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Leota's Garden
Once Leota's garden was a place of beauty--where flowers bloomed and hope thrived. It was her refuge from the deep wounds inflicted by a devastating war, her sanctuary where she knelt before a loving God and prayed for the children who couldn't understand her silent sacrifices.
At eighty-four, Leota is alone, her beloved garden in ruins. All her efforts to reconcile with he...more
At eighty-four, Leota is alone, her beloved garden in ruins. All her efforts to reconcile with he...more
Trade Paperback, 423 pages
Published
January 24th 2000
by Tyndale House Publishers
(first published July 8th 1999)
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I could almost say this was the best book I had read in 2011. I loved the characters, particularly Leota and her Grand-daughter. There are moments I laughed and I cried. I like that in a book. I love reading characters that seem real.
What kept this book from a 5 star rating since I did enjoy it very much.
1. It is very, very heavy in the Christian theme and genre. Not that it bothered me but I know it would turn off many people and I even found myself skipping many pages in the middle when some h...more
What kept this book from a 5 star rating since I did enjoy it very much.
1. It is very, very heavy in the Christian theme and genre. Not that it bothered me but I know it would turn off many people and I even found myself skipping many pages in the middle when some h...more
4 likes · like · see review
view 2 comments
If I could have given this book a score greater than 5 I would have. Leota is an elderly lady whose children feel she was a bad mother and whose granddaughter wants to get to know her. At 84 time is running out, she lives in a run down neighborhood surrounded by a once-beautiful garden. Anne-Lynn her granddaughter breaks the ties with her mom, heads to California to go to art school, and determines to develop a relationship with her grandmother. The complex characters in this story: Eleanor and...more
3 likes · like · see review
Author: Francine Rivers
Title: Leota’s Garden
Description : Annie has been kept from knowing her grandmother by her mother’s bitterness about her unhappy childhood. Rather than going to the prestigious college her mother prefers, Annie decides to stay in town, go to art school, and get to know her grandmother, Leota.
Review source: this was a free book on kindle.
Plot: Annie and her grandmother are at the center of the story, but we also meet Corban, a college student who is assigned to Leota as pa...more
Title: Leota’s Garden
Description : Annie has been kept from knowing her grandmother by her mother’s bitterness about her unhappy childhood. Rather than going to the prestigious college her mother prefers, Annie decides to stay in town, go to art school, and get to know her grandmother, Leota.
Review source: this was a free book on kindle.
Plot: Annie and her grandmother are at the center of the story, but we also meet Corban, a college student who is assigned to Leota as pa...more
This is one of my very favorite Francine Rivers books! I have recommended it to many woman, and even to a womans study group (who just loved it). Do not hesitate to read it, you will be so glad you did.
From dust jacket:
"Once Leota's garden was a place of beauty where flowers bloomed and hope thrived. It was her refuge from the deep wounds inflicted by a devastating war, her sanctuary where she knelt before a loving God and prayed for the children who couldn't understand her silent sacrifices.
At...more
From dust jacket:
"Once Leota's garden was a place of beauty where flowers bloomed and hope thrived. It was her refuge from the deep wounds inflicted by a devastating war, her sanctuary where she knelt before a loving God and prayed for the children who couldn't understand her silent sacrifices.
At...more
"Leota's Garden" is the story of a crotchety old woman estranged from all her family members, who becomes the case study of a sociology student. From the beginning, it is clear that Leota is more than just a bitter old lady, and Rivers' writing brings to life a woman who desperately longs to reconnect with her children. It is only when her granddaughter, Annie, arrives on her doorstep unexpectedly, that Leota's past and present can be resolved. At the same time, Corban, the sociology student, is...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I liked the background of this book where Annie wanted to do things but her beliefs in God kept her doing what she felt was the way to go.
She did not go to parties or hang out with the people her mom thought she should, because the parties had people doing drugs and drinking. Annie did not want to do those things.
She chose a very nice friend, who came from a big family and loved it. Everyone always got together, loved each other, and talked to each other.
Leota had not seen her daughter, Eleanor...more
She did not go to parties or hang out with the people her mom thought she should, because the parties had people doing drugs and drinking. Annie did not want to do those things.
She chose a very nice friend, who came from a big family and loved it. Everyone always got together, loved each other, and talked to each other.
Leota had not seen her daughter, Eleanor...more
As far as Rivers' books go, this one is deeply subtle (versus, for example, the Mark of the Lion trilogy--wait, the books about Romans persecuting Christians are Christian literature?--or the Women of the Bible series (duh.)) Actually, correction - the male love interest's girlfriend is an obvious "big bad secular feminist" - but a, she's so loathsome why stop to think about how much you hate her, and b, anyone who went to a liberal arts college knew someone like her and ARGH she was so ANNOYING...more
1 like · like · see review
If you've read Redeeming Love, you know what a gifted storyteller Francine Rivers is and the wonderfully mult-faceted characters she creates.
Leota is 84-years-old and facing the end of her life. She is alienated from her children and grandchildren, lives alone in a run-down house full of "history", mourns a garden that once thrived with creativity and life is now neglected and overgrown, a heart full of regrets and a heartfelt prayer and desire for reconciliation with her family before she dies...more
Leota is 84-years-old and facing the end of her life. She is alienated from her children and grandchildren, lives alone in a run-down house full of "history", mourns a garden that once thrived with creativity and life is now neglected and overgrown, a heart full of regrets and a heartfelt prayer and desire for reconciliation with her family before she dies...more
Francine Rivers does an excellent job of showing what lack of communication, lack of understanding, lack of keeping God in our hearts can do to an individual and a family. Amazing how one individual in this story seems to really let the love of God shine through. Rivers does an outstanding job describing the loneliness of the elderly, and painfully tells a story of people who lack compassion and understanding. By Chapter 10 of this book, I opted not to put it down, but stayed up all night readin...more
I find myself faced with trepidation when writing a review of Leota's Garden. A little info on my perspective may be helpful. I am a public librarian--I read a ton, and a mammoth variety. I even do some reading because I "should"....some of you librarians in the crowd know what I am saying. I feel a need to be well-read and to have a basic knowledge of most genres. While I dig a ton of different types of books, genres and information, of course, I do have my favorites. And I certainly am not afr...more
Rivers likes to write on very difficult topics and she does it well. There are times in her previous books when it's almost too hard to take and doesn't add to the story. But in any case I decided to read this one when it was recommended to me. I was glad it was lighter than her usual books. I really liked the characters alot. I loved the new relationship with Leota and her granddaughter. It's sweet to me when Leota realizes her granddaughter truly wants to spend time with her, up to that point...more
Nov 09, 2007
Mallory Miller
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
someone with pateince and likes a slow good book!
This book is a reality check book! This is a fiction book. In this book there is an old lady named Leota! She is alone and her childeren left her alone to rot by herself. Untill one day her grandaugher comes to visit! She shows Gods love to her grandmother and a helper who comes to help her grandmother.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
My most favorite book is 'Leota's Garden' by Francine Rivers. It's about the reconciliation between a grandmother and her two children through her granddaughter. Throw in a college student who is doing research in what is best for aging citizens, and you get a serious book of misunderstandings due to 'silent' issues and comedy as the grandmother deals with the college student's ideas. The intimacy between grandmother and granddaughter is so touching and heartwarming, as well as the relationship...more
A bit slow to begin but I'm so glad I stuck with it!! Before I knew it, the book had ended. Kept me turning page after page.
From dust jacket:
"Once Leota's garden was a place of beauty where flowers bloomed and hope thrived. It was her refuge from the deep wounds inflicted by a devastating war, her sanctuary where she knelt before a loving God and prayed for the children who couldn't understand her silent sacrifices.
At eighty-four, Leota is alone, her beloved garden in ruins. All her efforts to r...more
From dust jacket:
"Once Leota's garden was a place of beauty where flowers bloomed and hope thrived. It was her refuge from the deep wounds inflicted by a devastating war, her sanctuary where she knelt before a loving God and prayed for the children who couldn't understand her silent sacrifices.
At eighty-four, Leota is alone, her beloved garden in ruins. All her efforts to r...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
another kindle freebie. OK, so, yes, it's religious. Christian religious. I find it very annoying that so many kindle freebies are of the christian religious genre. That aside, I enjoyed the characterization of Leota and of her young companion. I'm basically a very sappy person. It warmed my heart to read this story about a young person helping an old person. Especially since right now (as I write this review, which is a couple of months after I finished the book really) I am personally finding...more
I just LOVE Francine Rivers, it has been a while since I've read one of her books and I realized how much I missed her writing. She has a beautiful way of sharing stories and I fall in love with her characters. This book touched my heart since I lost my grandmother a few years ago and I have another grandmother who is still living, while I am blessed that my family is not quite as dysfunctional as the one in this story, no family is perfect and this was a great reminder to cherish the time you h...more
This story about a dysfunctional family with an 18-year-old girl who is normal, was a free download to my Kindle. The garden of Leota is used as a vehicle of Christianity, and eventually of bringing some sense and peace to "ugly" lives. Leota's daughter is bitter; her son is almost a recluse. But thru all the anger, and Leota's death, it is possible to see lives improving, as the garden is transformed from weeds and despair to a living and beautiful garden again. This is probably the most openly...more
Leota's Garden is not only a beautiful story about love and forgiveness but also one about speaking the truth in love. Leota harbored a family secret for years as she thought she was protecting those she loved. Instead her silence alienated her from her children whom she loved the most and whose love and comfort she yearned for in her sunset years. Her story teaches us that God has called us not to 'keep the peace' but to be peacemakers. Making peace means confronting the truth in love and kindn...more
A very old lonely woman lives in a rundown house in a bad neighborhood. Her name is Leota. She doesn't know her neighbors and spends her time watching tv and trudging up the hill and back to buy her groceries. She is on social security and doesn't have alot of money. when she sits in the nook in her kitchen she looks out the back window and sees a garden. What was once indeed, a very beautiful garden. But she is old now, her son and daughter don't have time for her and she wonders if the garden...more
This book was a journey for me, I can now understand my mother and all she has done for me/us. Life was not easy for her or us as a family. We had alot of bad/good times togather as a family. This book help me to understand her more than ever. Being a single mom with 4 kids, it's a career in it self. She was never self-centered and put us first all through the years. As kids we didn't understand but now as adults we understand. We all need to wisen-up. We actually don't understand until we have...more
I really like this book at first. I got a kick out of Grandma Leota, I thought she was very entertaining. But as the book went on I thought that she had lost a lot of her character. I also lost quite a bit of momentum when the book started getting into the politics of nursing homes versus at home care. While everyone is entitled to their opinion I find it very distracting when an author incorporates their opinions so frequently in a book, in the way Rivers did in this book.
Overall, though, I...more
Overall, though, I...more
I did not expect to like this book, but it was a free download from Amazon on a night I had insomnia, but it definitely did not cure my insomnia. In fact, I had trouble putting it down to go to bed the next night too.
If you do not absolutely fall in love with the 2 main characters, Leota and Annie, you have no heart to begin with. The characters are developed wonderfully, the details are perfect, and the storyline is wonderful.
Even if you do not like Christian books, try this one. The story is...more
If you do not absolutely fall in love with the 2 main characters, Leota and Annie, you have no heart to begin with. The characters are developed wonderfully, the details are perfect, and the storyline is wonderful.
Even if you do not like Christian books, try this one. The story is...more
Sep 08, 2011
Toni Cross
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone 13 to 100
This is an excellent book on the sanctity of life. It developes in a unique way and had me on the edge of my seat in parts and crying in others. Another special thing about this book is the way she bridges the generation gap, making this title appeal to multiple ages. I read this several years ago, when I was still in my teens, but my mother and many of her friends, as well as a few others my grandmother's age, also enjoyed it.
Francine Rivers is one of those rare authors that can write about pre...more
Francine Rivers is one of those rare authors that can write about pre...more
I am so mad at this book that I could spit nails. The plot in which to bring together a mother, daughter, granddaughter was excellent and showing that an 84 year old person has a right to go on living in her own home is also exellent. That the young and the old can find things in common is also good BUT when the time is right for mother and daughter to find closer and become reconciled, out of the blue she is murdered is WRONG, in fact, I didn't even finish the book. I had to give the book some...more
I enjoyed the main story of Leota, her sacrafices, the misunderstandings with her children, etc.
What I found absurd were the numerous social issues that were forced into the story. I won't name them because I don't want to spoil the book for others. One or two of them would have blended nicely with Leota's story. However, by including them all (the social issues) it was just too much diatribe to be believeable.
I was extremely put off and found the book too soapbox-ish. The book is a good story...more
What I found absurd were the numerous social issues that were forced into the story. I won't name them because I don't want to spoil the book for others. One or two of them would have blended nicely with Leota's story. However, by including them all (the social issues) it was just too much diatribe to be believeable.
I was extremely put off and found the book too soapbox-ish. The book is a good story...more
Absolutely Loved this book!! The story of an elderly lady, Leota, failing in health , ignored by her hurt children, who have little to no interest in reconciling with her.. At one time she was an avid Gardener and lively character, but now sits alone in her falling apart home, until her granddaughter appears on the scene.
Pretty predictable, but nonetheless , I enjoyed the thought processes of the 3 different generations as they worked through fairly typical life issues.
I think it should be a mus...more
Pretty predictable, but nonetheless , I enjoyed the thought processes of the 3 different generations as they worked through fairly typical life issues.
I think it should be a mus...more
A long time friend passed on this book, and I realized after a few pages that I had read it before, back when it came out in 1999. Francine Rivers has been a favorite author for a long time, and it is a joy to have a friend who also enjoys the way Rivers can weave God into her novels. This one was read the first time two years after my Mom died, so a second read brought out new insight. A very poignant story about a family with very different perspectives on God, life, and death, and how miracle...more
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New York Times best-selling author Francine Rivers began her literary career at the University of Nevada, Reno, where she graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in English and journalism. From 1976 to 1985, she had a successful writing career in the general market, and her books were highly acclaimed by readers and reviewers. Although raised in a religious home, Francine did not truly encounter...more
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