I am sooooo excited about this latest release, Deacon Brown’s Daughters, which I (Michelle Stimpson) co-authored with CaSandra McLaughlin. This is our 5th book together, and we really put out “feet” in this one!
It’s the story of Stanley David Brown, who used to be a ladies’ man back in the day. Now, he’s God’s man – but will the children he abandoned agree? His quest to become a deacon at his local church will prove to be more of a challenge than he bargained for!
Both CaSandra and I have histories that positioned us to write this book. My natural father and I did have a relationship when I was growing up. He and my mother divorced when I was an infant. My mother moved back to Texas, he stayed in California, and that was pretty much all I knew. My mother re-married when I was three and I got great Dad out of the deal.
CaSandra, on the other hand, always knew her father, but they didn’t form a strong relationship until she was a young adult. In both of our cases, we have learned that our parents were not perfect people. Now that we, too, realize that we were imperfect parents, we are in a better place to process what happened and what didn’t happen when we were children. It’s amazing how perspectives change over time, with experience, and with prayer.
What made Deacon Brown’s Daughters so interesting to me was the opportunity to explore the heart of a man who was trying to right his wrongs. Not because he was dying or because he felt guilty, but because his growing relationship with Christ compelled him to become the upstanding man God had called him to be. But will his adult children allow him to prove himself after all these years? How many times can he apologize before he gives up again? And what do his children’s mothers have to say about his sudden change of heart?
CaSandra and I pray that this book will bring healing and thoughtful reflection to children and parents alike. Just having discussion with people about the book’s topic has already sparked some unexpected reunions and long-overdue family conversations. Truth can help heal broken hearts and restore connections, even when it comes through a fiction book!