Official Review: Janie's Joyful Journey by Lynda Cordova

Finchlark · Post by **Finchlark** » 11 Jul 2016, 05:59

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Janie's Joyful Journey" by Lynda Cordova.]

3 out of 4 stars

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Janie’s Joyful Journey by Lynda Cordova tells the story of a young girl who is taken to live with a new family. Mr and Mrs Perkins welcome Janie into their home, immediately making her feel welcome. She has her own bedroom, and they take her out to buy new clothes. They are a very caring couple who want to do everything to make Janie feel at home. After discussion they all agree that Janie will call them Mama Casey and Papa and they explain to her that eventually they would like her to live with them permanently by adopting her.

As her new guardians introduce her to their daily routine, Janie joins them in their morning devotionals and learns about what Advent means in the four weeks leading up to Christmas. The story continues as Janie becomes used to her new way of life.

The ethos of this story is lovely as it tries to teach Janie about the true meaning of Christmas and other aspects that sometimes get overlooked, such as Advent. Janie learns about devotional times and how these help her to be closer to God and also is a shared experience with her guardians as the family work together to make her transition into the new household as smooth and comfortable as possible. The idea of finding names of Mama and Papa that both feel comfortable with is a nice touch and shows how much Mr and Mrs Perkins are trying to include Janie in the personal aspects.

Unfortunately, we do not know how old Janie is or what she looks like as there are no illustrations to accompany this story. Also from a practical point of view – assuming that Janie is fairly young – it is difficult to believe that she would be placed with a family she had not previously met and left there straight away. The story might work better if Janie were perhaps visiting with grandparents or an aunt or uncle and there would then be a legitimate reason for her staying for a while and being introduced to new daily routines. The idea that Janie has had to leave her own mother – for whatever reason as this part is not explained – is quite heart-wrenching and might be difficult for a young reader to accept. Also, it is unlikely that Mrs Connor, who is presumably a social worker, would leave Janie alone so quickly.

Dealing with continuity, the guardians are originally referred to as The Lands but later become Mr and Mrs Perkins. This story has the potential to be quite endearing and helpful especially to Christian families who would like the opportunity to introduce the Christian message of Advent and Christmas to a younger child. A striking cover is also important to attract potential readers. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars.

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Janie's Joyful Journey
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Post by **Annelore Trujillo** » 16 Jul 2016, 01:08

Thanks for the honest review. You pointed out a lot of important flaws for children reading this. It still seems like a good story though. Good review!

kimmyschemy06 · Post by **kimmyschemy06** » 01 Aug 2016, 21:18

The premise sounds premising. Too bad, though, about the lack of back stories and character development. This leads to difficulty in imagining and relating with the character. Great job on the review.