On a weekend afternoon, Lynn Brandt quietly tells her son, Thomas, to get his sister Sara and get in the car, no other explanation. After several minutes, she comes out of the house with only her pocketbook and they drive away. Lynn cannot take any more of her abusive, alcoholic husband. She's leaving this time for good. They drive to Greer, South Carolina, where she tries to start over with nothing. Lynn finds a temporary waitressing job and an old run-down trailer in which to live. Sara is unhappy with the whole move, but Thomas takes it in stride. His biggest problem is being bullied at school for wearing the same clothes all the time; that and the fact that Thomas puts the bully to shame with his moves on the basketball court.

Adding to Kevin's worries, one of their babies is not growing as it should. Baby A is doing just fine, but Baby B remains unusually small, even for a twin. His wife, Jenny, is a woman of strong faith and tries to reassure Kevin that everything will be alright. Kevin can't see beyond his present circumstances. While doing some Christmas shopping, Kevin sees an Angel Tree sponsored by the Salvation Army. Jenny encourages Kevin to pick one of the paper angels and buy Christmas presents for that child.

When Lynn loses her temporary waitressing job, she is about as low in spirit as Kevin. She's too proud to take handouts, but can't see any other way to provide for her family. She signs her children up for Christmas gifts through the Salvation Army's Angel Tree program. The angel Kevin picks from the tree in the mall is Thomas Brandt. In the trying times just before the holidays, Kevin does manage to purchase the items on Thomas' list, but when Jenny gives birth early and Kevin's world is turned upside down, he forgets to drop the gifts by the Salvation Army.

Jimmy Wayne with Travis Thrasher have given us a gem in a story of hope for a better future. It's a story about having faith to believe that God will take care of us if we will trust Him and not keep taking our burdens back, trying to work them out ourselves. Thomas is an endearing character who turns a bad situation around and makes good happen from it. This story is a winner; I know you'll enjoy it.

Book Summary