About Me I am a retired librarian and I now support books and authors through my reviews.

I have always loved to read and I was able to share that love through my work as a public librarian for 22 1/2 years. I now promote literacy by reading, and then writing reviews. I love to support authors by sharing my reviews with others!

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Childhood by Greg Schaffer: Review & Giveaway




About the Book



Book:  Childhood
Author: Greg Schaffer
Genre:  Contemporary
Release Date: February 10, 2020

Katie lived a lonely childhood, her after school time filled with responsibilities to her father and special needs brother. Her chores prevented her from experiencing the carefree life her peers, including Joey, her neighbor and secret crush, lived. She began running to impress Joey, then discovered track as a possible way out of the small town of Nortonville, Tennessee. But as the promise of a college scholarship drew her closer to the escape she had dreamed about since childhood, she wondered why she didn’t feel better. What was missing?

Childhood is the novelette prequel to Fatherhood, a full-length novel about abortion from the father’s point of view.


Click here for your copy.

MY THOUGHTS.....

Katie Whetley is ten years old when we first meet her and Childhood deals with her life over the next nine years. Even as a fourth-grader Katie has adult responsibilites: after school she is expected to help her father and also care for a younger brother who has special needs. From the beginning we know that Katie has a crush on her neighbor Joey and she feels like she has no friends. A friendship between Katie and Joey deepens over the years but Katie, still hiding her secret crush, must deal with his romantic relationship with her now best friend Lynn.

This is a very short book, only 66 pages long, so there are only brief glimpses of Katie, Joey, and Lynn during their journey to adulthood. I really like Katie and Joey but Lynn's character changes and it is unclear why. Childhood is definitely a teaser for what is ahead in Greg Schaffer's next book, Fatherhood, and I am looking forward to seeing what the future holds for Katie, Joey, and Lynn.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher but a favorable review was not required. These are my own thoughts.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


About the Author



Greg Schaffer has written several novels, beginning with Forgiveness (2014). Each conveys the message that hope is always available, even in the darkest of times. His other works of fiction include horse-humor and poetry anthologies. A northerner by birth and a southerner by choice, Greg resides with his wife and rescue dogs in Franklin, Tennessee.


More from Greg


My last novel Leaving Darkness was difficult to write. I felt called to showcase depression and how the trusting environment of Christian small groups can lead those lost in the darkness to the light of the life they are meant to live. The novel was a direct response to a God-calling to apply my skills as an author and my experience leading similar type groups to create a story that may serve to help some who feel hopelessly lost.

For the next novel, I waited for a similar calling. And waited. And waited. I tend to be impatient like most. I wanted to get back to the creative process.

I wound up waiting several months. God’s time, not mine.

Then it happened, through an article I read on the Internet about a man suing a clinic for aborting his child without his knowledge. The article delved into the father’s rights in the abortion decision.

Abortion from the father’s point of view. That was the calling.

Very early into the project, though, I realized I had unintentionally created a problem. If I told the story completely from the father’s point of view, the mother’s would be diminished, reduced to a two-dimensional interpretation as seen through the father’s eyes. I could solve that by including both points of view in the novel, but that wouldn’t work well for two reasons: first, there are plot elements that the mother knows that are best kept from the readers as part of establishing tension. Second, as noted before, the project calling is from the father’s point of view. I had to stay within that.

But how to deal with the problem?


That’s when Childhood was born (no pun intended). Childhood is a novelette from the mother’s point of view, following her growth as a person from fourth grade to her first year of college. Through Childhood, readers have the opportunity to understand the character as a protagonist who would then become the antagonist in the novel Fatherhood.

Blog Stops

Texas Book-aholic, February 11
Older & Smarter?, February 13
Artistic Nobody, February 14 (Author Interview)
Inklings and notions, February 15
For Him and My Family, February 16
Through the Fire Blogs, February 17 (Author Interview)
deb’s Book Review, February 18
By The Book, February 20 (Author Interview)
Just the Write Escape, February 21
Mamma Loves Books, February 22
Lukewarm Tea, February 23 (Author Interview)
Spoken from the Heart, February 24

Giveaway


To celebrate his tour, Greg is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon Gift Card!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

7 comments:

  1. Thank you for the review! Yes, Fatherhood answers the reason for Lynn's character change (and more). I appreciate you taking the time to read and comment. - Greg

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    1. Greg, i am exited to read Fatherhood! Thanks for commenting on my blog today.

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  2. Greg, all I can say is WOW, I can’t wait to read Fatherhood. As a female and a mom I appreciate what you are saying and I agree that you need to have a male/ fathers side to a story.
    More often than not the male is excluded in these decisions and they have a right to know.

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  3. Thank you for sharing your book with us. I always look forward to finding out about another great read.

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  4. It does sound like a good teaser book for Childhood!

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  5. This sounds like a really great read.

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