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Girlfriend Fiction #10
Winter of Grace
Sharing the same views about numerous world issues, Bridie and Stella find their best friendship tested after attending a peace rally where they meet a devout Christian boy who captures Bridie's heart and introduces her to his faith, causing her to question her relationship with Stella. By the author of The Singer of All Songs. Original.
180 pages
First published January 1, 2009
4 people are currently reading
93 people want to read
About the author
Kate Constable
24 books282 followersKate Constable was born in Sangringham, Melbourne (Victoria, Australia). When she was six-years-old, her family moved to Papua New Guinea where her father worked as a pilot.
Constable got her Arts/Law degree at Melborne University, then got a job at Warner Music. She started writing during these years.
She wrote several short-stories before becoming an author and after her first attempt at writing a novel she fell in love with the man that is now her husband. They have a daughter.
Constable's first official novel was The Singer of All Songs, in a trilogy called The Chanters of Tremaris. It was published in 2002, a few weeks after Constable's daughter was born.
Constable got her Arts/Law degree at Melborne University, then got a job at Warner Music. She started writing during these years.
She wrote several short-stories before becoming an author and after her first attempt at writing a novel she fell in love with the man that is now her husband. They have a daughter.
Constable's first official novel was The Singer of All Songs, in a trilogy called The Chanters of Tremaris. It was published in 2002, a few weeks after Constable's daughter was born.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
April 12, 2013
From our CALEB reviewers:
Stella and Bridie are best friends and where Stella leads, Bridie follows. Bridie’s home is definitely anti-God while Stella lives in a laid back not very committed Catholic family. God or Christianity is not high on either girl’s agenda. That is, until they get caught up in a peace rally and rescue Jay, who to their dismay is a committed Christian.
Journey with Bridie and Stella through Kate Constable’s Winter of Grace as they deal with the pain of new-found differences, their doubts and indecisions and their ultimate resolution of the issues.
The theology of the book will not be to everyone’s liking. The author has entwined the Christian maxim of respect for all people regardless of who they are or what their belief is with the concept that one belief is as valid as the next. There also seemed to be a little too much negativity towards the institutional church for me. DS
Stella and Bridie are best friends and where Stella leads, Bridie follows. Bridie’s home is definitely anti-God while Stella lives in a laid back not very committed Catholic family. God or Christianity is not high on either girl’s agenda. That is, until they get caught up in a peace rally and rescue Jay, who to their dismay is a committed Christian.
Journey with Bridie and Stella through Kate Constable’s Winter of Grace as they deal with the pain of new-found differences, their doubts and indecisions and their ultimate resolution of the issues.
The theology of the book will not be to everyone’s liking. The author has entwined the Christian maxim of respect for all people regardless of who they are or what their belief is with the concept that one belief is as valid as the next. There also seemed to be a little too much negativity towards the institutional church for me. DS
January 5, 2018
3,5 Sterne
June 13, 2011
A girl called Bridie and her best friend Stella are trying to fight for peace. The first thing that happens in the book is that they are riding on a bus to take them to the Peace Rally. When they get there they see these two men beating up a boy. Bridie and Stella help him with walking to the hospital.
Basically this book is about finding who you are and what place you have in this world. This book is about religion and you don't have to be religious to read it.
Here's an extract:
http://www.allenandunwin.com/girlfrie...
Basically this book is about finding who you are and what place you have in this world. This book is about religion and you don't have to be religious to read it.
Here's an extract:
http://www.allenandunwin.com/girlfrie...
August 31, 2017
I have no idea why I picked this book up, but it was interesting.
It seems pretty rare for a middle-grade/YAish book to deal with issues like religion, spirituality, finding one's place in the world... so in some ways I'm impressed Constable decided to write about such a subject.
This book provided questions more than answers, but maybe that's a good thing. I dislike books in which the author tries to shove their opinion/perspective down your throat. So in the end I'm still a bit lost, just like Bridie.
It seems pretty rare for a middle-grade/YAish book to deal with issues like religion, spirituality, finding one's place in the world... so in some ways I'm impressed Constable decided to write about such a subject.
This book provided questions more than answers, but maybe that's a good thing. I dislike books in which the author tries to shove their opinion/perspective down your throat. So in the end I'm still a bit lost, just like Bridie.
September 4, 2018
i enjoyed this book even though i don't believe in god but its still an interesting
December 1, 2015
For me, it was an okay book.
Firstly, I'm a Buddhist, and so not an "interfering, narrow-minded, judgemental bitch" either :) I have always come from a Buddhist background, and I wasn't strong enough to question Christianity, I guess, coz everyone were just so devout to Buddhism, and I felt like questioning was kind of... wrong or insulting maybe? In a way, this book really did answer a lot of my questions. Like all the doubts I had about Christianity. I'm not saying that I agree with all of Christianity's theories and what they believed, but yeah, it's obviously a good thing.
I liked the book because a book that talks about religion, while being very young-adult is really rare to find in the contemporary society. It was written really well, and the author understood what it was like to be a teenager in the modern society, and loved Lisa and Bridie's relationship :) *Gilmore Girls* It wasn't exactly a story, but yeah, I liked it :) Made me think a lot and it was very hard putting the book down, the way she drags Bridies's spirituality with her social life too. Always wondered, is she gunna hook up with Elliot? What happens to Jay? Keeps you hanging, and well, you gotta answer that yourself, I guess :))))))
Firstly, I'm a Buddhist, and so not an "interfering, narrow-minded, judgemental bitch" either :) I have always come from a Buddhist background, and I wasn't strong enough to question Christianity, I guess, coz everyone were just so devout to Buddhism, and I felt like questioning was kind of... wrong or insulting maybe? In a way, this book really did answer a lot of my questions. Like all the doubts I had about Christianity. I'm not saying that I agree with all of Christianity's theories and what they believed, but yeah, it's obviously a good thing.
I liked the book because a book that talks about religion, while being very young-adult is really rare to find in the contemporary society. It was written really well, and the author understood what it was like to be a teenager in the modern society, and loved Lisa and Bridie's relationship :) *Gilmore Girls* It wasn't exactly a story, but yeah, I liked it :) Made me think a lot and it was very hard putting the book down, the way she drags Bridies's spirituality with her social life too. Always wondered, is she gunna hook up with Elliot? What happens to Jay? Keeps you hanging, and well, you gotta answer that yourself, I guess :))))))
December 30, 2012
This book was a bit better than I expected! For a short novel, it packs an awful lot into the pages, so it can feel a little rushed at times. However, I'm still impressed at the nuance the book managed to convey about the exploration of faith, the good and the bad of organised religion (and of organised atheism). The narrator struggles to find a way forward to making her own decisions about belief, in a world where everyone wants to dictate their own dogma to her. She experiences and contemplates both the embraces and the clashes of social justice in faith communities in a way that I think will resonate with social justice-minded teenagers.
March 14, 2015
Just finished reading this book for the second time! The first time I read it I was in eighth grade (will be starting Uni soon) and I really enjoyed it. I haven't read a book in a long time and I decided to go back to my bookworm days and what's more refreshing than a good old Girlfriend Fiction book? Reading this book really was refreshing and brought back memories. I enjoyed every minute of it and, believe it or not, I finished it within a day. It's a real page turner, Kate Constable truly is a talented author. Although this book targets adolescents, I'd definitely recommend this to anyone!
April 20, 2015
This book was alright.
In this book, I got kind of annoyed at the close-mindedness of her mum and best-friend. In the part where she and Elliot were sitting on the bench talking about God and what they thought he was like and how the church they went to was closing in on them (figuratively-speaking). I had kind of hoped she would call Elliot in the end so I knew if anything was going to happen. I think this book ended too soon for me. I still wanted to know if she and Elliot talked again and what they did then, even if it was just a simple phone call and a small plan. That would have been good. I liked how her mum called her parents though, that was pretty cool.
In this book, I got kind of annoyed at the close-mindedness of her mum and best-friend. In the part where she and Elliot were sitting on the bench talking about God and what they thought he was like and how the church they went to was closing in on them (figuratively-speaking). I had kind of hoped she would call Elliot in the end so I knew if anything was going to happen. I think this book ended too soon for me. I still wanted to know if she and Elliot talked again and what they did then, even if it was just a simple phone call and a small plan. That would have been good. I liked how her mum called her parents though, that was pretty cool.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 15, 2013
Really annoying and whiny protagonist and storyline that went absolutely nowhere from what I'm recalling five years after reading it sorry not sorry
Still pretty ok for pre-teen girls with an interest for a dramatic-teenage-white-girl's atheist perspective on christianity.
Still pretty ok for pre-teen girls with an interest for a dramatic-teenage-white-girl's atheist perspective on christianity.
December 12, 2010
a very meh book, not the best of kate constable. It realy could hav ebeen better. maybe an actual romance, not the half formed thing going on.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 6, 2011
A good book to start with, and then at times becomes dull throughout the text. Good storyline though.
March 3, 2011
One of the first books I read in the girlfriend fiction seriers, and I actually enjoyed it. I wouldn't give it 5 stars though, in some parts it was either confusing or boring, but it is a must-read!
August 22, 2012
I'm atheist, but this made me think a lot about religion. I've decided that I dislike it even more, but that's ok, because everyone's different, which is what the book's message is.
April 12, 2013
isbn 9781741756203
April 6, 2017
Bridie and Stella have been best friends since high school started and they share everything - their family, walking Stella's dog and the same values and beliefs. That is until Bridie joins a local church, much to Stella's disgust. Jay and Elliot, sons of the pastor, both take an interest in Bridie. Brdie has some difficult decisions to make - is her new found faith worth sacrificing her pre-exisiting values, as well as relationships with her mum and Stella?
This book was really good at looking at how new young people should be integrated into church life, and how the church can also let them now. Bridie's experiences range form a conservative church, a Catholic service and a little friendly church nearby. It also explores being new in the faith and trying to stay true to yourself when you're not sure where you fit.
Stella was a horrible character - nothing she did suggested that she was ever Bridie's friend. She was constantly ridiculing her, being jealous, and was not at all supportive of religion - Stella even admits she likes being a pot stirrer.
I thought this book was going to be a romance, but it really isn't - it mostly seems to be a YA fiction piece about Christianity and values. It's cool to see something like this in mainstream fiction, and I was really happy to see that my copy was a reprint.
This book was really good at looking at how new young people should be integrated into church life, and how the church can also let them now. Bridie's experiences range form a conservative church, a Catholic service and a little friendly church nearby. It also explores being new in the faith and trying to stay true to yourself when you're not sure where you fit.
Stella was a horrible character - nothing she did suggested that she was ever Bridie's friend. She was constantly ridiculing her, being jealous, and was not at all supportive of religion - Stella even admits she likes being a pot stirrer.
I thought this book was going to be a romance, but it really isn't - it mostly seems to be a YA fiction piece about Christianity and values. It's cool to see something like this in mainstream fiction, and I was really happy to see that my copy was a reprint.
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June 19, 2017Content Rating
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews