Picking Daisy

New England Inspirations, Book 3

De: Valerie Howard

Narrado por: Nikki Zakocs

It's never too late...to find the love of a family.

When divorcee Elise signs up to be a foster parent at the age of 50, she wonders if she made a huge mistake.

Her fear increases when her first placement comes straight from the police station in the middle of the night. Elise struggles to care for the angry teenager who is more difficult to love than anyone she's ever met before.

At only 15, DJ has lived a harder life than most other orphans.

A terrifying stepfather and a string of unfit foster parents has left DJ with a fragile heart that keeps its distance. That way no one can ever hurt her again.

When DJ is sent to live with Elise temporarily, the two struggle to connect while DJ makes secret plans to run away. But as Elise shares God's love, both hearts begins to soften and believe that a happily family might not be completely out of reach.

Fans of Karen Kingsbury will enjoy the realistic characters and faith-driven novels by Valerie Howard.

©2017 Valerie Howard (P)2022 Valerie Howard

Gripping novel on foster care

Picking Daisy by Valerie Howard

The title of this book seems like a light and fluffy book. In reality it is a heart searching journey for Elise who is a 50 something woman who feels that she has something to give and decides to foster children and teens.

DJ is a young teen who has been through multiple traumas and uncountable foster homes. He life is anything but easy, and at time PTSD becomes uncontrollable.

Elise is flawed, has never been a mother, and is hopelessly over her head with DJ. DJ doesn’t want to like Elise. All they do works against each other, but Elise doesn’t give up, and neither does God.

I couldn’t put the book down, and when I did finish, it was still on my mind. It was realistic, well written, and the characters were beautifully flawed. I think this book should be required reading for anyone thinking about fostering older children.

Excellent!

This story was excellent from the very beginning! it even brought tears to my eyes a few times. I loved how it had a wonderful ending as well!!
The narration was very good too! I got a code for this book, but did the whole series and I'm loving them all! Listening every chance I can get!

beautiful story

This is a beautiful and emotional story. DJ is a foster child who has been shuffled through the system and lost her faith in God.
Elise is a middle aged woman who has always felt like her life was missing something. When their paths cross, they struggle to see Gods plan. Will they be able to put the puzzle together to see the plan?

This was such an emotional and thought provoking story. I was so moved by this story and the characters. Ms. Howard pulled me into DJs story and tugged at my heartstrings and left me crying in the end.

I highly recommend this book!

Great book!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This is my first time reading a book by this author. It is different from what I normally read but it was great! A divorced 50 yr old woman who takes in a foster child. Their stories and how the they ended up needing each other.

Good Look At Being A Foster Parent

Without any planning or thought she became a foster parent to a fifteen year old D J A story that deals with both of them flawed and learning For D J the trauma she has had will test Elsie, but the rewards will be worth it. A good story showing being a foster parent to a teenager. The audio was well done. Given ARC audio for my voluntary review and my honest opinion

Great story

You were sucked in to the story of DJ. Finding out how she got into foster care and all the choices and decisions that were made for her. I won't spoil the end, but this is a definite must read. This audiobook was given to me for free and I provided this voluntary review.

Loved this story

I got this story via audiobook boom and this is my voluntary review. I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I have 2 sisters and 2 brothers who have been foster then adoptive parents and the only way I knew the system was through them. They are great parents. I heard about some of the ways foster kids are treated but never encountered the negative. This story opened my eyes to why some kids come out of the foster care system scarred. I wish there was a better way to monitor the foster parents so that kids don't get hurt. We, as Americans should love our kids better. Also if you are a foster parent you should know that the kids you get are already traumatized and for you to treat them in a negative manner only adds to the trauma. Well, I will get off of my bandwagon for now. But my prayers go out to the foster kids and the foster parents. God tells us to treat the kids and elderly right if no one else. My continued prayers are with all of us as a nation for we seem to be losing our way. The narrator was very good and moved the story along.

Wonderful story!

Wow what an awesome story!! I alos enjoyed that the chapters were short. So if you had just a little down time you could listen for short intervales, but warning the book will draw you in quickly and you won't want to put it down. The narrator had a good reading voice, not boring. She read at a good speed, I thought. I can't wait to hear another story by this author!!!

Great Story

This book was gifted by the author. Thank you so much Ms. Howard! Honestly, it seemed a little slow to get going but once it did, it was completely worth the read and I didn’t want to stop until the story was finished! Although you can probably figure out where the story is headed early in the book, some of the details and sub storylines really made me stop and think. I throughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

Made Me Consider Becoming a Foster Parent

I found myself drawn into this story from the outset--first because of the difficult beginning the young protagonist has to overcome and then by the trials she and her foster mother face together. Daisy, or DJ as she is known for most of the story, is a troubled 15-year-old with a chip on her shoulder and a solid belief that she is unlovable. The story is told from a Christian perspective, so be aware that the point is made, often, that God loves the unloveable. I won't say more because the story is worth listening to and I won't take away from the ups and downs by disclosing anything further. I wonder how many others will feel led to at least consider foster-parenting a teenager after listening to this book.

While I found the narration pleasant, the narrator was somewhat flat in intonation and some people may find that off-putting. If you are looking for theatricality, this isn't the narrator for you; if you are looking for a comfortable voice, then you will enjoy the narration.

I received this book from the author with no expectation on her part other than that I would listen; she did not even put forth the expectation that I would give a review. I am happy to do so as I thoroughly enjoyed the story and will look for others in the series.