BOOKS
Books by Vila Gingerich
FOR ADULTS & FAMILIES:
White Horse to Bucharest
FOR MIDDLE-GRADERS:
Growing Toward the Sun
Full Moon, Half a Heart
White Horse to Bucharest
FOR MIDDLE-GRADERS:
Growing Toward the Sun
Full Moon, Half a Heart
As long as I could remember, Grandma had wanted me to be a real writer. She let me sit at her desk and write for hours and didn’t care if I used up all her Post-its and note-paper. Lately, though, I hadn’t felt much like writing.
“Maybe someday you’ll write a book, Celeste," Grandma said. "You should write one about this move, and the barn, and that squished mouse. All the nifty things that happen out here.”
Lemony suds swirled around my hands. Heat rose from the oven and I sniffed. Yes, the muffins would soon be done. Grandma was right; a lot of neat stuff did happen. Maybe someday I would write it all down.
—excerpt from Full Moon, Half a Heart
“Maybe someday you’ll write a book, Celeste," Grandma said. "You should write one about this move, and the barn, and that squished mouse. All the nifty things that happen out here.”
Lemony suds swirled around my hands. Heat rose from the oven and I sniffed. Yes, the muffins would soon be done. Grandma was right; a lot of neat stuff did happen. Maybe someday I would write it all down.
—excerpt from Full Moon, Half a Heart
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Growing Toward the Sun
a middle grade novel
Ten-year-old Celeste sees everyone as a possible criminal. After she deserts her little sisters to chase a suspect, her parents make rules.
If her giant imagination causes more trouble she’ll lose phone privileges, mystery books, and free time. If she can learn responsibility, they’ll buy the binoculars she needs for sleuthing.
Celeste vows to win the prize. Then a thief targets their Mennonite community and her peace-loving church people do nothing to stop it. Celeste fears Grandma or her best friend Lexi could be next.
But is going after the thief a responsible thing to do? Can Celeste solve the mystery and win the binoculars?
Available in ebook or paperback:
Full Moon, Half a Heart
a middle grade novel
Sixth grade is almost over. Celeste loves Kansas—-her grandparents, her trailer house on the edge of town, almost everything—-but Dad is moving them north to Wisconsin. To a stinky dairy farm, at that.
Far from Sunflower State Mennonite School and her friend Lexi, Celeste struggles to adjust to a place where school feels like prison, winter lasts forever, and her only pal is a Siamese cat. Worst of all is the barn full of scary cows to feed.
Can Celeste find something likable about this place? Maybe Sally or Rita, her new classmates? Or the calf she saves? (Definitely not Ronnie, of course!)
With so many tough changes, Celeste must grow and be strong, no matter how it hurts.
Available in ebook or paperback:
White Horse to Bucharest:
lessons Romania taught us
a memoir anthology
He who has not seen Bucharest,
nor ridden upon a white horse,
knows not what is beautiful in this world.
-Romanian proverb
An elderly, illiterate woman hears the story of creation for the first time. A Christmas shoebox finds its way to a street boy in a snowy parking lot. The secret police trail a Bible smuggler through the streets of communist Romania. An old woman in a dreary hospital ward demonstrates the meaning of true love. One of Romania’s many orphans finds his roots in a poignant homecoming.
When their church sent them out as humanitarian workers, Lee and Vila Gingerich expected a positive experience, but they never guessed how much Romania would teach them. Through this collection of over seven-ty short stories, let Romania steal your heart like it did theirs.
When their church sent them out as humanitarian workers, Lee and Vila Gingerich expected a positive experience, but they never guessed how much Romania would teach them. Through this collection of over seven-ty short stories, let Romania steal your heart like it did theirs.
Available in paperback here:
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