Joey’s Story {book review}

Joey’s Story, by Ruth Ann Stelfox
My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

From the back cover: Joey lied, swore, and fought. She smoked in secret and shoplifted when she had half a chance. And she was only a child. Her mother was too sick to notice. Her father too busy to mind. But behind the tough shell, Joey’s heart ached and cried out for help. A loving God, already working in her life, heard and answered her cry. Joey’s Story is the true, heart-wrenching account of Joanna Heger’s childhood and youth. Though told discreetly, it is not a children’s book.

My thoughts: I don’t even know how to start describing Joey’s Story, by Ruth Ann Stelfox. As I read the book, the story seemed all the more real to me because I feel like I know the Joey behind the book—she was one of my Mum’s friends in her teens. The story traces Joey’s life from when she was about 8 (I think) until just after she was married. It captures a life of sorrow, fear, and later, joy.

Joey’s first years were years of sadness, greed, and fear. Her family lived in a terrible neighbourhood, and her role models lied, swore, fought and worse. There seemed to be no way out for her life.

This is a great book, one that shows how God can come in and completely change someone’s life. Through a painful set of circumstances, Joey learns that God actually does care about us, even though at many times it doesn’t feel like it or look like it.

I love this book. Not because of it’s content (some of it is a little…rough sometimes), but because of the story. Because it showed that God can take a terrible life situation and turn it around for good. For His glory. I highly recommend reading this book, although it isn’t for younger readers because of some of the things that happened in it.

Have a great day, and keep praising Jesus for His marvellous blessings! This book was a good reminder that we don’t know just how much better our lives are than other people around us.

Photo from clp.org. Buy the book here.