Awakening by Claudia Cangilla McAdam is the story of modern teenager taken back to the time of Jesus. This story opens with a typical teenager-parental scene where Ronnie wants to go on a trip with her friend and her mother is apprehensive because this is Easter time. Add to this the facts that Ronnie’s father and brother were recently killed in an accident and that she is still recuperating from an illness.
The switchover is when Ronnie lies down to take a nap and she wakes up from an illness in Jerusalem. As she wakes up, Ronnie (now Seraphina) is overwhelmed by the smells, as well as the fact that she is not in her modern home, but in a home during the seventeenth year of the Emperor Tiberius.
Thus begins the journey of transformation for Ronnie/Seraphina. She goes from not really understanding why the Lord suffered and died for us (p. 6) to total belief (p. 122). This is one of the most amazing stories that reconfirms one’s belief in the power of the Almighty.
I like the way that Ms. McAdam intertwines the past with the present, is historically accurate, and makes events of the past relevant for today’s reader. I recommend this book to any and everyone. It is a book that is truly timeless, genderless, and classic.
This review was written as part of the Catholic Book Reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Awakening.
