Apples of Gold by Lisa Samson

This was a wonderful read. A book for every family with a daughter. I would say if you have sons, they would learn from this book how to be a man of integrity as well.

Apples of Gold is a story about purity. Lisa introduces us to two sisters. I think we, as women, can relate to one of them. Liza is the insightful, dutiful, plain Jane sister. Kate on the other hand is a free spirit, doesn't put much thought into her actions, and has much beauty. The Governor has entrusted each of the girls with an apple. They are to care for it during the week until his son comes home. When the son comes home, it will be determined who took better care of their apple. The one who is chosen will serve the Governor's son.

We follow the girls as they go throughout the week from the Governor's home until the ultimate meeting. We see each sister's struggle; struggles that each one of us as women have probably dealt with on some level, especially those with sisters.

When the Governor's son appears at the appointed time, we learn what he believes is important and which sister he has chosen. He explains to each sister why he has chosen or rejected her. Our hearts break for the sister who is rejected and we rejoice for the chosen one. For those of us with daughter's we know we want them to make the right choices, especially in this precious matter. This allegory can help them see the prize that is laid before them. It does have quite the dose of inuendo, which is to be expected and as a mom, I had to giggle at a couple points.

Lisa addresses both the girls and the adults reading this book. She wants this to induce discussions with our girls. I have suggested this book for my daughter's book club. It's a book that can be read in one sitting. The words are large and the pages are short. There are a few illustrations throughout to give us a visual as to what is happening in the story. I'd personally like to thank Lisa for giving us such a wonderful book on purity and how important it will be to or daughter's future husbands.