We Are to be Lights in the Dark- “Daddy didn’t say anything for a minute or so, and then he reached up and caught a firefly as it glowed beside him. “See this light?” he asked me when the firefly lit up his hand. “Yes’r.” “That light is bright enough to light up a little speck of the night sky so a man can see it a ways away. That’s what God expects us to do. We’re to be lights in the dark, cold days that are this world. Like fireflies in December.” I don’t know how I missed reading this book before now. It is a southern story to love…Amongst the throngs of strong prejudice and hardships of 1932, this coming of age story reminds me, at its core, of To Kill a Mockingbird. Jessilyn Lassiter, our MC, grows from being a carefree, newly-turned 13 year old, into a young adult rot with fear and worries that Daddy couldn’t carry for her anymore. I remember that step into “real” life and it saddens me even now because the joy and freedom to “just be” is gone forever. Yet…in my own life and Jessilyn’s, lessons learned in those young, dark days are hard to live through but are always meaningful in the years to come. The audiobook-Kate Forbes narrates a southern story like no other. This one is exceptional.

Really enjoyed this story, well written