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A Gift of Hope: Helping the Homeless

3.66 of 5 stars 3.66 · rating details · 265 ratings · 34 reviews

In her powerful memoir His Bright Light, #1 New York Times bestselling author Danielle Steel opened her heart to share the devastating story of the loss of her beloved son. In A Gift of Hope, she shows us how she transformed that pain into a campaign of service that enriched her life beyond what she could imagine.

For eleven years, Danielle Steel took to the streets with...more

Hardcover, 128 pages

Published October 30th 2012 by Delacorte Press (first published January 1st 2010)

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Jan 12, 2013 Lynn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've been reading Danielle Steel's fiction for years, but her two non-fiction books (this one and His Bright Light about her late son Nick) are so powerful!

In A Gift of Hope, Danielle tells us about the 11 years that she spent on the streets of San Francisco, supplying (at first) warm coats, sleeping bags, and hats and gloves to the homeless at the rate of 100 or more per outing. Later, she added basic hygiene items, non-perishable food items, and teddy bears to the mix. By her own admission, sh...more

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Jan 09, 2013 Barb rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013

Wow!! This book is absolutely amazing. That being said, it is not an easy book to read. Steel manages to make you feel slightly uncomfortable sitting in your nice, warm living room with your comfy slippers, flat screen TV, and a latte from Starbucks.

I always associate the name Danielle Steel with fluffy romance stories. This book is not fiction. It is a true story about how, after the suicide of her son, she was praying at church and it came to her to help the homeless. She felt as if God had sp...more

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Dec 18, 2012 Mj rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoirs-bios-autobios, non-fiction, danielle-steel

I particularly enjoy memoirs and non-fiction books that deal with relevant social issues. I also think Danielle Steel writes a good story. A Gift for Hope: Helping the Homeless is Steel’s memoir of 11 years of volunteering anonymously on the streets in support of the homeless. It seemed like the perfect holiday choice to read during a time of year when “giving” and “sharing” is what it’s all about.

Perhaps my expectations were too high but I ended up being disappointed. I think the book was suffe...more I particularly enjoy memoirs and non-fiction books that deal with relevant social issues. I also think Danielle Steel writes a good story. A Gift for Hope: Helping the Homeless is Steel’s memoir of 11 years of volunteering anonymously on the streets in support of the homeless. It seemed like the perfect holiday choice to read during a time of year when “giving” and “sharing” is what it’s all about.

Perhaps my expectations were too high but I ended up being disappointed. I think the book was suffering a bit from an identity crisis. Part of the book was the author sharing her experiences. When Steel shared her “feelings” about meeting the homeless face to face, it was very real and touching. And kudos to her, there was no self-aggrandizement in her reminiscing. Another part of the book read more like an academic thesis or a clinician’s report written for a supervisor outlining what happened during the latest shift. It mostly delved into methodology – what was done, how it was done and what was accomplished. Elsewhere, the book provided information about how the homeless were treated and pointed out the lack of availability and appropriateness of the services that were offered to them. Chapter 4 in particular was quite informative. Another part made a number of recommendations and suggestions for future improvement with Steel advocating on behalf of the disenfranchised, unseen street people.

I am describing “parts” of the book but the book really wasn’t organized into “parts.” The various aspects she wrote about – her experiences, the tactical aspects, information on the homeless and future recommendations were interspersed randomly throughout. That’s where I thought the book fell down. Unfortunately the different parts didn’t come together as a cohesive whole and the book seemed rather disjointed. It got repetitive in parts and seemed to be missing a unifying thread / theme. With better organization and an overall plan of integration, I think the book would have been much more effective.

From an educational aspect, I believe Steel succeeded. There was a lot of good information about how poorly homeless people are treated and how hard most people try to avoid them and forget them. She pointed out how easily any of us could be in the same situation and how grateful each recipient was that she and her volunteer team were able to assist. Steel also made it clear that homeless people might seem scary to some but the majority she met were not and that they just needed a hand up to rekindle their lost hope. I thought the book was at its best when Danielle shared her personal experiences with real people that she’d met. There just wasn’t enough of this personal sharing and as a result the book lacked as much “soul” as I usually find and connect with in memoirs.

I hope Steel’s book creates more awareness of the homelessness issue and motivates each of us, both the average Joes and the wealthy and the various cities, communities and organizations to step up to the plate and join together to address the issue. Steel repeatedly makes the point in her book that many living on the streets don’t have the wherewithal or capacity to help themselves. She has seen first hand that life on the streets makes 30 year olds look like 60 year olds and asks the reader the all important question - if people cannot help themselves due to despair and lack of skills and knowledge, who is going to help them? Shouldn’t it be up to our cities and communities and those of us with skills and knowledge to help?

Danielle Steel has demonstrated through her actions that homelessness is an important issue to her – important enough to volunteer to make a difference and to write a book about. While the book isn’t up to Steel’s usual easy to read, flowing style and is a different type of book than her fans are used to, I would still recommend that you read it. It is a very short book, only 128 pages, and like me you will likely learn something that you "don’t currently" know and "should" know about the homeless.
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Dec 07, 2012 Nada rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Review first published on my blog: http://memoriesfrombooks.blogspot.com...

A Gift of Hope sounds like it would be the title of a Danielle Steel novel. Her books are often about characters in difficult situations finding hope and finding a future. This book, however, is not a novel. It is about real people in extremely difficult situations who don't always find a way to the future. This book is nonfiction, and it is about the homeless.

A Gift of Hope is about the "Yo! Angel" homeless outreach team...more

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Dec 08, 2012 ThePinkCarrot rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

p. 13 "...I prayed for something to make me hold on, and to find a way to help someone in greater need...The answer came faster than I expected...I didn't like the thought that popped into my head within minutes of my prayer and request for direction and guidance...
It came to me very simply, 'Help the homeless.' and all I could think was, 'Oh no!! Not that!! Please!!'

Her true story of helping the homeless and her cry for all of us to help a little too, whether it be immediate needs or helping t...more

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Jan 09, 2013 Ramona rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Inspiring book about Steel's calling (that she tried to ignore) to help the homeless yet with the reality of the dangers & heartbreak as well as the "feel good" moments one gets by helping others. If you are struggling with a decision as to what you can do to help those struggling on the streets, this book gives you insight to what is involved sharing the difficulties as well as the rewards. There were several touching moments in her story, but my favorite was the story of the big man who wa...more

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Jan 24, 2013 Heather rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Despite the repetitive nature of this book and the fact that I didn't feel like it was particularly well written, I gave it four stars b/c I think the message is important and she is dedicated to bringing the issue of homelessness to light. I have never read a Danielle Steele book although I know she has written many but I am impressed by her desire to "put her money where her mouth is" and to "get her hands dirty" and truly do the work. That isn't something you see all the time.

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Jan 17, 2013 Regina Spiker rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: homeless, homeless-shelters, hope, mental-illness

Danielle Steel writes about her secret plight to help the homeless in San Francisco, taken up after her son, Nick, committed suicide. She writes with an honest, respectful look at the troubled men and women that she and her team Yo! Angel! have come across. It all started out with one outing, a stack of sleeping bags, down jackets, and some wool socks and gloves and grew from that. This book is a call for help...

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Mar 16, 2013 Muneera AlAmer rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

“The gift of hope passes from hand to hand, like a baton"

I read this book in only one day :)

Amazing stories of her 11 year experience of anonymously helping the homeless on streets. she definitely made me look at them in a very different way.

"The need is there, greater than ever."

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Jan 29, 2013 Cindy rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a story that Danielle tells us of a community service that she did in memory of her son Nick. When you read this story you do get a sense of hope that was being given to the homeless. It was a wonderful thing that she did to give warm things to those who were less forunate then us.

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Jan 22, 2013 Charlene Sha rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Definitely not her usual book. Interesting story about helping the homeless. Appears to be quickly written in an attempt to get funding for this project.
Just for the record, I do not read Danielle Steel's books. I read about this one and it interested me.

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Dec 03, 2012 Karen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Not sure what she hoped to achieve with this story. She said she didn't want anyone to know what she was doing for the homeless but I felt that all she was saying. While what she did was very commendable, I did not get the point of it. Also very repetitive.

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Mar 09, 2013 Lisa Siegler rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A completely different Danielle Steel book about her efforts to help the homeless in San Francisco. A well written non fiction book describing the difficulties of the homeless people and many misconceptions about them. A well written book that shows a different side of Danielle Steel.

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Nov 15, 2012 Sandy rated it 2 of 5 stars

I struggled to get through this book, which is very short. There was so much repetitiveness that I could hardly finish. I am sure that the story itself was a good one, it was just too hard to find what it was.

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Apr 14, 2013 Peggii rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am so grateful for what the author did. Being from San Francisco though, I was expecting to get more depth from the experience. The book felt too easy to read.

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Dec 03, 2012 Sheila marked it as to-read

I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11570578

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Nov 11, 2012 Tania rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: danielle-steel

This seemed familiar to me?? I read "His Bright Light" and an autobiography about DS years ago. Maybe this was mentioned then. Maybe I'm mixing it up with one of her books that touched on this. Anyways, it had other interesting information and was a SUPER fast read.

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Dec 20, 2012 Tracy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The five stats are not so much for the writing bit rather for the message. The message in my option is of mi h greater importance

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Apr 02, 2013 Jean Krieg rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Danielle Steel and others give coats, etc. to homeless of San Fran. Simple writing, powerful impact.

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Mar 19, 2013 Lisa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Although the true story of her work with the homeless was beautiful, I found the short story very repetitive.

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Jan 20, 2013 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Whether you love or hate her fiction work, her non-fiction like this one is a fast and interesting read.

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Nov 12, 2012 Vickie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A real eye-opener about the homeless and how Danielle Steel tried to help. I envy her courage in what she did!!

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Jan 01, 2013 Chrystal added it · review of another edition

Usually love a good memoir, and I think it's great that she volunteered with helping the homeless, but found the book overall dull and extrememly repetitive.

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Nov 23, 2012 Eileen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Very proactive and makes you more aware of the homeless situation.

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Dec 17, 2012 Ann Iacono krzan added it · review of another edition

Excellent Book. Makes you look at Homelessness in a different way.

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Mar 05, 2013 Janet rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was pretty inspiring.

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Feb 11, 2013 Joann rated it 3 of 5 stars

Quick read! It was just ok

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Dec 24, 2012 Carolin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

An eye-opener book.

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Nov 22, 2012 Carol Huber rated it 5 of 5 stars

Excellent boom about the homeless

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Dec 31, 2012 Janet rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed reading about Danielle and her YO! Angels! group giving to the homeless for over 11 years.
I knew that Nick's death was hard on her and the rest of her family but this showed a little something good that came out of it and we know that there was more good that came out. Nick continues to touch lives.

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About Danielle Steel

Since 1981, Ms. Steel has been a permanent fixture on the New York Times hardcover and paperback bestseller lists. In 1989, she was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for having at least one of her books on the Times bestseller list for 381 consecutive weeks. But Guinness was premature. The fact is that one or more of Ms. Steel's novels have been on the New York Times bestseller list for...more Since 1981, Ms. Steel has been a permanent fixture on the New York Times hardcover and paperback bestseller lists. In 1989, she was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for having at least one of her books on the Times bestseller list for 381 consecutive weeks. But Guinness was premature. The fact is that one or more of Ms. Steel's novels have been on the New York Times bestseller list for over 390 consecutive weeks.

Twenty-one of Ms. Steel's novels have been adapted for television, each earning high ratings and critical acclaim, including two Golden Globe nominations for JEWELS, a four-hour mini-series that starred Anthony Andrews.

In addition, Ms. Steel is the author of the "Max and Martha" series of books for young readers. They are ten illustrated storybooks written to comfort the young as they face problems, such as a new stepfather, new baby, new school, loss of a grandparent, and other crucial dilemmas in a child's life. She has also written the "Freddie" books, four of them, about real-life situations in children's lives, like a visit to the doctor and the first night away from home. Ms. Steel has also written nonfiction, HIS BRIGHT LIGHT, about the life and death of her son Nicholas Traina, released by Delacorte Press in September 1998 and immediately jumped to the New York Times Non-Fiction bestseller list and "Having a Baby." She has also written a book of poetry entitled LOVE: POEMS BY DANIELLE STEEL.

In 2002, Ms. Steel was decorated by the French government as an "Officier" of the distinguished Order of Arts and Letters, for her lifetime contribution to world culture. She was awarded the second highest rank of the Order.

Ms. Steel also has a passionate interest in emerging contemporary artists. She has had an art gallery for several years, and and continues to sponsor and organize free lance art shows and events to show the work of emerging and mid-career artists. She has a degree in design herself. In addition to her writing, Ms. Steel has varied philanthropic interests. She founded and runs two foundations, one named in honor of her late son, The Nick Traina Foundation, which funds organizations involved in mental illness and child abuse. The second was established to assist the homeless. She has won numerous awards for her personal work with mentally ill adolescents and children. Ms. Steel maintains a passionate interest in the welfare and well-being of children, particularly those in jeopardy. She has raised nine children of her own. And they continue to keep her busy, as she juggles writing and family. Her family is her first priority, despite her many interests.

From an education in New York and Europe to a professional background in public relations and advertising, and teaching, Ms. Steel moved on quickly to her literary career and has been hard at work writing ever since. She wrote her first book at nineteen. Often, she works on five books at a time — researching one storyline, writing another, and editing the third. Still, she often spends two to three years researching and developing a single project. In the heat of a first draft, it is not uncommon for her to spend eighteen to twenty hours a day glued to her 1946 Olympia manual typewriter.

Family, children, and young people are the central focus of her life, and her passion, which frequently shows in her writing. She deals with the themes that touch on the most pressing issues of real life, which makes her books universal, and touch so many people. She is fascinated by the pressing life situations that affect us all, how people handle them and are often transformed as a result. And her novels have explored subjects such as kidnapping, incest, mental illness, suicide, death, divorce, adoption, marriage, loss, cancer, war, among others. She also frequently writes about historical themes, shedding new light on familiar historical events with meticulously accurate research.

Despite her varied interests and activities, (less)

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