Katharine's Yesterday and Other Stories

by Grace Livingston Hill

Young Katharine Bowman is certain the winter will be long and dreary. Her friends from the summer have all gone back to their homes, and she feels deserted and lonely. Then she discovers a gift left for her by one of her friends...a gift that will change her life in astonishing ways!

Genres: Christian Fiction, Christian, Fiction, Romance, Christian Romance

225 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1895

About the author

also wrote under the pseudonym Marcia MacDonald
also published under the name Grace Livingston Hill Lutz

A popular author of her day, she wrote over 100 novels and numerous short stories of religious and Christian fiction. Her characters were most often young female ingénues, frequently strong Christian women or those who become so within the confines of the story.

niece to Isabella MacDonald Alden

Reviews

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories, headlined by the title story: Katharine's Yesterday, and including An Excuse for Christ, John Chamberlain's Easter Coat, A Voice Unheard, The Pledge, A Missionary Meeting, Some Carols for the Lord, and The Praise of Men.

Katherine is just seeing off all of her summer pals. It's been a wonderful, carefree, exciting time with her friends - lots of tennis, croquet, rides, picnics - all the glorious things that contribute to making summer such a delicious season. And now she is standing at the gate, having seen everyone off on the train, feeling the weight of the world coming down on her shoulders. Summer's warmth is fleeing away, and winter is coming. Her overworked mother is waiting for her to pick up the neglected burdens of housework and sewing. Her young brother is particularly trying and disagreeable and she wonders why. And then, after a very difficult day, she opens a gift left behind by her cousin - and finds a wonderful little blank journal, into which she can pour her frustrations. She vents: "My pleasant thought are all of yesterday. Of, if it were back, if I could live the summer over again...I wish I could be different; but I can't." Suddenly she finds a slip of paper in the cover of the journal. It contains a poem that she initially sneers over, and then is intrigued by. Eventually the poem, and its hidden meaning, changes Katherine's life.

[A Hoppy Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars
1. Katharine's Yesterday - wonderful
2. An Excuse for Christ - odd and preachy
3. John Chamberlain's Easter Coat - great
4. A Voice Unheard - some good insight but kind of preachy
5. The Pledge - odd, once again touches on doctrine
6. A Missionary Meeting - ok, more tract than story
7. Some Carols for the Lord - good
8. The Praise of Men - good
9. The Love Gift - wonderful
10. "Living Epistles" - ok, food for thought
11. The Unknown God - great
12. Under the Window - wonderful

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an old book but it is a good book. Reading it gives a Christian much to think about.

[Anna Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this collection of stories! I had checked this one out from the library about half a dozen times and never gotten around to even picking it up. But I was really feeling motivated, so I tried to read it this summer, and to my delight, there were some wonderful short novellas in between the short stories too! I especially liked the one with the poor minister and the hat maker. So sweet! If you are looking for a nice collection of short stories from a by-gone era, pick this one up! They aren't all gems, but there are enough good ones in this collection to make it worth your time.

[Grace Buchanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Practical, inspiring, encouraging story. Realistic characters and real insight into how our lives can change when we come to Jesus and ask him to forgive us and .lead us.

Excellent practical inspiring encouraging. Realistic characters. Helpful to anyone who wants to know what can happen when we come to Jesus and ask him to forgive us and help us follow Him.

[Mbounds · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed some of the stories. The others were more like reading a sermon.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a collection of short stories. I'm not sure why the publisher marketed it as "romance." There was no romance in it. Most stories centered around the youth organization Christian Endeavor and how they did different activities or reached people in need. They were classy in typical Grace Livingston Hill style.