Finding Christmas

by Seth Sjostrom

Delving into the all-too common emotional toll of split families during the holidays, Sjostrom delivers hope to those who face this imperfect reality. Finding Christmas follows Josh Daniels, a single father who has to send his daughter away to visit her mother each year during the holidays. Crushed with not being together, he does his best to live as though the season does not exist.

One year, Josh gives in to his mother’s pressure and agrees to come home for Christmas. Once there, he finds himself mercilessly confronted with the holidays at every turn. Watching other happy families, he is even more broken-hearted with the absence of his daughter and the Christmas it was supposed to be. Finding solace in a little coffee shop, Josh is launched into a journey that reminds him of the true meaning of Christmas and the path to open his heart to love once again.

164 pages, Paperback

First published September 18, 2012

About the author

A New England native, Seth had a storybook childhood growing up in Connecticut. He graduated college at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in 1993 and transplanted himself in the Pacific Northwest soon after.

Immediately falling in love with northwest topography, Seth made the most of it becoming an experienced hiker, whitewater rafting guide, mountain climber (alright, his friends dragged him up a couple of NW peaks) and skier/snowboarder. Seth now resides on Florida's Gulf coast, trying not to be distracted by dolphins and manatees swimming by.

A serial entrepreneur, Seth has created and partnered with several cutting edge healthcare companies and helped launch two magazines.

Seth supports Hire Heroes USA, Christmas is Not Cancelled and the Mel Green Institute to Combat Human Trafficking with his books.

Reviews

[Ireland Lorelei · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful story about finding love after a divorce. I love how Josh was hiding away from life and emotions for anyone but his daughter. He gave himself time to grieve his divorce, even if too long, like some of us do.

[Melody · Rating 3 out of 5]

I definitely enjoyed the book. The characters were real and the story interesting. I downgraded the review because some things were repeated such as why Ashley bought the bookstore and there were several spelling errors. It could use a good proofreader. I will definitely read more books by this author. I liked the wisdom expressed by the child in her direct simplistic way. Too often we as adults try to complicate life.

[Denise Spicer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet romance in the the tradition of a Hallmark Christmas movie. The local flavor of the small town Camas, WA setting was enjoyable (and, for the most part, pretty accurate). Otherwise, a fairly typical story about a single dad who finds new love at Christmastime. But if you like romance (or just Christmas!), you’ll find this quick read worthwhile.

[Janel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story.