Commemorative Edition: Song of Springhill & Spirit of Springhill

by Cheryl McKay

COMMEMORATIVE Both the novel and the true life stories in one book. From the ACFW Women's Fiction Carol Award winning co-author of Never the Bride & screenwriter of The Ultimate Gift. Song of Springhill - A Love Story Could you fall in love despite the great risk of losing the one you cherish most? Hoping for a fresh start, Hannah Wright moves to Springhill, the hometown of the father she never knew because he died in their volatile coal mines before she was born. She tracks down her aunt, Abigail Percy, and is immediately welcomed to move in with the whole Percy clan. This includes her Uncle Ray, a coal miner, and their four lively children. Suddenly, she's surrounded by more family than she's ever had in her life. The day after she arrives, the mine explodes, trapping many underground, including Uncle Ray. Little did Hannah know when she set off on this new adventure how much her family was going to need her. When the Percys face a sudden lack of provision, Hannah knows she must get a job to help them. But the only industry in town that pays enough is coal mining--and the mine company doesn't hire women. Hannah secretly masquerades as a man and gets hired as Mel, a distant cousin of her father's. Keeping up her charade is challenging in this tight-knit, 1950s town, where everybody knows one another. Hannah is placed on the team of Josh Winslow, a handsome bachelor who noticed her the moment she stepped into town. It doesn't take long for Josh to see through Hannah's disguise as Mel, but she convinces him there's no other way for her to help take care of her family. Understanding the pressure she's under, he agrees to not blow Hannah's cover--for now. Though Hannah seems to keep Josh at arm's length, he's determined to chip away at her defenses and win her heart. She resists, afraid to love someone who could die at any moment in an accident underground. Long-time miners start to sense that "the big one" is coming. Calling it a "Bump" does little to calm Hannah's fear of the impending underground earthquake, a disaster that could come any day. Will Josh and Hannah be among the next miners caught in a catastrophic disaster? Does Hannah stand to lose everything she's worked so hard to rebuild? Song of Springhill is a love story set against the backdrop of true-life disasters that plagued the town of Springhill, Nova Scotia in the 1950s. It was a town torn by tragedy that also experienced some of the most astounding, miraculous rescues the world ever watched unfold. Spirit of Springhill - Inspiring True Life Stories Springhill, Nova Scotia, a tiny town with a tremendously courageous spirit. In the 1950s, tragedy struck the mining town of Springhill not once, but three The 1956 Explosion The 1957 Main Street Fire The 1958 Bump The Explosion took the lives of 39 miners. The Main Street Fire wiped out many of the family-owned businesses. The Bump, an underground earthquake, took the lives of 75 good men of Springhill. Springhill became known as everything from "The Hard Luck Town" to "Miracle Town." Those miracles are the heart of this book. Springhill is a place with strong resilience, despite the tragedies that tried to take her down. The miracles that happened are nothing short of astounding, to see the hand of God show up and rescue men whom the entire town thought were dead. In Spirit of Springhill, you will experience the town through first-person accounts of what happened back in the 1950s from the point of view of survivors and their wives, from victim's widows and orphans, from children of rescued miners, and miners who risked their lives to be on the rescue teams. Springhill remains an inspiration to all who hear about it. This chronicle from the voices of the people of Springhill will help us preserve their history for generations to come. Their stories should not be forgotten.

410 pages, Paperback

Published September 22, 2018

About the author

CHERYL MCKAY been professionally writing since 1997. Before creating, showrunning, and executive producing the multi-award-winning Season One of These Stones, Cheryl wrote the screenplay for The Ultimate Gift. She co-wrote the faith-based feature films, Indivisible and Extraordinary, as well as multiple children’s projects, including 5 episodes of Superbook and 40 episodes of the audio drama, The Wild & Wacky Totally True Bible Stories with Frank Peretti. In addition to film and television, Cheryl has enjoyed penning novels like Song of Springhill and the award-winning Never the Bride (with Rene Gutteridge), as well as nonfiction books, including Finally the Bride: Finding Hope While Waiting, Finally Fearless; Journey from Panic to Peace, and a three-part devotional series, 25 Dates With God. She recently published the Study Guide book (with Susan Rohrer) that goes with Season One of These Stones and the first two books in her children’s series, Potter Knows Best. Her desire from the beginning of her writing career has been to make an impact through words and change the world for good through writing.