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Days of Little Texas

3.59 of 5 stars 3.59 · rating details · 112 ratings · 54 reviews

A ghostly love story from the author of Teach Me.

Welcome, all ye faithful—and otherwise—to a ghost story, a romance, and a reckoning unlike anything you’ve read before. Acclaimed YA author R. A. Nelson delivers a tantalizing tale set in the environs of the evangelical revival circuit and centered around Ronald Earl, who at ten became the electrifying “boy wonder” preacher...more

Hardcover, 400 pages

Published July 14th 2009 by Knopf Books for Young Readers (first published July 1st 2009)

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Feb 13, 2010 Bronwyn Parhad rated it 4 of 5 stars

Ronald Earl Pettway, AKA Little Texas, has been the wonder boy preacher since he was 10 years old. Now at 16, Little Texas doesn't have quite the same brightness, but still draws huge crowds of the faithful on the tent revival circuit. He is beginning to get doubts, to wonder about the real world of teenagers, and feel things physically and emotionally that he's never felt before. But at a revival, he heals a young girl, and a powerful jolt goes through him like never before. This healing is dif...more

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Sep 08, 2009 Rachael rated it 4 of 5 stars

Almost sixteen years old, and it seems Ronald Earl’s life is laid out before him. For nearly as long as he can remember, he’s been the boy wonder preacher, better known as Little Texas. People drive hours to see him and shout his name in reverence; all they see is a vessel of holiness. And for the most part, that’s how Ronald Earl feels too, because the sensation of the Holy Spirit filling him is like no other. But when he heals a blonde girl in a blue dress, something happens that isn’t quite r...more Almost sixteen years old, and it seems Ronald Earl’s life is laid out before him. For nearly as long as he can remember, he’s been the boy wonder preacher, better known as Little Texas. People drive hours to see him and shout his name in reverence; all they see is a vessel of holiness. And for the most part, that’s how Ronald Earl feels too, because the sensation of the Holy Spirit filling him is like no other. But when he heals a blonde girl in a blue dress, something happens that isn’t quite right and with that, Ronald Earl starts to doubt his abilities to communicate the word of God. He continues to travel on his revival circuit, but the spirit doesn’t seem to come as effortlessly as it used to, especially when Ronald Earl keeps catching glimpses of the blonde girl he healed wherever he goes. Ronald Earl is inexplicably drawn to this girl, but being with her and finding out who she really is will test his sanity, his beliefs, and his very faith.

I generally don’t go for books that center around religion and faith as much as Days of Little Texas does. This novel is supposed to be a meeting of die-hard faith and ghost stories, and the effect is bizarre and confusing to say the least. Nonetheless, I did enjoy the story. Ronald Earl/Little Texas was characterized rather well as a religious teen on the verge of a major change. I’ll admit it was a little disconcerting how rooted his thinking was in his faith, so I greatly appreciated his mental growth throughout the novel. The ending and the story as a whole were certainly strange, and I don’t know how well Nelson mixed ghosts with religion. As much as I loved reading about Ronald Earl, the plot didn’t always flow as smoothly as I’d like it. This may be because although the juxtaposition of two different types of supernatural is unique and interesting, they just don’t go well together in a story. Either way, Days of Little Texas is an entertaining story that will challenge the way anyone thinks and will open readers’ minds to a whole new realm of possibilities.

Days of Little Texas may be enjoyed by fans of Swoon by Nina Malkin, The Hollow by Jessica Verday, Sisters of Misery by Megan Kelley Hall, and Sea Change by Aimee Friedman.

reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com (less)

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Jul 22, 2009 Melodye rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: cross-over appeal for YA and adults

Brothers and Sisters, please put your hands together for Ronald Earl Pettway, aka Little Texas--the faith-healing child evangelist who takes the spotlight in R.A. Nelson’s latest novel, DAYS OF LITTLE TEXAS (Knopf, 2009).

Ronald Earl's youth is scarred by tragedy. His father is sent to prison for growing marijuana in the crawl space under their trailer home. Soon afterward, his mother’s corpse is discovered among the wreckage of a meth lab explosion. Miss Wanda Joy King—his great aunt, a sturdy...more Brothers and Sisters, please put your hands together for Ronald Earl Pettway, aka Little Texas--the faith-healing child evangelist who takes the spotlight in R.A. Nelson’s latest novel, DAYS OF LITTLE TEXAS (Knopf, 2009).

Ronald Earl's youth is scarred by tragedy. His father is sent to prison for growing marijuana in the crawl space under their trailer home. Soon afterward, his mother’s corpse is discovered among the wreckage of a meth lab explosion. Miss Wanda Joy King—his great aunt, a sturdy Pentecostal woman—provides the newly orphaned boy with food and shelter, but not much else.

Ronald Earl’s watching old-time evangelist Sugar Tom Walker preach up a storm in San Angelo, Texas, when Fate comes knockin' at his front door. Thunder clouds roll in, and a bolt of lightening strikes his friend, Certain Certain. When Ronald Earl lays a comforting hand on his motionless chest, the old man’s body shudders back to life. “You resurrected him!” a bystander cries, and when someone hands him a microphone, he gives an electrifying speech to an enthusiastic audience. “Ten years old, and the Holy Ghost comes up inside me for the very first time,” he marvels.

And thus begins Little Texas’s faith-healing ministry. Throngs of believers flock to his services, chanting his name and expecting miracles. Sugar Tom and Certain Certain serve as stage hands, while Miss Wanda Joy acts as Chief Operating Officer in his evangelical enterprise.

By the time he’s sixteen, the mantle of responsibility is resting heavy on Little Texas’s shoulders. Plagued by sexual thoughts he can’t seem to control, he’s awash in feelings of guilt and unworthiness. Shackled to the straight and narrow, he yearns to break free of others’ expectations.

It is at this juncture that two distraught parents plead with him to save Lucy, their sick daughter, from certain death. His eyes drift over her lifeless body, barely covered by a thin blue dress. Though his spiritual energy falters in the face of this temptation, the little girl seems to gather strength as he prays.

In each new town, Miss Wanda Joy seizes the opportunity for another revival meeting. And in every doorway, Little Texas sees the blond-haired girl in the blue dress. Is she another of his ardent followers, he wonders, or is he falling in love with a ghost?

The story reaches its dramatic conclusion at the Vanderloo Plantation, where legend has it that the Devil himself once wrestled an evangelist—and won. Here, Little Texas and Lucy come face-to-face with their personal demons. And in this haunted place, a final plot twist helps weave together twin themes: light and darkness, belief and doubt, love and loss.

While this book is intended for young adult audiences, I believe it has crossover appeal for older readers who enjoy stretching the boundaries of their imagination. The author does a fantastic job of creating atmosphere, using colorful, region-specific descriptions and dialect. And as the daughter of a faith-healing evangelist who's spent many an hour in Pentecostal revival meetings, I especially appreciated the authentic-sounding cadence of Little Texas’s sermons. With a deft hand and a light touch, Nelson expertly portrays the unique stylings of an itinerant preacher. Even so, I found myself wishing he had written more sensory details into the tent revival scenes, to help them come alive for those who aren’t familiar with this slice of Americana. And I wondered if readers without a Bible background might struggle with some of the scriptural references. Still, I admired the skill with which Nelson threaded paranormal and spiritual elements into the fabric of this unusual love story—and that he pulled them together in an entertaining, provocative way.(less)

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Jul 15, 2009 Eleanor rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

This is one of those times I wish GoodReads would allow us to award half stars, because this is better than a ***.

R.A. Nelson got my attention a couple years ago with Breathe My Name, so I was anxious to start this one when the ARC made it to the store.

Little Texas is a preaching phenom who travels from revival to revival with an unlikely group of handlers. At one of these stops he heals a young woman who continues to "haunt" him throughout the remainder of the story.

My radar for anti-religious...more

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May 23, 2009 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen-horror, teen-reality

Ok I don’t really know how to categorize this book a little horror, a little humor, a little "realistic" fiction but you know what? It doesn’t really matter because the book is great regardless even though it is very, very odd.

Set now, it follows a travelling preaching family called Church of the Hand. The main attraction is Little Texas, a wonder boy preacher (about 15 or so) who actually appears to maybe have some sort of magical powers or at least thinks he does. He travels with 3 old folks,...more

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Oct 29, 2009 Diane rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: washyarg

This book about a teenage preacher, "Little Texas". Since he was very young, Ronald Earl has travelled with a tent revival company, preaching, testifying, and healing the sick. As he approaches his 16th birthday, he begins to question his "call" and wonder about the strange dreams and feelings he is having. Into this confusion comes an ill girl that he is unable to heal. When she begins to appear to him in ghostly form, things take a turn for the worse.

This is part coming of age story, part fai...more

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Aug 18, 2010 Tahleen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen, religion, horror

Little Texas is not a place, but a person—16-year-old revivalist preacher Ronald Earl, hailed as a boy wonder and a faith healer. Since the age of 10, he has been preaching as part of the Hand of God ministry, headed by his great-aunt Miss Wanda Joy and in the company of Sugar Tom, an old evangelist preacher, and Certain Certain, descendant of slaves and Ronald Earl's confidante and best friend.

During one healing, he is struck by a girl in a blue dress he heals. She looks like a girl from dreams...more Little Texas is not a place, but a person—16-year-old revivalist preacher Ronald Earl, hailed as a boy wonder and a faith healer. Since the age of 10, he has been preaching as part of the Hand of God ministry, headed by his great-aunt Miss Wanda Joy and in the company of Sugar Tom, an old evangelist preacher, and Certain Certain, descendant of slaves and Ronald Earl's confidante and best friend.

During one healing, he is struck by a girl in a blue dress he heals. She looks like a girl from dreams he's been having and can't shake the thought of her after they leave that small town. But then he sees her at the next meeting, and again, and again. Is she following him? Who is this mysterious girl in blue? And the question that plagues Ronald Earl most of all: is she even human?

The plot is what drives the story of Ronald Earl (aka Little Texas) and Lucy (the girl in the blue dress). The descriptions of the scary bits are great and definitely get your heart pumping. There were parts where I couldn't put the book down. But then again, once I did put it down I didn't feel too compelled to pick it up right away. I don't know if it was just my mood or the fact that I didn't necessarily have large chunks of time in which to read it. I broke it up too much and disturbed the flow of the story, making it less of a compelling read for me.

I am happy to say there are deeper issues and themes present within the story. Mainly a horror story, we follow Ronald Earl through his realizations of his own beliefs and his doubts of his faith. He is certainly a devout Christian who believes everything very strongly, yet he is growing into a man and, as it happens, begins to get urges that he sees as sinful and unholy.

I wasn't sure how Nelson would handle the Christian aspect of this book, especially once it's clear that it has a number of supernatural elements, one of which is the presence of ghosts. Yet Nelson never demeans Christianity, which I was afraid he would do; on the contrary, he seems to hold Ronald Earl up as a hero of the light. He certainly takes liberties within the story, as is the case with supernatural novels, but he is never condescending. Ronald Earl's faith is quite inspiring, though I wouldn't go so far as to say this book is a good example of Christian fiction (it's not at all). I think there is some doubt at the very end in Ronald Earl's mind about his faith, which just confused me; it is so out of place in the context of Ronald Earl's previous actions and thoughts.

*POSSIBLE SPOILERS*

Nelson also delves into issues like racism, as slavery plays a huge role in the plot. It almost bordered on saccharine toward the end, but there were some good messages about owning some of the responsibility for what happened in the past. As Certain Certain says, "It's what we all owe, Lightning [his name for Ronald Earl:]. You know what I'm sayin'? Ain't enough just to say, 'Wasn't me, wasn't you'" (69). Lucy agrees later on: "I know, we didn't do it, we weren't alive back then...but we've benefited, right? From what our ancestors did? Even all these years later?" (371). It's at least an acknowledgement of white privilege, even if it gets a little schmaltzy. That, I think, is a start.

As for the characters, I felt they could have been more rounded out. Ronald Earl is kind of boring, to be honest, despite all the praise he gets from EVERYONE, including the ghosties. He's full of light, but he's still kind of dull. And the romance between him and Lucy was just so unbelievable to me. I still don't understand why Lucy loves him—where did she even get the information about him? Is it just because she's a ghost and knows stuff she wouldn't otherwise? And does Ronald Earl's love for Lucy just stem from his lust for her? I just don't buy it, and that's after I've suspended my disbelief to a large extent in the first place.

Miss Wanda Joy is pretty transparent. She claims to be a firm and devout believer, but it's clear she doesn't have the conviction Ronald Earl has. She's out to get enough money for them to live comfortably, especially toward the end. She is not a very good example of a Christian, in my opinion.

Also, what the heck was up with Faye? She was ALL OVER Ronald Earl and, after her role was played in the plot, she was barely mentioned again. I felt like she was just a plot device and had no value to the book other than as a source of information.

ANYWAY. I think that sums it all up. It was enjoyable, though I had trouble getting through it for whatever reason; I just wasn't feeling it at the time. But if you're looking for a ghost story with a different flavor, check this one out.(less)

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Nov 23, 2011 Becca rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-reads

This book about Ronald Earl, a young evangelist with a traveling ministry, was better than I thought it would be. He is a gifted preacher who has the ability to heal those in the congregation by laying his hands on them. Then at one event he lays his hands on Lucy; a girl about his age that caught his eye. Then as he travels on from town to town he sees her at every location. This bothers him because he likes her and shouldn't be having those types of thoughts. Then he realizes that she is not e...more

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Aug 01, 2012 Cathy Hall rated it 4 of 5 stars

SUCH a surprising read! I'm not sure what I expected, but I think that's what I really liked about DAYS OF LITTLE TEXAS--it's so unexpected. And so good.

It's the story of Little Texas, a teen evangelical preacher, and the religion is incredibly overt-- and yet not preachy. It's drenched in Southern life, Southern speak--and yet it's pitch perfect. The characters who fill out the story are so over-the-top--and yet never caricatures.

And there's a ghostly love story, intertwined with a deeply-roote...more

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Apr 19, 2010 Sherrie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Ronald Earl is taken in by a relative following his mother's death in a meth lab explosion and his father's prison stint for drug sales. With this relative, he finds his calling as the child evangelist and faith healer, Little Texas. As time passes, now sixteen year old Little Texas still draws crowds but is haunted (literally) by one young girl that he was not able to save with his faith healing. The story is part romance, part Southern gothic supernatural tale, and is very compelling. I listen...more

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Jan 23, 2011 Teresa Garrett rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: realistic-fiction, fantasy

A good versus evil story with a built in history lesson. A young man, Little Texas, finds himself living with some rather distant and eccentric relatives that travel across the country as evangelicals. They pause in smaller towns to hold tent revivals. Little Texas has garnered a following as a spiritual healer. After one very odd healing he feels he is being haunted by the girl he healed and strange things begin happening. Having lead a sheltered life Little Texas is confused by what is happeni...more

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Mar 14, 2010 Kelsey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: finished-copies-review

R.A. Nelson has officially been established as one of my favorite authors. I loved his other book Breathe My Name and I loved Days of Little Texas as well. It was such a unique topic and one I’ve never read about before. Ronald Earl was a fantastic main character and his first person narrative was great, it really kept the story moving. I’m not a religious person so a book about a prodigal minister made me a little unsure. I actually learned a lot about the Bible and religion in general that I p...more

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Jul 13, 2009 Abby Johnson rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: blogged

Summary from publisher: Welcome, all ye faithful—and otherwise—to a ghost story, a romance, and a reckoning unlike anything you’ve read before. Acclaimed YA author R. A. Nelson delivers a tantalizing tale set in the environs of the evangelical revival circuit and centered around Ronald Earl, who at ten became the electrifying “boy wonder” preacher known as Little Texas. Now sixteen, though the faithful still come and roar with praise and devotion, Ronald Earl is beginning to have doubts that he...more

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Jun 28, 2009 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: amazon-vine, young-adult, 2009-books-read

This novel is a complex mix of tent revivals, spirit-filled fervor, ghosts, pubescence, love, temptation, slave stories, haunted plantations, and demonic activity. I've never read anything quite like it.

Little Texas is a 16 year-old kid from Alabama who meets with fame by bringing a man back from the dead and has been healing people at tent revivals across the South ever since. He begins to feel like a fraud when a sick girl he lays hands on dies rather than recovers. The ghost girl, Lucy, begi...more This novel is a complex mix of tent revivals, spirit-filled fervor, ghosts, pubescence, love, temptation, slave stories, haunted plantations, and demonic activity. I've never read anything quite like it.

Little Texas is a 16 year-old kid from Alabama who meets with fame by bringing a man back from the dead and has been healing people at tent revivals across the South ever since. He begins to feel like a fraud when a sick girl he lays hands on dies rather than recovers. The ghost girl, Lucy, begins to haunt his meetings and eventually leave him love notes. But ghosts are contrary to the Bible, aren't they? She follows him to the Vanderloo Plantation on Devil Hill, a haunted plantation which the author of 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey supposedly visited for possible inclusion in her book. There, Little Texas must battle with demons of the past and learn the meaning of life and love.

There are many nice touches of authenticity in the novel. I enjoyed the authentic Southern parlance: "tote" instead of "carry", "liable" instead of "likely", "tump" instead of "turn over and dump", "chimbley" instead of "chimney", etc. It brings a nice Southern flavor to the story. The confused feelings of a religious pubescent boy about his new feelings toward members of the opposite sex is also a nice touch since it's a very real part of being in the ministry but not understanding why you're still feeling these feelings. I also like that the author makes the Vanderloo Plantation out to be a real place by having Kathryn Tucker investigate it for her book. However, upon further research, there doesn't seem to be any such plantation in Alabama.

While I enjoyed this book quite a lot because there are so many parts of it I could relate to, I think its themes aren't going to be universally appealing. I probably AM this book's niche market: I grew up in Alabama going to tent revivals, watching my dad doing street ministry (in Andalusia, AL, where a character of the book does street ministry), reading 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey (despite the Christians who chided it as not being compatible with Christianity), going to school in the same town as one of the haunted sites in the book (in Kinston, AL, where Grancer Harrison's mansion once stood), and going through the confusing process of being a youth minister at age 16. But how many people with my specific upbringing and background are actually out there? I could see this novel as possibly being offensive to tent-revival-goers and too religious for non-religious ghost-lovers. It certainly could cause a nice stir of discussion though.

Note: While I critique both purchased and free books in the same way, I'm legally obligated to tell you I received this book free through the Amazon Vine program in return for my review. Blah blah blah.(less)

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Nov 18, 2012 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: trt-posted-reviews

Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

Little Texas is a sixteen-year-old evangelist preacher. Early on, readers learn his back story. Born Ronald Earl, he started life living in a trailer. His father raised pot underneath their home, but when his secret crop was discovered, he was carted off to prison. That left Ronald Earl with his mother, who "entertained" gentlemen callers until one night when she had the misfortune of visiting the local meth lab on the night it expl...more Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

Little Texas is a sixteen-year-old evangelist preacher. Early on, readers learn his back story. Born Ronald Earl, he started life living in a trailer. His father raised pot underneath their home, but when his secret crop was discovered, he was carted off to prison. That left Ronald Earl with his mother, who "entertained" gentlemen callers until one night when she had the misfortune of visiting the local meth lab on the night it exploded and burned to the ground.

Ronald Earl then found himself traveling with Miss Wanda Joy, an elderly preacher known as Sugar Tom, and an odd fellow named Certain Certain. Together they made an unusual, but devoted family.

Ronald Earl became known as Little Texas when it was discovered that he had healing powers and the ability to preach to and captivate an audience. The group traveled from town to town for years providing revival-type church meetings and taking in enough of a "collection" each time to sustain their operation. But as time passed, Little Texas was becoming less comfortable with his role as child preacher and, at sixteen, he was struggling with his desire to change course.

Things changed in a big way after one revival meeting when Little Texas was asked to heal a pretty young girl. Her parents stated that she suddenly became ill while they were traveling, and they put all their hope for her recovery in the powerful hands of Little Texas. He handled the situation just like his other miraculous healings and left behind what he thought was a grateful family.

It wasn't long after his contact with the young girl that Little Texas began experiencing some unsettling visions. A young girl calling herself Lucy, dressed in the same blue dress, began appearing before Little Texas. His religious training and beliefs kept him from acknowledging her at first, but the appearances increased in frequency and contact with her seemed so real.

Then Miss Wanda Joy gets the idea to hold a revival at a historical plantation known for the mysterious disappearance of another revival preacher. Lucy's visitations take on a different tone. When she appears to Little Texas, she warns him of danger and suggests that with her help, the two of them can battle the evil that haunts the old plantation site.

DAYS OF LITTLE TEXAS is a different mix of plot twists and turns. Ronald Earl is a teen struggling with the traditional coming-of-age dilemma, but the religious angle adds an interesting element. Grateful for the support he has been given from his three family friends, he desperately wants to make them proud of him, yet he holds the nagging belief that what he is doing may not be representing the truth. He also clings to his religious upbringing as he battles the conflicting notion of ghosts/spirits/demons or whatever this Lucy represents.

Author R. A. Nelson will surprise readers expecting a revival, holy-roller experience as he deftly incorporates an intriguing mystery with the history of the plantation, slavery, and the Underground Railroad. DAYS OF LITTLE TEXAS would be an interesting addition to a high school collection.(less)

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Jan 15, 2011 Christin rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book is a good mystery/ghostly love story between a boy who is becoming a man in a religious world that has never allowed for sexuality, nor does the book. A light romance novel that intertwines the history of an old slave worked plantation of the South and a young couple of the present. Can they free the spirits that haunt this place or rid them of the evil that is trapping them there? You'll have to read it to find out, but the ending is worth the journey for young adults and teens.

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Feb 19, 2011 Jessica rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Little Texas is a teen preacher traveling the US in tent revivals with The Church of the Hand. His days are rarely suprising until two frightened parents bring their ailing child to him for healing. Little Texas does what he can for the girl that he finds strangely aluring. This act is the catalyst for an amazing coming of age adventure in love, redemption, and pure faith.

This book is billed accurately as a romantic ghost story, but turned out to be a much different book than I thought it was go...more

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Sep 11, 2009 Ryan rated it 3 of 5 stars

This was a weird book. Good, though at times distressing and possibly confusing. The author says it was a mixture of a ghost story and southern revivalist preaching - a good description, for the most part. Its also about a young man with a limited view of the world who begins to see beyond the narrow boundaries he has lived within, and about the danger of abuse when God becomes a commercial enterprise, how churches walk that narrow line. It was often hard to tell what was real, what was not, but...more

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Dec 20, 2011 Andrew rated it 4 of 5 stars

A nice somewhat creepy Christ-haunted tale. Not Christian fiction as the title might lead you to believe. My sister read this and I thought it sounded interesting. There wasn't a blurb on the back of the book really so I looked at the summery on the publisher's page. This showed me that the font was called "Parable," which is absolutely hilarious. Anyway, it's an enjoyable little book.

Obligatory obscure reference: The novel is like Marjoe Gortner meets Kolchak.

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Jan 02, 2010 Anastasia Tuckness rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: c2009, christian-fiction, guy-reads, mostly-realistic, ya

Hard to classify. Readers who question where there's something more to our world than what appears--that we may interact with ghosts and ghosts with us--may be drawn to this book. It has a little of the same feel as the Peretti books, though not as compelling. Though I wouldn't classify it as having a completely traditional conservative Biblial outlook on things, the ending is pretty ambiguous so would not likely offend anyone.

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Mar 30, 2011 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a pretty weird book in the beginning. I hadn't really looked too closely into it before picking it up at the library. I haven't read too many books dealing with a lot of religious/preacher things or ghosts, surprisingly, either. At first I was just kindof so-so, 3 stars, but then as I started getting further along, it really had me hooked. The ending was very very surprising and a thriller! If you want something different, try Days of Little Texas!

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Aug 03, 2009 Christianne rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

I was excited about the premise, but disappointed with the book. The middle section of the book really dragged. The main character seemed like he was growing up and questioning his path, but I never got a sense of resolution or what his next moves would be. He confronted evil in a dramatic fashion but never seemed to process it afterward. The book seemed torn between being about slavery and about a boy's coming of age and spiritual growth but didn't do justice to either.

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Apr 05, 2012 Marsha rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: literature-fiction

Part love story, part revival meeting, part psychological thriller and horror tale, this book keeps you riveted with its unforgettable characters and powerful story about taking on the Beast with nothing but the Lord by your side. Constant praise of the Lord can be a bit much in certain places and Lucy’s haunting is truly baffling but the book is a determined effort.

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Sep 03, 2012 Bonnie rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was the first time I knew about R.A. Nelson living and working right here in Huntsville. This is quite a story and a great ghost story. I enjoyed it and was captured by his characters of Little Texas and Lucy. What a creative work and a fun read.

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Jul 27, 2011 Stephanie Lawton rated it 4 of 5 stars

Deliciously messed up and squirm-worthy, "Days" addresses an issue I've debated many times with DH: Where does the paranormal fit in with Christianity? And why are normal things declared evil by so many? On the surface, it's also a great ghost story.

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Feb 02, 2011 Reba rated it 3 of 5 stars

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I didn't want to give it a 2, because it was better than some of the other books that I rated with a 2, but I didn't want to give it a 3. I really, really wish there were 1/2 stars. Oh well, 3 it is on the official record.

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Oct 05, 2009 Amelia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen-fiction, favorites

This Southern gothic novel explored themes of death, afterlife, good, evil, and coming-of-age... and scared the bejeezus out of me. Though it's classified as young adult, I suspect that this is only because its protagonist is a 16-year-old; in truth, the writing and story are mature and thought-provoking. Great for lovers of a good ghost story!

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Jul 31, 2011 Pmcpmd added it

A supernatural evangelistic YA novel that kept me interested throughout even as I didn't really follow what happened during the climactic last quarter of the story. Well-written and sure to be discussed.

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Aug 07, 2012 Chantel Acevedo rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was one of my favorite books I've read so far this year. It's haunting and gripping and so, so surprising in wonderful ways. The narrator is a charmer and your heart will just go out to him.

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Jan 06, 2011 Roslyn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Story of a teenage boy who is a traveling evangelist, but is struggling with this identity. The story takes a turn to spirits, and righting past wrongs with a bit of a twist at the end.

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About R.A. Nelson

R.A. Nelson is the author of the novels TEACH ME and BREATHE MY NAME, both nominated to the YALSA Best Books for Young Adults list. Nelson’s third book is DAYS OF LITTLE TEXAS, coming out on July 14 with Knopf. He is working on his fourth book, THROAT, slated for Fall 2010, also with Knopf.

Nelson was chosen as a Horn Book Newcomer in 2005 and his books have been recognized by the New York Public L...more

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6276050-days-of-little-texas?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320494685l/6276050.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6276050-days-of-little-texas?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Days of Little Texas by R.A. Nelson[/url]

Days of Little Texas

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