About a year and a half ago, I prayed that I could find good books for my daughter, Olivia, who is a voracious reader. I was struggling to find books that encouraged her faith while keeping her attention.
God answered my prayer when one night, I stumbled upon a comment about the Christy Miller series. A young woman wrote online that she had loved the Christy Miller character so much that she felt that Christy had truly been a friend for her during her teenage years. After reading a few more encouraging reviews, I checked out the first book, Summer Promise at the library.
The books follow a teenage girl named Christy Miller who moves from the Midwest to California during her high school years. With this move, an entire new world opens up to her when she meets some Christian teenagers who share their faith with her. There are many volumes in which the reader can follower Christy through her high school, college, and early married years.
To my delight, Olivia loved that first book. She had never read a book about a teenage girl before, and she was mesmerized. She devoured it and kept going on to the next book (and the next, and the next) in the series.
Pretty soon, some great observations started. Olivia would tell me things like, “Christy gave her life to the Lord.” “Christy has some really good friends.” “Christy’s parents don’t understand her.”
I asked Olivia if she would like me to read the books too so that we could talk about Christy’s life together. She was really excited about this prospect, and I dove in.
The books were even better than I had expected. They are so true to life. The author, Robin Jones Gunn, truly captures the feelings, emotions, choices, and experiences of a teenage girl. She does a wonderful job of writing realistically while keeping things general enough so that they are appropriate for young girls, like my Olivia who is not quite a teenager.
But the thing that I love the most is that Christy gives her life to God and then follows him. This affords the reader a wonderful close-up example of a life lived for him that in turn is blessed by him. Though Christy is not perfect, she strives to do what is right, and God’s plans unfold for her. I am so pleased that Olivia is getting an up close view of how a young girl’s life can be lived for God.
Now that I have read the series along with Olivia, we have been able to have some really great discussions. I am so thankful for these opportunities! We have talked about teenage friends, dating, peer pressure, choosing the right college, travelling for missions work, and choosing the right spouse. I am enjoying and treasuring these talks so much!
If you’re looking for a wonderful resource for your daughter, please check out these books!
And… great news! Robin Jones Gunn has very generously given me a SIGNED copy of Volume One of the Christy Miller series to be given to one Gingham Apron reader! Enter below!
P.S. The author has written series for Christy’s close friends, Katie Weldon and Sierra Jensen as well. Olivia has also loved these, but I have not had the chance to read them yet. You can check them all out here at the bookshop!
