It Happened at the Fair by Deeanne Gist

It Happened At the Fair
by Deeanne Gist

Howard Publishing

Reviewed by Teresa Mathews

5 Stars*****

In this exciting novel Deeane Gist takes us back in time to the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair where history is being made. There we get to see the sights, the sounds and the heavenly smells of the various foods being prepared and sold. Amidst this setting we are introduced to unknown inventor Mr. Cullen McNamara and the beautiful Miss Della Wentworth a teacher with the School for the Deaf.

Cullen McNamara from Charlotte, NC is the son of a farmer and even though he is highly allergic to most of the crops they raise, he is for all intents and purposes, a farmer too. Cullen has always had a special talent for repairing broken objects, and inventing various things to help out with the chores on the farm. But by far the most important thing he has invented came out of the pain of watching a building burn down and knowing his mother was inside and he could do nothing to save her. His father feels Cullen deserves a chance for the world to see his invention so he pays for everything Cullen will need to stay in Chicago for the six months of the fair. Cullen tries to back out because of his insecurity of a physical handicap and because he knows his father cannot afford the money but his Father insists he should go.

Della Wentworth is a beautiful young lady bent on helping unfortunate youngsters that have been born unable to hear. The School for the Deaf has come to the fair to be on display to show the visitors that lip reading is the way for all deaf children to be taught; no one is to be taught signing. Della has serious doubts that this is completely correct. While at the opening ceremony Della is trapped by the rushing crowd and almost crushed had it not be for a wonderfully handsome man that saw her dilemma and rescued her. Della desperately wants to believe the man is completely trustworthy but her father has drilled into her mind about the dangers of young men that are not trustworthy and how Della should not trust any man she meets in Chicago. So the first chance she gets she flees the scene as fast as she can.

Cullen’s booth is set up near some very loud printing presses so he is having difficulty explaining his invention to anyone that stops by so he takes the advice of a gentleman that stops to chat and searches out the School for the Deaf to see if anyone there would teach him to lip read. When he arrives to find the beautiful young lady he rescued he is delighted. When Della realizes who he is she is still very frightened of Cullen and thinks perhaps he is lying about needing the lip reading lessons because he has evil thoughts in mind for her. Will Della ever be able to let God relieve her of her fears? Is there more to this man than Della could ever dream possible?

I have read all of Deeanne’s books and this one could very well be my favorite. I love all the details that went into this, Deeanne makes you feel as though you are right there in the middle of an exciting time in the history of the US. The characters will tug at your heart and their stories will pull you in. The way the deaf were treated during this time was unfathomable; I love how Deeanne shows Della’s passion to help these kids. I could go on and on shouting the praises of this novel but I must stop, but I assure you I will be thinking about this for a very long time to come. Thank you Deeanne for this absolutely charming story.

You can find this great book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other bookstores.

GIVEAWAY: We are giving away a copy of this or any of Deeanne's books, winners choice of format. (International winners e-book only.)