Hope in Patience by Beth Fehlbaum

 Hope in Patience by Beth Fehlbaum, WestSide Books, Lodi, New Jersey, 2010, ISBN 978-1-934813-41-6

Plot Summary

Ashley Asher, the fifteen year old narrator of Hope in Patience, was sexually abused by her stepfather and ignored by her mother for years. When the courts finally intervene, she is sent to live with the father she has never known and a new stepmother. She survives a dreadful trial in which she must face both her perpetrator and her mother who does not defend her. With counseling and the support of her new family, Ashley begins to rebuild a life for herself in Patience, a small town in eastern Texas.  Her recovery is neither tidy nor fast--the effects of Post Traumatic Stress linger and she sometimes scratches herself or hides in small places when she is scared. The novel traces her development as she tries to come to terms with the abuse and stake her place as a person of value in the world.

Critical Evaluation
The author, Beth Fehlbaum, deserves tremendous praise for writing such a powerful novel that touches on a taboo subject. Knowing that the author draws upon her own personal experiences of sexual abuse by her stepfather makes an already compelling narrative that much more powerful. Fehlbaum does not shy away from addressing how lasting the effects of sexual abuse are on fifteen year old Ashley who struggles to trust others and frequently sleeps in an armoire to protect herself from old fears of her perpetrator. But ultimately, this is a story about survival, grace, and redemption. Through the steadfast devotion of her stepmother, father, and a few key friends who have also had their fair share of “scratches” in life, Ashley begins to see herself as a beloved member of a community and a person who is capable of loving and being loved.

Reader’s Annotation
Ashley has finally been removed from her childhood home in which her step-father sexually abused her for years. Will she find the strength to heal in the small town of Patience, Texas?

Information about the Author
On the author’s website, Beth Fehlbaum writes, “I was inspired to write this story by my own recovery from childhood sexual abuse. In the process of working through my own grief, disbelief, and anger, I was writing poems and short stories, and sharing them with my (long-suffering) therapist. One day, he suggested that I try writing a novel.
    It took me about four months of starting and stopping, always ending up in the same place: stuck inside myself-- until one day I became so sick of the scenery that I decided to try to imagine what it would have been like if I had been able to get out of the abusive situation I was in at age 15-- instead of remaining in it much longer. What if a young girl in that situation had a father who had allowed his own shame at being a lousy dad to keep him away for her entire life, as Ashley's father, David does? AND- what if he was able to come through for her in a way he never thought he could, when she needed him the most?
In the process of knocking down the walls I had built around myself,  I found Ashley Nicole Asher, age 15, and Patience, Texas, a tiny East Texas town populated with people who can be found anywhere, dealing with the same problems that all people must face, whether they want to admit it or not.”

Genre
Realistic Fiction/ Problem Novel

Curriculum Ties
This would be an excellent choice to include as a literature circle option for an interdisciplinary Health/English unit on mental health and wellness.

Booktalking Ideas
I think that giving a brief background on the novel and then showing Ms. Fehlbaum reading aloud her “Dear Teen Me” letter (found on her website) would be quite powerful.

Reading Level
Ages 14+

Challenge Issues
This novel addresses sexual abuse and could be challenged for that reason. If the book were challenged, I would turn to ALA's Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library  Materials.

Why Included?
This was one of the three required YA novels for my LIBR 265, and I am glad that it was required. I probably would never have known about Hope in Patience and feel that it is a very important new novel that I would like more young adults, librarians and teachers to know about.