Sleeping Handsome

Sleeping Handsome
By Jean Haus

I have been exploring on amazon lately, trying to find free (and decent) kindle books. I know I have barely scratched the surface. I have also discovered that there are many books not worth my time or yours. Sleeping Handsome is not one of them!

I loved this book although you might call it a short story rather than a full book. Sleeping Handsome is a teen version of Sleeping Beauty set in modern times. It really shows how two young people come to find themselves and grow into the mature people they are meant to be. Both are popular and, believe it or not, don't actually meet until the last chapter! Yet, the growth of their relationship is natural and believable.

Zach is in a coma after falling down a cliff. Paige has been caught cheating but agrees to do community service rather than be expelled. Her talent as a hopeful actress is put to good use as she goes daily to Zach's house to read to him. This is part of the suggested therapy to bring him back, although after four months the prognoses is not good. Paige can only read what Zach has on his shelves. After a long reading of the Count of Monte Cristo (Zach has only classical books on his shelves), Paige is pleasantly surprised to find that Frankenstein is actually a fake cover for Zach's personal journal. As Paige begins to read Zach's own thoughts aloud, she comes to admire Zach as well as take a good look at her own limitations.

What does this book have to do with my faith? I kept thinking about how we often mature in our Christianity by reading books, blogs and studies by other folks who have been on the same journey. Yet, how often to we grown by learning from those who are present to us? Why don't we spend time learning from one another while we are journeying together? I wonder how much faster we might all mature if we did this.

I highly recommend this book! I may even have a separate kindle book top ten for 2012.

Happy reading,

Amelia

PS Haus will continue this story in Happily Ever After?