glad this book is out of the way now. I'm looking forward to finishing the series with books #7 & 8!
My favorite part was when Josie kind of started to belong a little bit more, and Susan and her children went to live with her and learn herbs. My least favorite part was when everybody believed that Josie was a which and the person with the snake was going to try to get rid of her with the snake.
I enjoy books set in specific historical periods. This series of books is interesting as it illustrates some experiences that may have happened in the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder. This story explores people's views at the time about religion vs. alternative healing and worship. The examples in this book are a bit extreme with the cult-like group moving into the area that appears oppressive towards its members and weary of outsiders. To deflect from the strange things they are doing, the leader goes after an elderly healer lady and tries to get the rest of the town to persecute her as a witch. With Laura's friendship and support Josie is protected from this persecution and after the leader of the cult is accidentally killed by his poisonous snake, Josie is welcomed as an appreciated and important member of the community.
Either I did not remember the dark creepiness of this book, or in my childhood I didn't know how creepy it was. In this book, there is a disturbed cult leader snake handler, abusive and menacing, who hurts far too many people. There's also a side story about a lady who is accused of being a witch, and a lot of Friday the 13th garbage stuck in there too. So far, my least favorite of the series because I felt like it gave me a icky feeling and didn't leave me with redeemable parts.