Few books have moved me like When the Morning Glory Blooms by author Cynthia Ruchti. The fictional tale involves three women from three different generations who have all been touched by society’s attitudes toward unwanted pregnancy. Ruchti cleverly explores the moral standards from each of the time periods and how those traditions affected the women caught in the spotlight of conflict.
Becky’s twenty-first century world is rocked by the pregnancy of her teenage daughter and the new grandmother struggles to raise a grandson while the daughter completes her high school education. In the midst of an unstable economy she leaves her career, dependent upon her husband’s income to see them through. All of her choices bring consequences she doesn’t foresee and Becky wonders where God is in the midst of the turmoil.
Sixty years earlier Ivy struggles to provide for her unborn child while her fiancé Drew fights in Korea, unaware he is the child’s father. To keep her sanity she helps chronicle the memoirs of Anna, one of the residents in a senior care facility where she works. Anna’s remarkable journey ignites hope in Ivy, and the history she records will weave its way through the lives of each of the three women—Becky, Ivy, and Anna—despite the time period in which they live.
This story is not one you will read in a day. The skill with which Ruchti delivers the narrative will keep you spellbound. The richness of the characters, the color of the writing, and the truths the book examines are ageless, raising questions which affect every generation. Available from Amazon.com and wherever good books are sold.
This is truly a fascinating tale. So glad you recommended it, Pat.
I knew you’d like it when I read it. Ruchti makes her characters crawl inside your head and rattle around in there awhile. Thanks for writing.