Guest Post by Sandra Dallas, author of Prayers for Sale

I feel very honored today to be able to welcome Sandra Dallas to Jo-Jo Loves to Read!!! Sandra Dallas is an award winning author that is taking the time today to share with us as to how she came up with the title her latest book, Prayers for Sale.

Here is what Sandra has to say:

I was delighted when I came up with the title Prayers for Sale about half-way through the first draft of the book. It struck me as quirky, and I hoped it would intrigue readers. The working title of the book had been The Quilter, which I didn’t like, because although Hennie, my main character, quilts and quilting runs through the book, Prayers for Sale is not about quilting, and I am not a quilt novelist.

The title came from something I read in one of the WPA slave narratives. During the 1930s, the federal government initiated a make-work program for unemployed writers called the Federal Writers Project. Each of the 48 states was to produce a guidebook. Colorado’s, for instance, was filled with history, folklore, promotional material, and driving tours, and was called Colorado: A Guide to the Highest State. In addition, states gathered material for other works—a ghost town book in Colorado, a history of nursing in Kansas, a history of Galena, Illinois (written by Nelson Algren, as I recall.)

In the South, in addition to the state guides, writer-researchers interviewed former slaves, who were then in their 80s and 90s. It was a shame that most of the interviewers were white, the notable exception being Zora Neale Hurston, the most famous black female writer of the first half of the 20^th century. That meant that the former slaves sometimes shaded their stories, telling what they thought the white researchers wanted to hear. Nonetheless, the recollections were often brutal, bitter, and filled with stories that bring you to tears.

I have this file that I call “Stuff,” in which I put clippings and ideas and odds and ends that have no other home, and for some reason, while I was writing The Quilter, I went through the file. I came across a story I’d photocopied from one of the slave narratives about an old African-American man who went about with his pockets stuffed with prayers for every occasion. He carried a big sign that read “Prayers for Sale.” I must have been tickled by the story and tucked it into the file.

When I reread the excerpt, I thought that Prayers for Sale would be a great title for a book one day. Then I realized that Prayers for Sale would be a wonderful title for the book I was writing right then.

Titles, of course, can make or break a book. Sometimes they pop into my mind when I start the book. New Mercies, which comes from the Bible, actually came to me before I wrote the novel. The Persian Pickle Club (originally The Interesting Hour Club) occurred to me when I read about a paisley print being called Persian pickle. Several bookstore buyers told me they first stocked that book just because of the title. Tallgrass, which is about a Japanese relocation camp during World War II, was originally A Vine Out of Egypt, another Biblical reference. But so many people told me, “I’ve never been to Egypt,” that I changed it to Tallgrass. Other titles, such as The Diary of Mattie Spenser and Buster Midnight’s Café were fall-back titles, chosen because I couldn’t come up with anything better.

I have to say that Prayers for Sale is my favorite of all my titles, and it influenced the book, making it more spiritual. That in turn, has prompted questions from readers about my own beliefs, something I’m not altogether comfortable with. You see, I’m a Presbyterian, and we are somewhat reticent to talk about religion. In fact, there is an old joke: What do Presbyterians bring to the evangelical movement. The answer: Restraint.

Of course, titles can be misleading. When I told my daughter Dana that I was writing a book called Prayers for Sale, she quipped, “What’s it about—selling indulgences?”

I truly appreciate you sharing your insight about how you think of titles for your books Sandra. Thanks so much for stopping by today! I just read a review last week of your book titled The Chili Queen over at Joyfully Retired. After reading the review, the title really made me laugh! But I do hope that everyone who reads Prayers for Sale finds Hennie to be just as special of a friend as I did.

I also want to give a special Thank You to Wiley from @uthors on the Web again for inviting me to participate in this tour. I encourage you to follow the remainder of this tour by checking out these other blogs:
August 24: http://www.fiveminutesforbooks.com
August 25: http://www.abookbloggersdiary.blogspot.com/
August 25: http://www.lesasbookcritiques.blogspot.com
August 25: http://smallworldreads.blogspot.com/
August 26: http://www.lesasbookcritiques.blogspot.com
August 27: http://www.rebelhousewife.com/
August 28: http://www.stephaniesbooks.blogspot.com/
September 9: http://blog.mawbooks.com/

Blog Tour and Review: Prayers for Sale by Sandra Dallas

Here is a summary of Prayers for Sale from Sandra Dallas' website:

Sandra’s eighth novel, is an unforgettable tale of a friendship between two women, one with surprising twists and turns, and one that is ultimately a revelation of the finest parts of the human spirit. In 1936, Hennie Comfort, eighty-six, meets Nit Spindle, seventeen, just as the old woman learns she must leave the Colorado mountains that have been her home for seventy years. Nit has lost her baby, and Hennie takes the girl under her wing, telling her stories about mountain life, stories that are as much about Hennie as they are about the historic people of the high country. The harsh conditions of life that Hennie and Nit have suffered create an instant bond, and an unlikely friendship is formed, one in which the deepest of hardships are endured and the darkest memories are confessed.

My Review:

Have you ever been lucky enough to be able to sit down with a few of the elderly folks in your family, and just sit back and let them reminisce about the good old days? I certainly have, and I have treasured every moment of it. That is what this book was like for me, sitting down at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee, a piece of freshly baked raspberry pie, just listening to Hennie tell her stories from her years of mountain life.

Hennie is about eighty six years old and lives in an old mining town in the mountains of Colorado. Hennie's husband died years before and her daughter is concerned that living alone is just too dangerous for Hennie. Mae, Hennie's daughter, finally persuades her that it is time for her to leave the mountains she loves to live with her in Iowa. Hennie doesn't develop hard feelings over this, but admits that it is the most sensible thing to do. Throughout this novel Hennie prepares herself for her departure of Middle Swan, the mining town that has become just as much a part of her, as she is a part of the town, not knowing if she will ever be able to return.

As Hennie is getting all of her affairs in order before she leaves Middle Swan, she realizes there are a few things that the Lord wants her to take care of before she goes. One is to share her precious stories that were obtained through years of living in that mining town and another was to help out her new neighbor Nit by introducing her to some of the ladies in the area. Her final task is to face a secret that she has been running away from her entire life.

Hennie decides to take Nit under her wing because she remembers herself what it was like to be a new gal in a mining town. It would get awful lonely if you waited around for one of those ladies to reach out to you. She finds that they both have a love of quilting, so Hennie uses that as an opportunity to spend time together and even share long forgotten stories. Hennie can tell that Nit honestly enjoys listening to her old tales and actually hungers to hear more. I loved this part of the book, because I think by sharing these stories with the new generation helps to keep the memories and legacy alive long after our loved ones are gone.

If you have been to the mountains in Colorado you know how beautiful the area actually is. Dallas conveys this beauty in her writing as she also paints a picture of how hard life must have been in the mining towns. To think that when women kissed their husbands good-bye in the mornings it could have been the last kiss they shared. It was a dangerous and hard life and women were grateful when they heard their husband walking through that front door in the evenings.

I appreciate the hard work and research that Sandra Dallas put into this novel. Before reading this book I had no idea that a dredge boat for gold mining actually existed. There are actually dredge boats used for excavating purposes today, but during the mining periods working on the dredge boats was one of the most dangerous professions available. If you want more information about the dredge boats you can click here to see a picture of the first gold dredge in the United States.

I really enjoyed this novel and I want to thank Wiley from @uthors on the Web for inviting me to participate in this tour. Be sure to stop back later today for a special post from Sandra Dallas and to find out the other stops on this tour.

My Rating: 4/5

Review: Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas

The following is a summary of Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas from her website:

During World War II, a family finds life turned upside-down when the government opens a Japanese internment camp in their small Colorado town. After a young girl is murdered, all eyes turn to the newcomers. Rennie has just turned thirteen, and until this time, life has been predictable and fair. But the winds of change are coming and with them, a shift in her perspective and a discovery of secrets that can destroy even the most sacred things. Part thriller, part historical novel, Tallgrass is a riveting exploration of the darkest—and best—parts of the human heart.

My Review:

I must admit that this book delves into a part of America's past that I really was not very knowledgeable about. Although this novel didn't really describe the Japanese internment camp itself, Dallas did a wonderful job of showing how this small Colorado community changed after the camp was opened.

There are several strong themes included in this novel, such as the strong bonds of family, friendships among women, and fears created by circumstances. The book starts out in a small Colorado town, not long after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. A Japanese internment camp was built close to this small community, which puts all of the residents in a new state of fear. There were a few of these camps built throughout the Western United States and the purpose of these camps was to incarcerate all individuals that would have been considered Japanese ethnicity that resided on the West Coast.

Residents became scared of the situation that was being forced upon them. They were sending their local boys off to war in the Pacific to fight against the Japanese, yet the government was putting Japanese people in their back yards. Local residents didn't care if these Japanese people were actually American citizens that were just as upset because they were being stripped of their rights. I found it ironic that many of these boys were forced to stay at the internment camp, but if they were to join the Army they were free to go and fight for the USA.

Rennie Stroud was a young teenage girl that lived on a neighboring farm to the Tallgrass internment camp. Her parents tried to provide a solid and morally sound family life for their children. Rennie's father is not shy in voicing his disappointment in his neighbors when they claim their distrust of the new Japanese residents. He shares his frustrations with his family and friends as he indicates that these American citizens have been stripped of their rights. Rennie becomes even more confused as she sees the confinement of these people in her town, but when she makes a trip to Denver with her mother, there are Japanese people walking free.

To complicate matters further, a young girl is murdered not long after the Tallgrass camp was built. With all of the fear in the community it isn't a surprise that the residents claim that it was one of the Japanese occupants that committed the murder. I enjoy how Dallas kept this part of the story a mystery until the end of the novel.

The Stroud family stood their ground when it came to how they felt about their new neighbors. Mr. Stroud was harrassed for hiring some of the Tallgrass inhabitants to help with the beet harvest. By hiring these boys they really got a chance to know them on a personal level and actually considered them as part of the family.

Women pulling together during difficult times was a very important part of this novel. The Jolly Stitchers was the name of the sewing group that Rennie's mother belonged to and they would show up at the doorstep at the drop of a hat. Here are a couple of excerpts that I enjoyed:

When the Jolly Stitchers found out Mom was ailing, they brought their casseroles and cakes, their cabbage rolls and carrot puddings. Mom drew strength from the women, even those she didn't like so much, because their calling on her showed they cared. I learned a great deal about women during that time, about how in tough times, they pulled together, looked out for one another. They brought their first daffodils to Mom and sewed on their quilt squares while they gossiped and assured her she'd be all right. pg. 134-135

I was learning that when women liked each other the way Mom and Cousin Hazel did, they formed a bond that was different from what either one had with her husband. It didn't mean Mom was disloyal to Dad for being that tight with women. That closeness was in addition to what she had with Dad. pg. 161

Although this was a good story that gave a lot of historical information about a peice of America's dark history, I don't think that Dallas' writing did much for me. I did enjoy learning about Executive Order 9066, that Dallas included in its entirety at the end of the book. If you are interested in learning more about it you can read the Executive Order here. My book club meets tonight to discuss this so I can't wait to see what their thoughts will be.

My Rating: 3/5