Review: When Mockingbirds Sing by Billy Coffey

When Mockingbirds Sing
Author: Billy Coffey
Genre: Contemporary/Christian Fiction
Release Date: June 2013
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Description:

What marks the boundary between a miracle of God and the imagination of a child?
Nine-year-old Leah’s invisible friend seems harmless enough until he aids her in upsetting the tranquility of her new town, a place where her parents desperately hoped she’d finally be able to make friends and fit in. Hidden within a picture she paints for a failed toymaker are numbers that win the toymaker millions. Suddenly, townspeople are divided between those who see Leah as a prophet and those who are afraid of the danger she represents. Caught in the middle is Leah’s agnostic father, who clashes with a powerful town pastor over Leah’s prophecies and what to do about them.
When the imaginary friend’s predictions take an ominous turn and Leah announces that a grave danger looms, doubts arise over the truthfulness of her claims. As a violent storm emerges on the day of the annual carnival, Leah’s family and the town of Mattingly must make a final choice to cling to all they know or embrace the things she believes in that cannot be seen. 

When Mockingbirds Sing is a beautiful and thought provoking Christian fiction novel that tells the story of Leah and her invisible friend. At first nobody pays much attention to Leah's friend, until he helps her upset the calm of the new town she and her family have moved to. When Leah paints a picture that contains the winning numbers for a lottery, people in the town begin to speculate that she may be either a prophet or a threat. Leah's father - an agnostic - clashes with the town's pastor and his ideas about Leah and her prophecies. Soon things take a turn for the worse when Leah's imaginary friend predicts danger coming and people begin to doubt the truth behind her so called prophecies. When a severe storm blows into town on the day of their annual carnival, the people of Mattingly and Leah's family must decide between what they can see and what they know or accept and embrace Leah and her prophecies.

This book was very unique from anything else I've read lately. Although it's classified as Christian fiction, the book doesn't have a ton of religious beliefs stuffed within its pages and it didn't sound preachy at all. The story is an amazing and curious one - the kind that makes you question what you would do in that situation and if you would have the courage - the faith - required to believe. Leah is an intriguing main character - she's just a girl, but she's brave and speaks up when she needs to; even when people are judging her and trying to prove she's making things up. Her faith as a child reflects the innocent nature we all lose with time and how we should all strive to regain that kind of faith in every aspect of our lives. The plot was captivating in every aspect - the small town with the various townspeople, Leah and her family, the troubled past they've had, and the strange yet wondrous experiences that Leah brings to them all. It deals with some really important topics that we can all relate to: family, faith, hope, friendship, community, and love. Highly recommended for fans of Christian fiction and those looking for a story full of hope and something to reflect on.