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This wasn't exactly the type of story I'm used to reading by Mrs. Snelling, but it was an important one. So many grandparents end up raising their grandchildren these days, and I love that this story shines a light on that.
The characters were well developed and age appropriate. The children especially were spot-on, which was a delight as sometimes they can feel years older or younger than their given ages. Mrs. Snelling hit the mark exactly! I also enjoyed that she nailed the angst and frustration of abandonment as well as the fears and joys that children in such scenarios might discover along the way.
It was so wonderful to see rich, deep faith embedded into the core of the story. The grandparents were great examples of walking by faith, and I appreciated that they had to face such things as depression, suddenly raising grandkids, and owning up to mistakes made. They were grand examples and role models for their grandkids and for the readers of this book.
I liked that this was a modern-day homefront story. I don't see too many of those, so it felt fresh and new. I treasure stories about holding down the fort at home while loved ones serve our great country overseas.
The reason for the rating of three stars is because the first third or so was a little slow for me. Since this was a slice-of-life story, there was a ton of food prep, dinner eating, talking to one's pets, and other general things that didn't really push the story forward in any fashion. However, once the story was thrust into taking care of the kids and dealing with their emotional trauma, I became quite riveted and yearned to find out how the kids would learn to deal with their loss and the disruption to their lives.
I wasn't really sure what the title meant, and I never did figure it out. The Second Half... of what?
Content: crude sexual term, replacement expletive
