The Silent Gift, by Landon and Kelley

The Silent Gift, by Michael Landon, Jr., and Cindy Kelley, is the story of a deaf/mute boy and his mother, Mary. With an uncaring and abusive husband, a child who cannot speak or even relate to others, and the poverty of the 1930’s, life looks dismal for Mary. Early in the story, she and her son find themselves homeless and desperate. Then, Mary discovers that her son has a “gift” of prophecy that will quickly change their lives forever.

I had high hopes for this book, and it did, indeed, have an unusual story line and many dramatic elements that could have made it a great story. However, I thought that the boy’s “gift” was just too unrealistic and contrived. It just didn’t make sense to me. Also, I found the book to be rather depressing. The characters moved from one difficult situation to another, with bad luck and evil or selfish people thwarting them at every turn. It did end happily, but I found the journey toward the finale to be too negative and hopeless for my tastes.

I received a review copy of this book free from Bethany House.