Unconditional: A Novel Based on the Motion Picture
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Be ready to change your life!
This book starts with a heart-wrenching story of a short-lived marriage between Billy and Samantha Crawford until a bullet took BillyâÂÂs life. Eva has written with clarity the life Samantha was living as a recluse after her husband died. ItâÂÂs heart-rending, deep and personal. You can easily put yourself in her shoes as she drowns herself in grief. No one being able to pull her out of herself.
Before his death, she was a daydreaming childrenâÂÂs book writer. Her mischievous ways followed her into her marriage with Billy. The scenes are hilarious and have you relishing the scenes. The romance is exquisite!
While rescuing a young child hit by a car, Eva subsequently renews her friendship with her old friend, Joe Bradford, from grade school. Though both were shunned in school, they had become fast friends. He was African-American and she was Caucasian. Eva brings Samantha back to life through the life of Joe in ways one would never expect. ItâÂÂs heartwarming and delightful.
This book, Unconditional, is a powerful story of love triumphing over tragedy. God is ever close throughout the circumstancesâÂÂonly a prayer away!
November 17, 2012
This was a very good book! The story line kept you wanting to read more.
November 2, 2012
Don't miss this one...
I had the opportunity to pre-screen the movie, Unconditional, and I was excited to discover that there was a book, too. There are few instances where the book and movie meet or exceed expectations in conjunction with one another, but in this case, the rare combination of a book that was consistent with the movie, and in fact complemented it very well, was accomplished.
The book is great as a standalone piece. I enjoyed it very much, and it helped clarify some points in the movie that were a little vague, although not incomprehensible. The story itself is interesting; the characters are true to life (not entirely surprising since it was based on a true story). When Sam lost her husband, the depiction of grief and sorrow was heartfelt and sincere, and I definitely related to her coming to grips with events, even jumping to conclusions with her in some instances.
All in all, I would definitely recommend this book to those who may or may not have seen the movie. Both are powerful conduits of a message of hope and reconciliation, and the fact that they are based on the life of a real person makes them even more poignant. That the application of love in a society that struggles to believe in unconditional anything could be greater than the cynicism that tries to stifle it is not surprising. That there are real life people that actually live that love out shouldnâÂÂt be. Christians are called to live that life; that we donâÂÂt or wonâÂÂt is tragic. Christ gave himself that we should know real love, that we should be active in serving in our world. When we miss that, we miss a lot.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade CommissionâÂÂs 16 CFR, Part 255
October 23, 2012
Very inspiring story!
Along with the release of the movie with the same name, two books have been released, Unconditional, and a childâÂÂs book Firebird. Unconditional tells the story of a young woman who had the storybook life, happily married, living on a beautiful ranch, and a career she loved, writing and illustrating popular childrenâÂÂs books. That all came to a crashing halt one wet night, when her electrician husband responds to a service call in the poorer end of town, and is shot to death by an unknown assailant. The story picks up a year later, when SamanthaâÂÂs life is still crashed around her, and sheâÂÂs considering ending it all. Her trip takes her down to the same spot her husband died, and then life changes when a child is struck by a car in front of her, and she chooses to do whatâÂÂs right. Through that choice, she ends up reconnecting with âÂÂPapa Joe,â a childhood friend, who is now working to change the lives of children in the projects. And as Papa Joe later tells her, âÂÂitâÂÂs not a dead end if it takes you somewhere you needed to go.âÂÂ
It canâÂÂt be easy to write a book based on a movie thatâÂÂs based on true events, because you have only the movie to draw from. Because of that, the setting of the book lacks the depth of description that would usually be a part of a novel, and the characters are revealed more quickly in dialog and reactions than in a slower story process that allows you to know them each on a deeper level. With those limitations, however, Unconditional tells a moving story of hope, and the novel conveys that story more than adequately. Firebird is the book that Samantha is finally able to finish when she realizes that God was there even when she didnâÂÂt see Him, and its theme mirrors SamanthaâÂÂs new understanding.
IâÂÂm usually a person who prefers a book to a movie, and I enjoyed Unconditional, the novel. Because it tells such an inspirational story of a man and his ministry, I would be inclined to make this a movie IâÂÂll watch. Firebird is unquestionably a very attractive childrenâÂÂs book to accompany the set, with beautiful illustrations by former Disney artists.
I received a free copy of these books in exchange for my fair and honest review.
Christian Fiction
Copyright September 2012
ISBN 978-1-4336-7946-9
September 28, 2012
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