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Courage In Patience
by Beth Fehlbaum
Reviewed By Alicia Mangum, APEX Reviews
Courage In Patience is one of those incredible literary jewels that comes along so rarely that,
upon discovering it, you can't help feeling privileged for being among the first to read it.
Beth Fehlbaum has crafted such a moving, inspirational tale for the ages that it's hard to believe
that this manuscript, as yet unpublished, will remain in the throes of literary oblivion for very long.
Every page, every chapter, every progression of story and character is so compelling, so absorbing that
you actually hate to see it end - and you find yourself re-reading it again and again, if for nothing more
than the heartwarming pleasure derived from doing so.
Fehlbaum's narrative is centered on 14 year-old Ashley Nicole Asher, not-so-affectionately
called "Ash-Hole" by her stepfather, Charlie. It's that same stepfather who initially manages to ingratiate
himself into the lives of then-six-year-old Ashley and her mother, Cheryl, with gifts, wise-cracking
humor, and faux-protective tendencies. Once he's firmly rooted within the routine of their lives,
though, his monstrous true colors begin to show, mainly in the form of indecent sexual liberties taken
with Ashley herself. He shamelessly molests her for eight years until he crosses the line one day and
sexually assaults her in brutal fashion, resulting in the intervention of Child Protective Services, who
promptly sends her to live with her absentee father, David, and his new wife and son in Patience, Texas.
After years of a tortured existence at the hands of her mother and stepfather, it is in Patience
that Ashley finally begins to heal and learns to open her heart to trust again. The process is not an easy
one, though, and if not for the steady support and guidance of her savvy stepmother, Bev, Ashley may
never make a full recovery. On her personal road to wellness, though, Ashley soon bonds with other
bruised souls similarly conflicted, in a small town struggling to come to grips with its own need for healing
- along racial, spiritual, and emotional lines.
With its full-dimensional characters and richly converging storylines, Courage In Patience will
teach you more than a few lessons about the importance of forgiveness - both of others and yourself.
Fehlbaum does a masterful job of displaying the power of simple communication and empathetic compassion
in overcoming some of the toughest obstacles facing us as a collective whole. Regardless of the
divisions that tend to define us, her storytelling conveys the undeniable need we all have to come together
if we ever expect to bridge the rifts left to us by our familial and societal traditions.
Supported by not-so-random, insightful quotes from the likes of Martin Luther King, Jr., Buddha, and
Louis L'Amour, Courage In Patience is an absolutely essential tome that needs to be required reading in
schools, churches, and counseling centers all over the globe. An instant classic from a supremely talented mind
and wonderful heart!
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