Joy is packing up her house in Chicago and moving to Phoenix. She is
supposed to be flying in but decides to get her RV out of storage and drive.
She is eighty-five-years young and her neighbor is trying to convince her
that it is a bad idea. Joy says if it's so bad Miranda should go with her to
help her. Joy plans on spreading some Christmas cheer down Route 66 as
she drives to Phoenix. She has forty or more buckets filled with Christmas
decorations that she has collected over the years. She held a contest on
her blog and the winners she has chosen have all basically given up on
Christmas. CHRISTMAS JOY RIDE is the journey Joy takes to share her
Christmas decorations.
Miranda has had a couple of rough years. She herself, could care less
about Christmas. Maybe this trip is just what she needs. She's just gotten
divorced, lost her job, and is about to have her home foreclosed on. As
they ride down Route 66, Miranda starts to see the world differently and the
trip actually gives her new hope and inspiration. On one of their stops
Miranda meets a little girl named Emily. Ever since Emily's mother passed
away on Christmas Eve when she was three-years-old, her Dad
Marcus has not celebrated Christmas. Well, Miranda is going to change
that and give Emily the best Christmas ever with the help of Joy and her
huge and giving heart. According to Joy's notebook, every detail has been
carefully thought out and not only should it renew Emily's faith in Christmas
but Marcus' also.
I started CHRISTMAS JOY RIDE this afternoon and couldn't stop reading
until the very last page. I want to get out my tree and decorations now and
set it up and it's only September. I have always enjoyed Melody Carlson's
stories and this one does not disappoint. Melody's stories always leave me
feeling warm and fuzzy inside with a huge smile on my face. As I was
reading, I felt like I was right there with Joy and Miranda spreading
Christmas cheer. Joy has a huge heart and just wants to give Christmas
back to those who have given up on the holiday. I wish more people were
like her because Christmas isn't the way it used to be when we were kids.
Melody Carlson has a gift for telling uplifting and inspirational stories and
she knows exactly how to get the reader in the holiday spirit.
Miranda did not put adventure on her Christmas list, but
thanks to her eighty-five-year-old neighbor Joy, that's
exactly what she's getting this year. When Joy tells Miranda
that she plans to drive an old RV decked out in Christmas
decorations from their Chicago neighborhood to her new
retirement digs in Phoenix--in the dead of winter, no less--
the much younger Miranda insists that Joy cannot make such a
trip by herself. Besides, a crazy trip with Joy would be more
interesting than another Christmas home alone. Unemployed and
facing foreclosure, Miranda feels she has nothing to lose by
packing a bag and heading off to Route 66. But Joy has a
hidden agenda for their Christmas joyride--and a hidden
problem that could derail the whole venture.
No one captures the heartwarming fun of the Christmas season
quite like Melody Carlson. Fasten your seat belt, because it's
going to be an exciting ride!