204 ratings | 74 reviews | avg rating:4.38

Virginia’s Year In Books

Virginia’s 2025 Year in Books

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Virginia Heslinga’s Followers (79)

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currently-reading (35)
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273 books | 72 friends

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Virginia Heslinga

Goodreads Author

Born

in Newark, The United States

June 19

Website

https://time2create.info

Genre

Memoir, Historical Fiction, Fiction

Influences

Member Since

December 2008

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/vheslinga

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I have written educational articles based on best teaching strategies, curricula for churches schools, and college classes, and done presentations at conferences national and international on cross-cultural communication and teaching. In eight different years, I trained teachers of English in remote areas of China. A series based on a common first question in northern China for a visitor is, Did You Eat? The first book in the series, China Sweet and Sour is out in 2025 spring. The second book China Spicy and Salty will be out in Nov. 2025.

I am on FB as Author Virginia Heslinga and also on a Business page, time2create.info and an individual page Virginia Heslinga.

Grace Interlaced, presents a memoir of a fire that happened at night in a hou I have written educational articles based on best teaching strategies, curricula for churches schools, and college classes, and done presentations at conferences national and international on cross-cultural communication and teaching. In eight different years, I trained teachers of English in remote areas of China. A series based on a common first question in northern China for a visitor is, Did You Eat? The first book in the series, China Sweet and Sour is out in 2025 spring. The second book China Spicy and Salty will be out in Nov. 2025.

I am on FB as Author Virginia Heslinga and also on a Business page, time2create.info and an individual page Virginia Heslinga.

Grace Interlaced, presents a memoir of a fire that happened at night in a house where a 12-year-old babysitter (me) took care of 3 boys, 8, 7, and 2. We might all have died. 3 survived.
My historical novel, Wounded Dove, reveals the turn of the century, 19th to 20th struggles of a young family from Denmark who settled in Worcester, MA. The polio epidemic of the early 1900s hit their family hard. Overcoming is a way of life, but even when life seems to even out and offer safety, heartbreaks and a predator require courageous action.
The Did You Eat series first book, China Sweet and Sour: 2004, invited readers to journey with an American teacher who is unhappy in job changes, angry at God, and looking for a constructive outlet, the wilder the better so she signs up to teach in a remote area of China. Beyond the Great Wall are stories of missteps, laughter, and transformation.
Virginia Heslinga serves as an Associate professor of Humanities for Anna Maria College of Paxton, Massachusetts in their online programs. She has worked for more than four decades teaching students, ranging from pre-school to grad school, alternative schools to home schools, from Appalachia to Inner Mongolia, Monterrey to Istanbul, face-to-face, hybrid, and online, ASL to ESOL, research, and creative writing. She has also mentored teachers around the United States and globe. ...more

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Virginia Heslinga’s books

Average rating: 4.72 · 109 ratings · 92 reviews · 9 distinct works • Similar authors

	China Sweet and Sour 4.67 avg rating — 78 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Grace Interlaced 4.90 avg rating — 20 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	China Spicy and Salty it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wounded Dove 4.50 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2008 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wounded Dove 2nd edition it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 2 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Story Your Story: Memoirs it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wounded Dove: A true story of courage, hope, faith, and love 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gracia entrelazada: Una memoria 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — published 2023	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Story Your Story : Memoirs 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Virginia Heslinga…

Virginia is Currently Reading

Virginia Heslinga is currently reading

The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need to Know About Selling Your Work to an Agent or Publisher in Thirty Minutes or Less (How To Do It Frugally)

by Carolyn Howard-Johnson (Goodreads Author)

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Furious Minds: The Making of the MAGA New Right

by Laura K. Field

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Feb 03, 2026 04:48AM

Virginia Heslinga is currently reading

An Unlikely Lent: Extraordinary People of the Easter Story

by Rachel Billups

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Jan 17, 2026 06:31AM

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Virginia Heslinga is currently reading The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need to Know About Selling Your Work to an Agent or Publisher in Thirty Minutes or Less (How To Do It Frugally) by Carolyn Howard-Johnson (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16 hours, 33 min ago · like
Virginia Heslinga rated a book really liked it The Amber Room by Steve Berry (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Incredible Combination of Facts and Fiction I felt like I was reading two books at once, and keeping either story in focus was like looking through crown glass made in the 17th century. I like learning history through a novel, but the depth of this hi ...more
17 hours, 46 min ago · like · see review
Virginia Heslinga rated a book it was amazing Big Stone Gap (Big Stone Gap, #1) by Adriana Trigiani (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This book and the whole trilogy were enjoyable. I learned a lot about the southwest part of the state, people, history, and events. Since I live in VA and have Italian ancestry and current relatives. I started on Book 1, but now I have read the whole ...more
Mar 04, 2026 11:51AM · like · see review
Virginia Heslinga rated a book it was amazing The Beloved Invader (St. Simons Trilogy, #3) by Eugenia Price	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Fortitude, Fears, and Faith I look forward more than ever now to visiting St Simon's island. This book shows the strength of generations overcoming fears and growing in faith in actions. ...more
Mar 03, 2026 05:11PM · like · see review
Virginia Heslinga is currently reading The Amber Room by Steve Berry (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 03, 2026 05:11PM · like
Virginia Heslinga rated a book it was amazing The Beloved Invader (St. Simons Trilogy, #3) by Eugenia Price	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Fortitude, Fears, and Faith I look forward more than ever now to visiting St Simon's island. This book shows the strength of generations overcoming fears and growing in faith in actions. ...more
Mar 03, 2026 05:08PM · like · see review
Virginia Heslinga rated a book it was amazing The Crossroads (A Joe Pickett Novel Book 26) by C.J. Box	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Don't Do That Kind Of Thing Anymore What does it take to get Joe Pickett to rest? Why should he? Ranchers, Criminals, and his family want to know. You'll wonder too once you get to the Crossroads. ...more
Feb 28, 2026 05:37PM · 1 like · like · see review
Virginia Heslinga rated a book it was amazing Milk Glass Moon (Big Stone Gap, #3) by Adriana Trigiani (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Wanting More I am sorry this series has concluded. The life lessons in all the characters and relationships tell a great story but speak realistically to daily struggles.
Feb 26, 2026 05:46PM · 1 like · like · see review
Virginia Heslinga finished reading Big Cherry Holler (Big Stone Gap, #2) by Adriana Trigiani (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 16, 2026 08:07PM · like
Virginia Heslinga is currently reading Big Cherry Holler (Big Stone Gap, #2) by Adriana Trigiani (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 10, 2026 06:44AM · like

More of Virginia's books…

Quotes by Virginia Heslinga (?)

“I often squashed my emotions; most times it was too painful to reflect on happiness.”
― Virginia Heslinga, Wounded Dove

tags: emotions, happiness, painful, reflect, squashed

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“I loved the feel of the keys beneath my fingertips and my power to create music.”
― Virginia Heslinga, Wounded Dove

tags: create, feel, music, piano-keys, power

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“If the future would have been revealed to me, at that moment, if I could have seen what was ahead for me in that house, would I have changed my mind?”
― Virginia Heslinga, Wounded Dove

tags: change, future, my-mind

0 likes

See all Virginia Heslinga's quotes »

Virginia’s Quotes

“If the future would have been revealed to me, at that moment, if I could have seen what was ahead for me in that house, would I have changed my mind?”
― Virginia Heslinga, Wounded Dove

tags: change, future, my-mind

0 likes

“I loved the feel of the keys beneath my fingertips and my power to create music.”
― Virginia Heslinga, Wounded Dove

tags: create, feel, music, piano-keys, power

0 likes

“I often squashed my emotions; most times it was too painful to reflect on happiness.”
― Virginia Heslinga, Wounded Dove

tags: emotions, happiness, painful, reflect, squashed

0 likes

“Every moment of every day my love for you will grow.
How it started I will never know,
but of one thing I can be sure,
I will be loving you forever more.
Was it because you’re pretty or was it just your smile,
I think it was your kindness that touched my heart a while.”
― Gordon Saunders

1 likes

“Sunday is the golden clasp that binds together the volume of the week.”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

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