A reading from the novel
NORWAY VALLEY
by Barbara Jurgensen
(Cont'd) That wonderful moment had come!
She reached out her hand toward his.
Just then Kerm came into the Ole Store and saw them.
"Hey,” he said, "don't try to make time with my girl."
Mari shook her head. "Kerm, you and I are friends, very good friends, but...” The definiteness of her words surprised her; was she burning her bridges?
"Wait a minute,” Kerm said. "You don't really mean that, do you?” He looked at her intently.
Then, seeing that she was serious, he flipped over and stood on his head between the tables. "My whole world's been turned upside down!” he cried, holding himself amazingly steady.
"Come on,” Rolf said, taking her hand, "let's get some fresh air."
When they stepped outside together, the frosty air cleared her head and made all her senses sharper. The cloudless January night sky glittered with starry blossoms, so close that she felt as if she could reach up and pick a bouquet of them.
She was with Rolf, and it was the most wonderful evening ever, the evening of her dreams! There should be violins and cellos and a harp. And maybe a flute choir, and a whole chorus with voices like the Dreamers.
She wanted to sing and dance!
As they walked up snowy St. Olaf Avenue, through the starry night, he continued to hold her hand, just as he had in her dreams.
Her dreams were coming true!
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Why won't the dark secret that Mari thought she left in Chicago stay back there?
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What was it like to be young in the early 1940's? Considering that Hitler, having terrorized and taken over most of the countries of Europe, was sending his brutal storm troopers into Asia and North Africa, destroying whole villages, and was threatening to take over the rest of the world.
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"How can a person of faith go to war?" Mari asks.
"How can a person of faith not?" Rolf answers.
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What do you do when the one you love comes home from the war, broken in body and spirit?
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Can Mari find forgiveness for what she has done? And Rolf for what he has done?
***
Will an old Norwegian custom keep Rolf and Mari apart?
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Praise for NORWAY VALLEY
"A sweet love story of the nostalgic 1940s." --Ed Mathalon
"A wonderful story." --Charlene Oaks
"A page turner." --Lynn Thomas
"I couldn't put it down." --Donna Hauge
"A good, quick read." --Ed Foley
"A delightful story." --Janet Jump
"I loved the book. My wife did, too." --Arno Windsor
"Great." --Meg Thompson
"A tantalizing story." --Joan Swartz
"It brings back memories. "--Ruth Campbell Boe
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NORWAY VALLEY
(paperback, 334 pages)
is available from Fairway Press,
800-241-4056
for $14.00 +p&h
Or ask your local bookseller to order it for you and save p&h.
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