Lowcountry Christmas Review

I love to read Christmas books all year round. Another reason why I am reading a Christmas book in April is because I have been on the waiting list for quite a long time for this book. This book is about Taylor McClennan’s past. The book begins at Christmastime in the present, as  Taylor looks on as his wife breastfeeds their newborn child. We are then taken back to Taylor’s past and his road from war as a Marine to home. Mary Alice Monroe shows us so much of the life of a warrior and how hard it is to assimilate to everyday life. Taylor’s mom surprises him with a Welcome Home party with  a room full of people from Taylor’s childhood, that he can no longer relate to. We see life through Taylor’s eyes as he tries to deal with everyday life, despite having gone through so much. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is such a difficult thing to deal with, but with the help of a service dog named Thor, Taylor starts to heal. Taylor getting the service dog creates quite a stir in the family as that is the only thing that Taylor’s little brother, Miller wants for Christmas is a puppy. Mary Alice addresses the discrimination that service dogs receive as well as the owners, as someone comments, you don’t look like you have a disability. Taylor discovers that things have changed quite a lot since he has left, but his parents kept things from him, as they didn’t want him to worry about their lack of income while he was away at war.  We are taken into the day to day life of people who struggle to make ends meet and sacrifice, scrimp and save for things many take for granted, like a nice meal on the table for Christmas. I love how this book is not your everyday sensationalized book, but addresses real life trials and tribulations and let’s people see what life is like for the people who fall on hard times. I am so glad that Mary Alice brings in the dog as a helper to Taylor. I really hope this book inspires people with PTSD to seek a service dog along with counseling to help them assimilate to everyday life. I was just blown away at how well written this book was!