Living Close to the Earth. Do you ever wish you had lived in the nineteenth century?

 

All Her Dreams of Love Does your mind ever wish you'd lived in a simpler time? Life is never easy. Each day has its complicatons. Let me show you some glimpses of yesteryear, of life in the Deep South in the 1880s. Talking about problems... Nancy and six-year-old Tommy sat on the porch and looked into the forest. Papa worked at a sawmill a few miles away. With money in his pocket, he walked home every Friday night, but one week he didn’t come home on time. They stared down the road with a dwindling hope he’d show up. “I heard a gunshot," Tommy said. Nancy laughed. “It was probably B. K. shooting hawks trying to steal his chickens.” “No, ma’am.” Tommy pointed to the left. “The Barneses live that way, but the shot came from the other direction.” Tommy’s words sent a chill through her body. Nancy's Cotton Field Time passed. Nancy waited, but Amos didn’t come home. The cotton blossoms changed to green bolls, and then the fluffy white cotton needed waited to be harvested. Nancy was pregnant. How would she manage?  "When you get your sack full, bring it to me. I’ll weigh it and record how much you’ve picked. Then we’ll empty it into the cotton crib. I’m gonna keep it locked up the rest of the time.” High Bank of Cohay Creek Nancy dreamed she and Amos stood on a bluff overlooking Cohay Creek. He held her tenderly. The White Sandy Banks of the Cohay Nancy stirred in the sand. Log Cabin Freed slaves lived nearby.  “It ain’t safe for us here no more. After them four Klansmen get out of jail, they’ll come for us. Maybe burn down our cabin. Or some more of ’em’ll come after us.” The Washpot Nancy built fires under the pot and filled it with water to wash her family's clothes. It also served as a cooking pot, where cubes of pigs' fat boiled to make lard. “How’s the lard rendering?” “Good. We’ll have some cracklings to share with the children soon.” Black Panther Resting on a Limb The sound of the panther's scream reminded her that Amos could have encountered danger That was then, but even today the cry of a panther sens its chilling cry through the neighborhoods along Cohay Creek.

A Review of All Her Dreams of Love... Led by a delightfully inspiring heroine, All Her Dreams of Love by Mary Lou Cheatham is a historical romance set in Mississippi after the end of the Civil War. As the sun sets, Nancy and her son wait on the porch for Amos, who always comes home from the lumber mill on weekends. When the night passes and he fails to show up, Nancy prays for his safety. Soon after, she sets out to look for him with Tommy but the roads are fraught with danger. Days pass without any sign of him and Nancy is forced to make difficult decisions. She has another child on the way and must decide what to do with the farm and animals. Nancy soon learns that she is not alone as she tries to sustain her young family without Amos. Exploring positive themes encompassing faith, family, community, and finding love after loss, the novel is a wonderful read with uplifting messages. I found its post-Civil War setting atmospheric and Nancy's strength and hope encouraging. I enjoyed the story's exciting twists and its multidimensional characters whose lives were intriguing. The author does a brilliant job of describing the harsh realities that many families faced after the end of the war and the challenges that people encountered during that era. There were many happy moments in the story and captivating conversations that were engaging. A moving tale told through unforgettable characters, All Her All Her Dreams of Love by Mary Lou Cheatham will be an excellent red for fans of historical romances. -- Edith Wairimu, Readers' Favorites