LARGE PRINT

The Prayer Box by Lisa Wingate is a 2013 Tyndale publication.

This is the first book in the Carolina Heirlooms series and is centered around Tandi Jo Reese, a woman with two children running from an abusive marriage.

Tandi is renting Anne Poole’s cottage which sits across from Anne’s large Victorian home. When Anne passes away suddenly, Tandi is invited to help get the house cleaned up for a little extra food and money. In desperate need of funds, she readily agrees, which leads her to the discovery of a prayer box belonging to Anne Poole. Realizing that Anne had been misunderstood and that her story needed to be explored, Tandi begins piecing together bits and pieces of Anne’s life, and the old woman gradually becomes a powerful inspiration.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s a gentle story that addresses difficult family dynamics, overcoming one’s past, and realizing your self-worth. Tandi’s journey is gradual, and her old habits and self-image continues to haunt her- but Anne Poole’s prayer box, a friendship with her son’s teacher, and a new job working for some special ladies all help guide her to a much better place.

The only quibble I had was that the conclusion felt a little too open-ended or abrupt. Looking into the next installment I see there is a novella that is a continuation of this story- so maybe that will help me come to a firmer feeling about Tandi’s future.

Overall, a lovely story anyone and everyone can enjoy! There are still a few weeks left of summer and this would be the perfect book to pack in your beach bag! ( )

A wonderful story! It had similar feels as The Orphan House, which I read and reviewed recently; the finding of one’s childhood roots even when there aren’t many to find”, the theme of both books. I loved the narration and the ending had me with goosebumps all over.

A day by myself, adult coffee, baking, chores, and audiobooks…this girl couldn’t be happier! ☺️ ( )

58429

Lisa Wingate is a fantastic author. Another winning story, narrated well, recommended.

FROM AMAZON: When Iola Anne Poole, an old-timer on Hatteras Island, passes away in her bed at ninety-one, the struggling young mother in her rental cottage, Tandi Jo Reese, finds herself charged with the task of cleaning out the rambling Victorian house.

Running from a messy, dangerous past, Tandi never expects to find more than a temporary hiding place within Iola's walls, but everything changes with the discovery of eighty-one carefully decorated prayer boxes, one for each year, dating from Iola's youth to her last days. Hidden in the boxes is the story of a lifetime, written on random bits of paper - the hopes and wishes, fears and thoughts of an unassuming but complex woman passing through the seasons of an extraordinary, unsung life, filled with journeys of faith, observations on love, and one final lesson that could change everything. ( )

I first gave the book 4.5 stars, but I realized how much I enjoyed the book as I was retelling the plot of the book to my mother. It's just such a wonderful feel-good book. The kind that leaves you happy when you have finished reading it.

The Prayer Box is the first book in the Carolina Heirlooms series. There are also a couple of novellas you can read. I've read the last book in this series; The Sea Keeper's Daughters before I read this one and I was so enthralled by the book that I wanted to read the previous books in the trilogy.

Tandi Jo Reese has fled her old life and arrived on the Hatteras Island with her two children where she is renting a cottage that belongs to Iola Anne Poole. When Iola Anne Poole dies is Tandi worried that she wouldn't be allowed to stay at the cottage and she has no job and not much money left to support herself and her children. But she is lucky and she gets to stay if she cleans out Iola Anne Poole's house. There she discovers prayer boxes filled with letters that tell Iola Anne Poole life. While she reads the letters she discovers a new side to Iola Anne Poole that no one knows about and at the same time Tandi herself change. She get's a job and suddenly life seems a lot brighter...

I loved this story because you got to follow Tandi as she transforms from the wreck she was when she came to Hatteras Island to a new stronger person that's not controlled by the past. She is not a very good mother and she has a new boyfriend that isn't much better than the one she left behind in her old life. But reading the letters and making new friends slowly turns her life around.

I enjoy reading books that have a parallel storyline and this was one especially good. It manages to not cross the line to become too saccharine. I was annoyed with Tandi's boyfriend Ross and Gina, Tandi's sister, but they played their roles in the story. They had to be there to make her realize that she could turn her life around and not be the person she was before. I was really proud of Tandi towards the end of the book.

I wrote in my review for The Sea Keeper's Daughters that you can read the books as stand-alone, but I would personally recommend you to read them from the beginning, because Tandi has a small part in The Sea Keeper's Daughters (don't know yet if she's in the second book) and it's probably more fun to read them in the right order. ( )

Title: The Prayer Box (A Carolina Heirlooms Novel #1)
Author: Lisa Wingate
Pages: 400
Year: 2019
Publisher: Tyndale House
My rating: 5+ out of 5 stars
For me, Lisa Wingate is a brand-new author I ran across while perusing an online bookstore. When I saw how many reviews this novel received and read the synopsis, I was hooked. After reading the book, I was in awe of the way the story moved me. At first, I was lost in the story, not sure what was happening or where the author was taking me. As pages were read and more of the tale was revealed, I just kept reading until the end.
The Prayer Box is a story of a lady whose past was littered with pain and disappointment, yet she didn’t dwell there in self-pity. Iola Anne Poole passes away in her home at an old age in a small town where people thought they knew her and shunned for good reason. But no one really knew this lady, including the single mom (Tandi Jo Resse) and her two kids who rented the cottage on her property. When Tandi finds Iola, she feels scared about what the unknown future might bring to her family who has already suffered so much. Tandi is hired to help begin cleaning out the home while the property goes through estate. What Tandi finds is a closet filled with prayer boxes of many shapes and sizes, containing letters that Iola wrote to her father, her heavenly Father.
Throughout the book audiences will be moved to see how Iola’s letters will change hearts and lives of Tandi and the community who thought they knew her. When the historic home that Iola has lived in is threatened with destruction, will the past that is unveiled be enough to save the home? Lisa Wingate has done a masterful job of weaving a tale that is sure to entertain and engage the audience from start to finish. I bought another Lisa Wingate novel to read and hope others will read her books too!
Note: The opinions shared in this review are solely my responsibility. ( )

It took me a while to get into "The Prayer Box" but once I did, I couldn't but it down. I enjoyed following Tandi's story, a young mother who had hit rock-bottom, and although I didn't like her at the start, I found myself cheering for her as she started to grow into a strong, admirable woman.

However, it was Iona's story that gave the novel its depth. Through her letters, both Tandi and the reader learnt about this remarkable old lady. Here letters were beautiful and gave a glimpse into the pain Iona lived through as a young woman, but they also provided Tandi a look into a world where people shared and gave without hidden agendas or wanting something in return. These letters helped turn her life around.

As with all Lisa Wingate's novels the writing in "The Prayer Box" was beautiful, emotional and thought-provoking. A wonderful read. ( )

I saw a gas station sign that started me on a good think. It says: "Handwritten love letters never go out of style". True enough and inspiring all by itself, but I believe the Holy Spirit connected a book I have been reading, inspirational fiction called “The Prayer Box” by Lisa Wingate. It is also subtitled “A Carolina Chronicles Book 1). I got it on my Kindle.
The main premise of the book is about a woman escaping a bad marriage that goes to family and friends on the Carolina Coast and takes on a project to prepare an old family house to be sold or turned into a museum. As she cleans, she finds box after box in the attic, in the bedrooms, in the library. Boxes of all sizes and descriptions from old hat boxes to fancy decorated cigar boxes. Inside each box are the prayers of the owner at various stages of her life. They vary from prayers to scriptures to poems to barely legible crablike scrawls from the old woman’s later years when arthritis crippled her. As the story progresses you see the woman’s faith from the ebbs and flows of her life to triumphant testimonies and quiet bereavement.
Now I am not going to tell you anything else about the story, you’re just going to have to download it. But I said all that to encourage you to do your own prayer box. Make it simple or fancy but get your prayers down so you can look back at the testimonies of answered prayers. Write that down too. ( )

This book really moved me. I read "The Sea Keeper's Daughters" and "The Sea Glass Sisters" first, then finally got this book. This author never disappoints and I'll keep reading her books until I've read them all. ( )

This is a novel that evokes many emotions as the story unfolds in two (2) ways: (a) A single mother, Tandi Jo Reese is trying to give herself and her two (2) children a fresh start while living in a rental cottage on Hatteras Island, (b) and after Tandi has found her landlady Iola Anne Poole has died in her old Victorian home, Tandi is given the task of cleaning out Iola's home in exchange for overdue rent and discovers years of private letters in decorated boxes that reveal not only Iola's secrets but also inspire and strengthen Tandi in ways she never imagined possible.

In the years when working as a children’s librarian the teaching that I always remembered first is that the magic for a reader is to provide "The Right Book for the Right Reader at the Right Time." Particularly to read this novel during the Global COVID-19 Pandemic of 2020 was to read the right book at the right time for me even though it has been on my tbr pile for a long, long time. I set aside the novel many times but when I was looking for the next book to read I was inexplicably drawn to select this book. There are some novels that touch my heart, mind, and soul in such a powerful way for a multitude of reasons that I wish I could give it more than 5 stars to truly convey the beauty of the extraordinary writing, the eloquence of the presentation of the story, and how it has touched me. I hope each person finds the messages of faith, hope, friendship, and love within this inspiring story at just the "right time" for you.

The story is fluid and the past is presented as gracefully as the ocean’s tide coming up to the beach shoreline and going back out as the rhythm of life continues forward. And with that same ease and grace, the author shares one of the most noteworthy aspects of life that the course of each day leaves an imprint on our hearts and in our minds affecting each path forward of our life journey just as the ocean water leaves a residual imprint on the beach, however delicate and calm or stormy and forceful – each day’s tide affects the future.

Many of us do not have a sister or sisters by bloodline but that does not mean that we do not have a sister or sisters. As I read this novel there were pauses for my own reflections and deep appreciation for the "sisters" that have embraced me in friendship and especially love over the years. I am especially appreciative for my "sisters" that helped me with listening ears and encouraged me to open windows when I felt only doors slamming closed in times of my own darkest hours. May we as women always be "sisters" to one another as we have so much to give to one another and so much to learn from one another.

I also found the inspiring story offered a pertinent reminder that as everyone returns to "busy" lives that none of us miss or forget the quiet ones – the silent ones. A sharp retort may not be what it seems. Someone who sits alone may need me (and you) to ask if he/she can sit with him/her as he/she may not have the confidence or strength or courage that day to ask if he/she can sit with me (and you). Someone who walks in the neighborhood and never says hello or who drives by and never smiles or waves may one day respond if I (and you) keep saying hello, smiling, and waving. Let’s not miss an Iola as life opens let our minds and hearts open to care for each other. Each day is a new opportunity to begin anew. ( )

THE PRAYER BOX by Lisa Wingate
When the book begins you will want to shake Tandi and tell her to grow up. As the book progresses, she does exactly that, although in fits and starts. Concurrently with Tandi’s story is Iola’s story of growing up unwanted and shunted aside because of the circumstances of her birth. Sympathetically written, the story details what it is like to escape from one bad situation into another… and another until you feel you have no options left. But people are ultimately good in this tale and Iola’s house becomes a beacon of light.
Tandi is well developed as are Paul and Iola. Iola’s story is one of redemption and survival under trying circumstances.
If you like uplifting, positive stories, this one is for you. There is no sex, no cursing and no violence.
4 of 5 stars ( )

I picked this up because I loved The Story Keeper so much. This was good, but didn't take my imagination to the same place. ( )

Lisa Wingate is an excellent storyteller. I loved the main characters and hated the bad guys. ( )

Such a wonderful book. Worth every penny. ( )

Just when Tandi Jo Reese has found a safe place for herself and her children, her landlord, Iola Anne Poole, passes away. Desperate to find income and stay in the rental cottage, Tandi agrees to clean out Iola's home. To Tandi's surprise, she finds beautifully decorated prayer boxes that contain prayers and a life story. She finds unexpected connection with the author of the prayers and healing begins to take root. Read more in The Prayer Box by Lisa Wingate.

Once again, my book club has introduced me to an amazing book that wasn't even on my radar. It's one of the best books I've read this year. The novel held my attention from the beginning, was well-written, and progressed at the perfect pace. I was intrigued by the prayer boxes and the characters pulled me in, making me wish they were real. Tandi's character development was phenomenal. I loved watching her grow, change, and open her heart to the right people. Prayer is a prominent theme in the novel, but there were other secondary themes about grace, empowerment, and helping others.

The Prayer Box by Lisa Wingate is the first full-length novel in the Carolina Heirlooms series. It has a prequel novella, The Sea Glass Sisters, and a postlude novella, The Tidewater Sisters, which appears to continue Tandi's story. Neither of these are required to understand and enjoy The Prayer Box. I highly recommend The Prayer Box to anyone who enjoys inspirational fiction. ( )

I love Lisa's story telling. When I first started reading, I couldn't get into it. I am not sure but maybe because I didn't care for the main character Tandi, at first. As I learned about her past and some of the things she has had to go through, it didn't take long and I was totally pulling for her. I found myself in tears, more than once. Especially during the reading of some of the letters/prayers. There are so many sub-stories in this wonderful book. The character Iola Ann Poole was one I won't forget for some time. I would loved to have known her. Lisa's writing makes her come alive and jump right off of the pages. Even with my slow start, I think I would have rated this higher than a five if I could. This I believe is my favorite story of 2017. I would highly recommend it. ( )

Tandi runs away from a drug-filled abusive relationship with her two children and arrives in the seaside community of Hettera she knew as a child. Soon after she arrives her landlady dies and she is given the task of sorting out the large house.

This is a beautiful book about a damaged individual growing into a self-confident one with the help of a loving local community who take her in without judging her. Most of all though she learns about the life of Iola her landlady through the prayers she left behind.

It shows how we are all valued and loved by God and that He is a God of seconc chances even when we mess up.

I did find it a little long at times and the end was somewhat abrupt but overall a good read
( )

What a nice inspirational read this book was. As I stated in previous reviews, I read this book out of order of its being published, but it didn't harm the story line. I love the backdrop of the Lowcountry and the feel of a small town in this story of mystery of the life of Iola Ann Poole. ( )

A unique habit--recording prayers on scraps of paper and placing them in a prayer box--is at the crux of this story. The boxes, which belonged to a deceased woman named Iola, are discovered by a young woman named Tandi who is given the job of cleaning out Iola's house. Tandi, a single mother on the run, has numerous problems of her own--one of the biggest being that she is not sure how long she will be able to remain in the cottage that she was renting from Iola. With little money and a fear that her past will catch up with her she none-the-less becomes distracted by the boxes, which form a sort of diary of Iola's life--one in which she performed many acts of secret charity. As Tandi's story unfolds, Iola seems to be speaking to her from beyond the grave and helping her to find a new direction for her life.
This is a thoughtful and inspiring story which shows how a person's life can have a great impact, even from beyond the grave. I enjoyed the concept of the prayer box and I could see readers, especially if they were in a book group, wanting to make one of their own. This would be a great read for church groups or anyone who enjoys an uplifting story which showcases the power of prayer. ( )

Iola Anne Poole lives on Hatteras Island and passes away there at the age of 91. Tani Jo Reese and her 2 children rent Iola's cottage and Tani is the one who finds Iola dead in her bed. Tani soon realizes that she is the one charged to clean out the big white house. While cleaning out, Tani discovers a closet filled with boxes, floor to ceiling, and each box is filled with pieces of paper written by Iola with prayers on them.....spanning from her very early age till just before her death. The prayers are filled with wonderful, surprising history of her family, the town and events along the way. All this greatly affects Tani,s present life, her children, sister and young man in her life....

I read this book for an in-person discussion. At first the story did not grab my attention, but the more I read, the more I wished I lived in the same community as Tandi. I found the author included enough details to keep the reader interested without over burdening the reader with to many details. I have read at least two other books authored by this lady and they all have been well constructed. When I am seeking "hope," I turn to this author. ( )

Although the book starts out a little slow, the ending and the lessons learned along the way make this book a great read. Loved reading the story of Tandi, Zoey, and JT, and the life they found on Hatteras Island thanks to Iola and her prayer box. So thankful to my long-lost friend for suggesting this one.

This book was well-written, I found the characters intriguing, particularly Iola. This was like two books and the lives of the characters seemed to run parallel to each other, but in a different time. Tandi, I understand was trying to make better choices, not successfully though, and was at risk of recreating her past for her children. Those letters written by Iola told a completely different story, because Iola’s plight was not of her making, but she seemed to live in hope and faith for the people she loved. This was an inspirational story for sure, we are not our past and we all can, with faith, set the course for a better future.

( )

This book was well-written, I found the characters intriguing, particularly Iola. This was like two books and the lives of the characters seemed to run parallel to each other, but in a different time. Tandi, I understand was trying to make better choices, not successfully though, and was at risk of recreating her past for her children. Those letters written by Iola told a completely different story, because Iola’s plight was not of her making, but she seemed to live in hope and faith for the people she loved. This was an inspirational story for sure, we are not our past and we all can, with faith, set the course for a better future.

( )