Wednesday, July 14, 2010

RUBY RED - Robin Jansen Shope - Free Book

Welcome back, Robin. Tell us about your salvation experience.

My salvation anchored itself in my parents who were total opposites in many ways. During prohibition, my dad ran bootleg whiskey for his Chicago nightclub, The Ivanhoe. Years later he met a very young Christian woman, twenty odd years his junior, and wooed her by taking her to church each week. Once the vows were spoken and that four karat diamond was on her ring finger, he never attended church again, although he never complained when she went. With light and dark forces all around me, I still was much loved and valued by both my parents. Dad was the complex businessman and my mother the Christian who told me God had something special for me to do.

One day I was feeling quite lonely without a friend to play with me. My mother said Jesus was my friend. I knew all about Him from Sunday school and from my goodnight prayers, so I asked Jesus to play with me. He spoke to me. Each day I told Mother what He said. She listened intently and said she wished He would talk to her like that. I told her to talk to Him and He would.

However, it wasn’t until I was in high school that I walked the aisle –and in a Methodist church too. My sister and I were having another one of our terrible verbal arguments and my dad, now frail from cancer and bedridden, were more than my mother could handle at the moment. There was a revival at our church so I decided to go even though it was smack dab in the middle of the week—a Wednesday—not a normal church going day like Sunday.

During the second song, I felt a change inside of me. Something dead now came alive. The feeling kept growing and along about the second song, I began to cry. I couldn’t hold onto the hymnal anymore. I set it down on the pew behind me and cried like a baby into my hands. The evangelist, Rev. O. Dean Martin, looked out over the congregation and said, “I see many of you are feeling God for the first time.” And then he called us forward to pray to receive Christ as our Savior.

What a wonderful touch from the Lord. Do you have a speaking ministry? If so, tell us about that.

I am a teacher and what better speaking ministry is there? Classroom teachers have a daily platform and literally can change lives. It’s such an awesome responsibility. I also am a former missionary and spoke to crowds ranging from dozens of people to thousands.

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you and how did you handle it?

My first year teaching middle school I had a very embarrassing moment. I ran to the bathroom in between periods. The kids were still coming into the room when I got back. I began writing the day’s lesson on the board. And then I became aware of soft snickers. Then more snickers only louder now. And outright laughter. Some Snorts. A hum of conversation began. A horrible thought crossed my mind. I whipped around and faced the class red-faced, as I reached my hand behind me and felt the back of my skirt was tucked into my panties. I just pulled the hem out and began teaching, trying to act as though it was no big deal. But I never wore that dress again.

People are always telling me that they’d like to write a book someday. I’m sure they do to you, too. What would you tell someone who came up to you and said that?

I would tell them to start on that someday book TODAY.

Tell us about the featured book.

Homeless children roamed the streets of New York City from the late 1800s through the 1930s. Death and disease were the natural results of poverty and overcrowding, causing thousands of children to be abandoned, parentless and left to fend for themselves. Adding to the malaise, boatloads of European immigrants flooded our shores and soon succumbed to the same adversities leaving thousands more parentless.

Accounts have been written of the Orphan Train that carried white-skinned children out into the heartland of America to find new families, but history is totally silent of what became of the dark-skinned children.

Ruby Red is a fictionalized tale of a true event.

Eleven-year-old Ruby is taken in as a maid. Believing life holds more for her than washing someone’s clothes, she makes a risky move by faking insanity. After being expelled from the household, Ruby sneaks onto the Orphan Train meant for only white children. With her best friend, a cockroach named Red, housed in a canning jar, Ruby searches for a place to call home and runs into adventure and heartbreak. Both an enigma and a young teen, she is the perfect reflection of how life once was in America. Ruby embodies goodness, and simplicity of truth; a rare gem which bespeaks her name. Softened a bit through suffering she refuses to be hardened and keeps believing that the world holds a special place for her. Written for young teens and adults, the indomitable spirit of Ruby Red triumphs and will live in your heart far beyond the pages of the book.

Robin Shope continues to write captivating books. She is at her best with her multi-layered characterization of Ruby Red. In the 1920s saga, Shope reels us into heartbreak and healing. - Kyle Saylors, TV PRODUCER AND PRODUCER OF FILM KIMJONGILIA,THEATRICALLY RELEASED INTERNATIONALLY AND NOMINATED FOR GRAND JURY PRIZE AT SUNDANCE, SCREENED AT US CAPITOL.

Ruby Red is a poignant story of an abandoned child with an indomitable spirit. The delightful imagery and poetry of written words will propel the reader to the era gone by bringing a story of hope and survival that will warm even the most jaded hearts. Bonnie Calhoun, PUBLISHER OF CHRISTIAN FICTION ONLINE MAGAZINE

Please give us the first page of the book.

CHAPTER 1

Ruby didn’t know she sparkled with beauty like the gem whose name she carried. Her skin was the color of lush earth darkened by the heat of summer’s noonday sun. But it wasn’t the green of summer it was the white of winter and Ruby had no place to call home.
Ruby was medium boned with impish brown eyes. Always dressed in brown, she felt she belonged here among the potato filled pots and spice scented kitchen. Ruby held her plain skirt pinched between her fingers as if it were a party dress and danced toward the kitchen where a sink load of pots and pans waited to be washed.

Chilled by early morning winter, Ruby happily obliged to clean the breakfast dishes and plunged her arms clear up to her elbows into the heated sudsy water. A thin smile of satisfaction spread across her face. Ruby looked out the window at the sun’s halo looking down on her with its lemony color seeping down from the bright cerulean sky. She considered this the best part of the day.

Frozen clusters of frost hung from the trees on the other side of the glass where sparrows nervously pecked at the edges of stale bread; left-overs from last night’s dinner. The blowing snow reminded Ruby of flour chilled in the ice box for days and later tossed about on the counter surface whenever Mama made her pies—like at this moment.

From the corner of her eye she watched Mama Burke in her feed sack apron using singed potholders to move the hot pies from the wood cook stove onto the cooling racks where she covered them over with starched tea towels.

The warm smell of cinnamon, vanilla and sweet cream caused Ruby’s mouth to water. Right about now she’d be willing to give anything she owned, the sock doll or her only pair of shoes, just for one piece of pumpkin pie sharing a plate with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting down around it on all sides. But before the day was over she was pretty sure she’d get stuck with a slice of mincemeat pie instead.

“Don’t think I can’t see you looking at these pumpkin pies.” Mama stood by the gray speckled stove clucking her tongue. “We are lucky to be fed from the Grand Missus’ table. Be thankful for what is left at the end of each day. Hear me, child?”

“Yes’um, I hear you, but my stomach seems not to be paying very close attention.” Ruby rinsed a plate and set it into the dry sink. “Among other things—you should know I have a lowly opinion of mincemeat pie.”

How can readers find you on the Internet?

FB is a great place to start and also here at The Serial Writings of Robin Shope.
http://write2robinshope.blogspot.com/

Robin, thank you for sharing Ruby Red with us.

Readers, by using this link when you order the book, you help support this blog.

Leave a comment for a chance to win a free copy of the book. (Comments containing links may be subject to removal by blog owner.)


Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.

The only notification you’ll receive is the winner post on this blog. So be sure to check back a week from Saturday to see if you won. You will have 6 weeks from the posting of the winners to claim your book.

If you’re reading this on Feedblitz, Facebook, or Amazon, please come to the blog to leave your comment. Here’s a link.

http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com/

46 comments:

Katrina said...

Sounds like a really really good read. Would love to win!

Coolestmommy said...

I've been long fascinated by the orphan trains and would love to read this book.

kathy taylor said...

Ruby Red sounds beautiful, and I'd love to read it. Robin, I'm so glad you mentioned singing and the power of music to grab someone's heart to "walk the aisle." If Ruby Red is anything like the way you have portrayed your salvation experience, you have written something powerful and compelling.

Wendy said...

Sound like an interesting basis for a book.

Robin Jansen said...

I wish I had enough books o Ruby Red to give to everyone. Ruby is a wonderful orphan girl with a fighting spirit, knowing that she can change her life for the better. Of course, it lands her in heaps of trouble at times. The Orphan Train is a time in America which few people are aware. I hope you will all purchase the book and take the journey with Ruby. You won't be sorry. thank you ladies for your comments. It means so much. XO

Kathi Macias said...

This is a wonderful book! If you don't already have it, get one (even if you don't win the free one)! And if you already have it, get a copy for someone else. It's too good not to share!

karenk said...

thanks for the chance to read this wonderful novel :)

karenk
kmkuka at yahoo dot com

fredamans said...

Loved the first chapter, would love to read more. Thank you for the chance at winning.

Anonymous said...

Robin writes from the heart. That is a rare find these days.I find when I begin a book of hers I can't put it down. So what if the dishes are in the sink!
Each page of her book makes me feel as if I am in the room with the people written on paper. She makes her readers feel safe and most importantly her books can be read by the whole family.
There is a gift inside Robin. and with each book and each page..she lets us in a little more.
Geneen

Robin Jansen said...

ah, thanks everyone for leaving a comment...especially Geneen. All your words mean so much to me. It sparks an author to keep writing. I write for you. XO

Becky said...

This sounds like a wonderful book and I would like to read it.

K. Dawn Byrd said...

I love your testimony! Thanks for sharing.

Robin Jansen said...

I love sharing my testimony and love hearing how others realized that God is a force in our lives...and takes on that personal commitment to Him. I never tire of hearing how He saves.

misskallie2000 said...

Oh this is going to be a terrific book to read. I am sure she will have many adventures along the way. I would love to read and pass on to my grandaughter.
Thanks for the opportunity to enter this giveaway for Ruby Red.

misskallie2000 at yahoo dot com

Judylynn said...

Please enter me in this giveaway - Thanks!

seizethebookblog(at)gmail(dot)com

Robin Jansen said...

Ruby Red is a wonderful and inspiring read for pre-teens and teens. However, I have heard from plenty of adults who love Ruby just as much. Once you read about her, Ruby will claim your heart.

Linda Kish said...

This sounds like an interesting story.

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

Simply Stacie said...

Please count me in.

Julia M. Reffner said...

Loved your journey to salvation. What an interesting story. I'm quite interested in the subject of the Orphan Trains.

julesreffner(at)gmail(dot)com

apple blossom said...

Please include me thanks
ABreading4fun [at] gmail [dot] com

Robin Jansen said...

Thanks gals. I think the subject of the Orphan Train is very interesting and such an unknown part of America history. Can you imagine being sent away from your home, on a train west...you step onto the train in a city and off in the country, left among strangers. sometimes the children were abused, at other times they were loved.

Anonymous said...

wow this book sounds great. What a great story to write. thanks
trish rowell

EJ said...

Wow Robin - what an interesting upbringing you had! God is so amazing to put us all in such different families & still help us find our way to the cross. Just got thru reading about the underground railroad which helped get alot of dark skinned people safely to Canada. Would love to read about Ruby Red next.

Kristen said...

What a fantastic plot!! I can't wait to read this:)
Please enter me!

Patsy said...

This book sounds very good. I'm glad that Robin heard the voice of the Lord and followed Him. What a great testimony her interview was.
plhouston(at)bellsouth(dot)net

Anna Weaver Hurtt said...

Sounds great... please enter me!

Anonymous said...

This sounds so interesting. Her salvation story is incredible.

Marissa

Naasom André said...

This book sounds like be a powerful and beautiful mensage. I'd love win and read.

letrassantas [at] hotmail.com

SHARLENE said...

Robin's books are always excellent, and Ruby Red is no exception. FYI, Robin and I did a joint interview at both our blogs because we both wrote books about the Orphan Train era, such a fascinating time in history. My blog addy is sharlenemaclare(dot)blogspot(dot)com in case anyone wants to check out our interview.

Loved the interview, Lena. Thanks for posting!!

Hugs...

Nancye said...

Wow! this sounds like a wonderful book! Please include me. Thanks for the chance.

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Katherine said...

This book look amazing!! Please enter me

kefarley89(@)gmail(.)com

Grandmommy said...

I enjoyed reading your testimony and your embarrassing moment. Sounds like some of mine. LOL Blessings to you and your new book. Karen

Robin Jansen said...

thank you all for taking your time to read the interview and leave a comment. I love reading them all.

dancealertreads.blogspot.com said...

Sounds like a great read!
dancealert at aol dot com

Josh Raybuck said...

Robin has always been an incredibly talented writer, and I'm sure this book will continue to prove that. The first book of hers that I read - The Chase - will always be one of my favorites. The Lord has blessed her with an awesome gift, and I'm so grateful to know her and call her a friend. Go out and buy this book!

PatriciaW said...

What an interesting testimony! Thank you for sharing that, and for writing what appears to be a fascinating book about a forgotten segment of our society. Adding Ruby Red to my TBR list.

pwriter1[at]yahoo[dot]com

wmmahaney said...

I would love to read this.
wmmahaney(at)att(dot)net

Pam Kellogg said...

I've read several books about the orphan trains but never from this perspective. I would love to win this book.

Sara - artst4christ said...

I love stories of the Orphan Train and would love to add another to the list. Wonderful interview, would love to win and read your book Robin!

artist4christ -@- cyberhaus -.- us

hippmom said...

I would love to win a copy of this book. Sounds wonderful.
angelahipp (at) charter (dot) net

Unknown said...

Hi Robin, You book is one I know I would feel inside while I read it and a long time after. Thank you for the opportunity to possibly win it. I like the title and storyline.

Blessed Be in Christ,
Barb Shelton
barbjan10@tx.rr.com

grannyvon said...

What a wonderful plot for a book. It is not a run of the mill book that seems like another book I may have read, this is noteably different and I want to win it.I very much enjoyed your interview, your life and your books are a great testimony. This is added to my must read list. Thanks for the chance to win it. ybutler@oppcatv.com

rubynreba said...

Sounds good! Thanks for the great giveaway!
pbclark(at)netins(dot)net

Marla said...

Sounds good. Please enter me in.

koinonia572001@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

I would love to read this. Thanks for having the contest.

Unknown said...

Loved Summer's Kitchen and cannot wait to ready Beyond Summer. Reading a book written by Lisa Wingate will make your heart smile and will soothe your soul.