Simply Beautiful

Where I Was Planted by Heather Norman Smith is a beautiful historical novel about finding faith, love and purpose in life.

The novel focuses on ten year old Nate and is written in the first person. I ‘lived’ the book through Nate’s eyes. He is a gentle soul, wise beyond his years and brought out the mothering side of me. Nate is a misfit searching to be loved and belong. He watches other fathers and wishes his father would notice him. The reader is reminded that we are all misfits searching for the love of Our Father. The good news is… God already loves us and we do not need to work our way into His affections because He will always love us.

As Nate goes on his journey of discovery, the reader tags along. There is a literal journey and a spiritual one. We all have a God-shaped hole that only He can fill. In coming to God, Nate has to be vulnerable and learn to trust. Even when we cannot see the road ahead, we can trust God because He is already there. “I knew His plan was good, even if I didn’t understand it.”