One Perfect Day - Book review

by Lauraine Snelling

A very interesting book. The book centers on two families. One loses a child in a traffic accident and the other one has a child that is extremely ill. She needs a heart transplant and receives it from the other child that dies in the traffic accident. I have to admit that there are times when I was just sobbing while reading this book. As a mother, I could just feel both women's pain. I can only imagine what it must feel like to lose a child --- and know it must be the worst pain imaginable.

The book also speaks to the idea of sharing organs and the need for organ donations to save the lives of others. It was a powerful book. One of the side themes is the concept of where is God in the face of tragedy. The one woman who had the sick daughter needing the transplant spent many years praying with seemingly no answers. Where was God? Was he listening? Did He actively answer prayers. In her case, the prayers were very much so answered but the answers came in His timing (which of course was the perfect time). Still, I could relate to the impatience that the mother felt to have answers quicker. We all want things to be done according to our time schedule and forget that it is God's timetable we should be working with.

The other mother who lost the child really struggled with Where was God?? (Another book I have to read but that ties in with this theme.) She did realize that it was not God that moved but that she did. She was so wrapped up in her own pain that she didn't let Him in, didn't allow Him to comfort her. She, in essence, moved away from Him - God never left her - she left. And healing took a long time. Partly because healing just takes time and partly because she wouldn't let God in to do His work in her.

This was a powerful book but parts of it were very, very sad. It is just hard to read about the loss of a child. I enjoyed the book and got alot out of it but also many times had to put it down. It was just so packed with emotion that sometime I needed a bit of a break. I also couldn't read it out in public as I felt silly sitting there with tears streaming down my face. But I think that speaks to the author's great writing that I could really feel that sadness - feel those emotions just from her words. She painted a very vivid picture. I really, really enjoyed this book but it is not a funny or uplifting book. Still, sometimes it is nice to have a book that really let's ya have a good cry.