The Happy Room

by Catherine Palmer

Book Overview

A CBA BestsellerSent off to boarding school at a tender young age, each of the Mossman children believed their parents had abandoned them. Now, drawn together by their sister's tragic illness, they... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0842354220
• ISBN13: 9780842354226
• Release Date: December 2002
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.2" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Wow! Finally!

The Happy Room captures the contradictions and confusions which children of missionaries often, if not usually, experience both as children and adults. As the daughter, granddaughter and sister of missionaries, I am thrilled to see this material dealt with in a novel. Often more truth can be told in fiction than in straight biography. This cogent work hits the issues, from abandonment to spiritualization of feelings, with honesty, insight, grace and balance. A few years ago I read The Poisonwood Bible with hope that it would deal with the psychological effects of the Missionary Kid (MK) experience. But it was written by an observer, not one who lived it, and while it was a fascinating novel, it seemed to me to be a distortion of missionary life. The Happy Room is an accurate portrate. The Happy Room will be on the psychologist's, counselor's, pastor's, and hopefully even the missions professor's bookshelf, not to mention that of every MK who is fortunate enough to include it in his or her journey.I recommend this book to young people feeling "called" to the mission field, and to their mentors, professors, and pastors. I recommend it to any frined, spouse, or grown child of a "Third Culture Kid." I recommend it to all TCK's with one foot in each of two cultures and at home in neither; to all ACM's (Adult Children of Missionaries) especially when the reason given was "doing God's will." I recommend it for discussion in support groups, 12 step groups, and Bible Studies. I recommend it to ponder, laugh and cry over in private.Thank you, Catherine, thank you for telling our story!

A very moving and powerful story

I really, really liked this book. One reason was that I read so many Christian fiction books that are...well, entertaining, but not very meaningful. And a lot of them are just too much alike. This book addressed issues that don't come up in a lot of christian novels. It was so interesting to look at missionary kids' lives in such a different way. I loved the characters, and how real they were...esp. that they struggled so much even though they were Christians. I loved the message that being a Christian doesn't mean life is easy, or that we have to pretend we have it all figured out. I recommend this to everyone!

Warning! This book may change perception and bring healing!

As the son of missionary parents, I related to this authentic story line. This book could become the catalyst for mending thousands of strained family relationships. The author boldly squares with the hard, and sometimes painful, truth of the past while developing the important relationships that give us hope for the future. The story underscores the fact that there is a way to to turn the many memories of life as a missionary kid into a rich and treasured heritage while offloading the guilt, blame, and resentment that often cloud our joy. I liked it because I lived it.

WOW! A moving and thought-provoking book.

This book is inspired. Catherine Palmer wrote this book from the heart. It is quite different from much Christian fiction in that it offers no simple answers other than showing the human need for faith in the divine. The main characters in this book are the adult children of missionary parents. The children struggle with the concept that they felt abandoned by their parents while the parents were following their own 'calling from God.' The children grow up with a mixture of faith, anger, and resentment, trying to make their own way in the adult world of the US that is so foreign to the Africa where they grew up. In the end, the children and parents come to some understanding of each other, but there are significant difficulties that remain. They learn to accept the human failings of each other. They grow in their faith, but their faith does not protect them from earthly struggles. I am a clinical psychologist and my patients frequently discuss spiritual crises. I am frequently recommending this book because of its honesty.

Gripping

Though Catherine Palmer is a versatile and talented author, she shines with stunning brightness when writing contemporary fiction. The plot and characters in The Happy Room will not only grip you, but will make you think long and hard about what "doing God's will" means, particularly if you are a parent. Though MKs (missionary kids) may relate most closely to this story, this non-MK found The Happy Room a compelling read. I urge you to read the book for yourself!