Book Of The Month For August 2017: The Harvest Raise
The Harvest Raise
by Katie Schuermann
2017/paperback/399 pages/Young Adult - Adult
The third and final book in the Anthems of Zion series!
Overview:
It’s summer break in Bradbury—and that means cookouts, cornfields, and county fairs! But at Zion Lutheran Church, the changes and chances of life don’t take a vacation. Pastor Fletcher must learn to share the parsonage bathroom. Mrs. Scheinberg must face the fact that not every problem can be solved by pie. And when a beloved member makes a life-altering announcement, the entire congregation must trust more than their crops to the Lord of the harvest.
Life is anything but idyllic in small-town Bradbury, but grace and mercy and potlucks abound. Join Emily, Robbie, Candice, and the rest of the dear people of Zion as they follow God’s call into the scariest mission field of all: the very county where God has placed them.
“Something to reach for when there is a want to hear pure Gospel and still get lost in a beautifully rich, complex storyline.”
—Allison Hull, pastor’s wife
“Schuermann is at her best. . . . This is pleasure reading with a purpose!”
—Matthew Machemer, Associate Kantor, Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, IN
“An especially well-written, thoughtful conclusion.”
—Cheryl Swope, author
“You’ve heard of ‘comfort food.’ Katie’s books read like ‘comfort books.’”
—Shelley Moeller, LWML Vice President of Gospel Outreach 2013–17
“Demonstrates God’s unconditional love, forgiveness, and power to use cracked, flawed vessels, people
of all abilities, as instruments of grace and healing in a broken world.”
—Brenda Scarbeary, Deaconess, Bethesda Ministry Consultant, and pastor’s wife
“Full of mirth and meaning.”
—Karin Crum, wife and mother
Katie Schuermann's "earthy and joyful" voice is as refreshing and invigorating as the Midwestern sunshine in which she was raised. Writing in vignettes which so perfectly suit the charm of small town life, Schuermann's words call to mind the warmth and realism of Montgomery's Avonlea and Herriot's Yorkshire countryside.
Always leaning toward the arts, Schuermann earned graduate degrees in music. Her professional experiences are as varied and eclectic as any writer's, ranging from walking beans to singing with a Baroque orchestra to directing children's musical theater camps. No doubt, Schuermann's corn field roots, and curriculum vitae factor heavily into her writing, but it is her Lutheran confession of faith in the Triune God which readers have come to expect and trust in Schuermann's prose.
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