Say and Seal

What a scrumptious long read this was! Susan Warner is a long-loved author for me, but this is the first I've read of her sister Anna's work. Both sisters are gravely under-appreciated these days (Susan as the first American author to sell one million copies of a book; Anna as the author of the song “Jesus Loves Me”) and I'll definitely be looking for some of Anna's other books.

Faith and Mr. Linden have a super-slow romance with such deep emotional moments. This book is chock-full of lessons in mature Christianity and beautiful applications (Scripture ladders is a really neat concept of building and using cross-references.) Mr. Linden is a schoolteacher who is earning a few dollars to finish his degree as a preacher and he lives up to his calling beautifully, bringing the Gospel to all the “good” folks in town who didn't think they were sinners, but who were in need of a Saviour nonetheless. Practicing delightful Christian charity with feeding the needy and helping the disadvantaged...

It's set in old Pattaquasset, Connecticut (which according to a Google search appears to have grown into modern Saybrook) and the local flavor is a delight.

A true gem of a story!

Listened to volume 1 on Librivox and read Volume 2 off internet Archive.