Bibliotherapy

Last weekend I had a handful of events planned, and ironically, each one of them fell through in succession. I had something planned for Saturday evening, only to find that it had gotten cancelled. Since I had set aside my evening for this event, I didn't have any backup plans.

Once again, frustrated to be in a new city all by myself, I tried to figure out what I could do that would make me feel better. There are only so many things that one can do alone on a Saturday night -- things like going out to a new restaurant or somewhere downtown are not options -- these things just make one feel even more alone.

The librarian in me didn't need a second thought. "I am going to spend the evening a Borders!" I thought to myself triumphantly. Getting lost in the shelves of colorful new book covers and paging through a variety of books sounded like a great and comforting option.

So that's exactly what I did. I headed straight over to Borders, and spent an hour and a half perusing the shelves, surrounded by other bibliophiles and the company of good books. It was quite enjoyable.

Before I left the store, I decided that I would allow myself one purchase. After all, I rationed, one book cost the same as I would have spent on a weekend dinner out or a movie. The question was, what book did I want to spend company with tonight?

I was a literature major who should only like classic, bona fide literature, I do have a weakness for "fluffy" Christian historical fiction. I know, I know, it is often not the most well-written of the genres. But there are some quality Christian fiction writers. And if nothing else, this genre provides lighthearted and entertaining reads; I also enjoy the historical aspects of some of these books and the historical world that the characters inhibit.

So, I wanted to find one of these books to escape away in, follow the characters, and be captivated by a story.

I really didn't know what to select because I don't know enough about Christian fiction to know the best new authors, so what ever I picked was probably going to be a gamble.
I ended up picking the book by Karen Witmeyer called "Tailor-made Bride." It's a story about Hannah Richards, a young seamstress who moves to a new town in Coventry, Texas to establish shop. In Conventry, she meets J.T. "Jericho" Tucker, the rough and tumble livery man who thinks fashion merely encourages vanity, materialism, and greed and is vehemently opposed to a high-fluted lady like Hannah bringing these ideas to their small town. Hannah, on the other hand, can't figure out why this stubborn young man is so cold to her, and so opposed to women fashion and beautiful dresses. Hannah sees her work as a ministry of beauty in helping other women discover the fashions which highlight their God-given beauty.


The story follows the relationship of Hannah and J.T. through their series of misunderstandings, and eventually growing affection towards one another.

I have to admit, a part of me was attracted to this book because it's a story I would like have unfold in my own life. City girl moves to country town. Meets dashing cowboy (or in this case, horseman). She melts his heart. He woes her. They fall in love and live happily ever after.

It was a cute book. Definitely there were aspects of it that were cheesy, but overall it was very enjoyable. And it was great company for me on my Saturday night alone.

"We read to know we are not alone. " ~ C. S. Lewis