“Waiting for Christmas” by Lynn Austin … and a GIVEAWAY!

Welcome to Friday Reads!

 

 

You can enter to win a print copy of Waiting for Christmas by Lynn Austin, courtesy of the publisher. (US ONLY!) You can enter by using the Rafflecopter link at the bottom of this post. (Contest ends October 11, 2024) Share on X If you’re the chosen winner, I’ll contact you for your information to pass along to the publisher.

 

About the book…

 

Christmas is descending on New York’s Fifth Avenue, and for the first time in her privileged life, Adelaide Forsythe won’t be swept up in it. She couldn’t be happier about the prospect of a quieter Christmas. That’s not to say her transition from Miss to Mrs. has been without challenge. Though she doesn’t regret marrying for love instead of wealth, she can barely light the hearth or cook more than burnt toast. She feels woefully unprepared to run her own household.

Then, on the first Sunday of Advent, winter winds bring change through two unlikely means: a young orphan boy, hiding near Adelaide’s front steps, and a seasoned housekeeper who seems too good to be true.

The boy, Jack, claims he isn’t an orphan at all and is desperate to reunite his family. Adelaide and her husband Howard work tirelessly to solve the riddle of Jack’s story, while Adelaide’s new endeavors open her eyes to a world beyond her past experience—and all the challenge and possibility it holds. As Christmas approaches, small glimmers of wonder light the way toward the answers Adaleide seeks and the most miraculous gift of all.

 

Amazon purchase link

 

Q&A with Lynn…

 

Q:  Waiting for Christmas is a Christmas novella, and your second novel set during the Christmas season. What makes these types of books so heartwarming to write?

A:  I think it’s because the Christmas season brings to mind such a wealth of wonderful memories to draw upon. While developing my novellas, I think back to my own childhood, or to the years we raised our children, or to precious time spent with family and friends. Our hearts seem to be more open to God at Christmas Time as we celebrate the amazing, miraculous gift of His Son.

Q:  Adelaide is a very headstrong and confident young woman. What was your inspiration for her character?

A:  It’s funny that you see her as confident because Adelaide didn’t start out this way. Waiting for Christmas is the sequel to All My Secrets, where Adelaide is a shy, purposeless girl, headed for a life of dull conformity. She changes over the course of that first novel, and is just starting a new life in this one. I was inspired to create Adelaide because I wanted to encourage readers—especially young people—not to settle for a life that conforms to others’ expectations. We each need to find God’s purpose for our life, and Adelaide is on her way to doing that in Waiting for Christmas.

Q:  The book touches on the conditions of orphans around the turn of the twentieth century. How much did you know about the topic prior to writing the book?

A:  I had read some information about the orphan trains, which placed urban children with families in western states, but I had no idea how large the orphan problem was. There were dozens of institutions in New York City alone! 

Some children were true orphans, having lost their parents through one of the many diseases common during that time, such as tuberculosis and typhus. But I was surprised to learn that many children were placed in institutions or lived on the streets because their parents were simply too poor to care for them. Without our modern welfare system, life was extremely difficult for the very poorest people in our cities.

Q:  Adelaide chose to marry Howard for love, rather than money. What challenges does this pose for the new couple?

A:  There are many obvious ones, such as Adelaide’s inability to cook meals, do laundry, or clean house. She has grown up in a world where servants did everything for her, and she is accustomed to spending money freely. She has no idea how to adapt her habits to her husband’s limited income. Howard’s challenge is that he wants his wife to have the life she grew up with, but his limited income makes that impossible. Blending two very different lifestyles from different economic backgrounds will be a huge challenge for them. 

 Q:  Adelaide and Howard are very modern newlyweds for their time. How do you think their struggles as a newly married couple mirror struggles that couples have today?

A:  Like Adelaide and Howard, newly married couples often face many complicated differences. They may have come from different ethnic backgrounds, have different role expectations, or face social and economic differences. They can also have differing opinions on things such as how to manage money or raise children. Any of these can become a source of conflict in a marriage until they are worked out. In the initial stages of new love, most of us don’t even know (or care) how different we are until the issues start popping up.

Q:  Was it common for Christians to take in foster children during that time period?

A:  Fostering was mostly unknown, especially in large cities. Without effective means of family planning, most poor and middle-class couples already had plenty of children of their own! The earliest experiment with foster families were the orphan trains, which sent impoverished children from large cities to families out west. Some of these orphans ended up in good homes with loving families. Others were basically used as servants. I think of the beloved novel “Ann of Green Gables,” for example, where Ann was an orphan who was first fostered by a large family to help care for their children, then was later adopted by an older couple.

Q:  What are some of the Christmas traditions observed in Waiting for Christmas?

A:  The most prominent tradition is the lighting of the Advent wreath to count the weeks until Christmas. Adelaide and Howard buy a Christmas tree, but this was a relatively new tradition at the time, popularized by German immigrants. Other traditions included making homemade ornaments and gifts, and going to a Christmas Eve church service. Howard’s family were accustomed to sharing food and gifts with the poor—a huge task with so many needy immigrants.

Q:  How have Christmas and Advent traditions changed since the time this book was set, and in what ways are they still pretty much the same?

A:  I think the biggest change came when the focus of Christmas changed from being a religious holiday celebrating Christ’s birth, to a festival centering on Santa Claus. This brought a much bigger emphasis on spending money and buying extravagant gifts. A “good” Christmas is often measured in terms of sales figures. Church attendance on Christmas would have been popular and expected in the past, but that isn’t necessarily true today. Many people don’t even know what Advent is. The Christmas tradition that hasn’t changed much is that it’s still a time for families to get together to celebrate and exchange gifts.  

Q:  What are some of your family’s traditions?

A:  Our family decided not to include Santa Claus in our Christmas celebrations. Instead, we made Jesus the center of the holiday and celebrated it as His birthday, complete with a birthday cake. We exchange presents to remember God’s gift of His Son. The evergreen tree reminds us of everlasting life, the lights remind us that Jesus is the light of the world. We read the Christmas story from the Bible together every year as we set up our family’s manger scene. I cook sauerbraten for our family dinner on Christmas Day, a tradition from my German heritage.

 

Thanks, Lynn. I’m sure my readers enjoyed learning more about your and your book.

 

About Lynn…

 

 

Lynn Austin has sold nearly two and a half million copies of her books worldwide. A former teacher who now writes and speaks full-time, she has won eight Christy Awards for her historical fiction and was one of the first inductees into the Christy Award Hall of Fame. One of her novels, Hidden Places, was made into a Hallmark Channel Original Movie. Lynn and her husband have three grown children and make their home in western Michigan. Visit her online at https://lynnaustin.org/.

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