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Ester Ried #4
Wise and Otherwise
Life in turn-of-the-century Newton seemed sweet and simple, especially for young Abbie Sayles and her dear friend, Dell Bronson. Yet life could be complicated in a social system where privileged ladies were expected to socialize during the week only with other ladies, then worship on Sunday in the same pews as their hired help.Gentle, pure-hearted Abbie and spirited Dell took no stock in class snobbery, but the new minister in town did. And when this self-absorbed man arrived at Regent Street Church with his haughty and childish wife, he had no time for the humbler members of his flock. Soon people were wondering how much of the man's faith was genuine.
Dell, who shared a painful past with the minister, had an idea. But Someone else knew the whole truth, and He would leave no stone unturned to reclaim His own.
Heartwarming stories of faith and love by Grace Livingston Hill's aunt--Isabella Alden. Each book is similar in style and tone to Hill's and is set in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Dell, who shared a painful past with the minister, had an idea. But Someone else knew the whole truth, and He would leave no stone unturned to reclaim His own.
Heartwarming stories of faith and love by Grace Livingston Hill's aunt--Isabella Alden. Each book is similar in style and tone to Hill's and is set in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
- GenresFictionChristian Fiction
290 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1873
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65 people want to read
About the author
Pansy
338 books31 followersNote: In her lifetime, Isabella Macdonald Alden was usually published under the pseudonym Pansy, and occasionally under the name Mrs. G.R. Alden.
Aunt to Grace Livingston Hill
The sixth of seven children born to Isaac and Myra Spafford Macdonald, of Rochester, New York, Isabella Macdonald received her early education from her father, who home-schooled her, and gave her a nickname - "Pansy" - that she would use for many of her publications. As a girl, she kept a daily journal, critiqued by her father, and she published her first story - The Old Clock - in a village paper when she was ten years old.
Macdonald's education continued at the Oneida Seminary, the Seneca Collegiate Institute, and the Young Ladies Institute, all in New York. It was at the Oneida Seminary that she met her long-time friend (and eventual co-author), Theodosia Toll, who secretly submitted one of Macdonald's manuscripts in a competition, setting in motion a chain of events that would lead to the publication of her first book, Helen Lester, in 1865.
Macdonald also met her future husband, the Rev. Gustavus Rossenberg Alden, at the Oneida Seminary, and the two were married in 1866. Now Isabella Macdonald Alden, the newly-married minister's wife followed her husband as his postings took them around the country, dividing her time between writing, church duties, and raising her son Raymond (born 1873).
A prolific author, who wrote approximately one hundred novels from 1865 to 1929, and co-authored ten more, Alden was also actively involved in the world of children's and religious periodicals, publishing numerous short stories, editing the Sunday Juvenile Pansy from 1874-1894, producing Sunday School lessons for The Westminster Teacher for twenty years, and working on the editorial staff of various other magazines (Trained Motherhood, The Christian Endeavor).
Highly influenced by her Christian beliefs, much of Alden's work was explicitly moral and didactic, and often found its way into Sunday School libraries. It was also immensely popular, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with an estimated 100,000 copies of Alden's books sold, in 1900.
Information taken from:
readseries.com
isabellamacdonaldalden.com
Aunt to Grace Livingston Hill
The sixth of seven children born to Isaac and Myra Spafford Macdonald, of Rochester, New York, Isabella Macdonald received her early education from her father, who home-schooled her, and gave her a nickname - "Pansy" - that she would use for many of her publications. As a girl, she kept a daily journal, critiqued by her father, and she published her first story - The Old Clock - in a village paper when she was ten years old.
Macdonald's education continued at the Oneida Seminary, the Seneca Collegiate Institute, and the Young Ladies Institute, all in New York. It was at the Oneida Seminary that she met her long-time friend (and eventual co-author), Theodosia Toll, who secretly submitted one of Macdonald's manuscripts in a competition, setting in motion a chain of events that would lead to the publication of her first book, Helen Lester, in 1865.
Macdonald also met her future husband, the Rev. Gustavus Rossenberg Alden, at the Oneida Seminary, and the two were married in 1866. Now Isabella Macdonald Alden, the newly-married minister's wife followed her husband as his postings took them around the country, dividing her time between writing, church duties, and raising her son Raymond (born 1873).
A prolific author, who wrote approximately one hundred novels from 1865 to 1929, and co-authored ten more, Alden was also actively involved in the world of children's and religious periodicals, publishing numerous short stories, editing the Sunday Juvenile Pansy from 1874-1894, producing Sunday School lessons for The Westminster Teacher for twenty years, and working on the editorial staff of various other magazines (Trained Motherhood, The Christian Endeavor).
Highly influenced by her Christian beliefs, much of Alden's work was explicitly moral and didactic, and often found its way into Sunday School libraries. It was also immensely popular, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with an estimated 100,000 copies of Alden's books sold, in 1900.
Information taken from:
readseries.com
isabellamacdonaldalden.com
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 7, 2016
Overcoming
A wonderful time in history to read about overcoming financial adversity and spiritual adversity. Uncle Edward persevered with trust in his heavenly Father believing that "all things work together for good to them that love the Lord. Mr. Tresevant struggled with complete submission of pride and self to Christ
A wonderful time in history to read about overcoming financial adversity and spiritual adversity. Uncle Edward persevered with trust in his heavenly Father believing that "all things work together for good to them that love the Lord. Mr. Tresevant struggled with complete submission of pride and self to Christ
September 16, 2018
I enjoyed this book just as much as I have all of Pansy’s books, but his one was a little harder to love at first, because the minister and his wife were both arrogant, self-absorbed, and haughty. Never-the-less, it was good to listen in on conversations that some of the faithful in the congregation had about them, trying to see their good points and find reasons/excuses for their bad. Financial reversals, tragic deaths, God’s life-transforming power, and people’s reactions to these are all portrayed in relatable, believable fashion. This is the sequel to “The King’s Daughter,” and the next after this one is “Ester Ried Yet Speaking.” First published in 1873. I listened to this as a free download from LibriVox.org (the reader was excellent!)
July 29, 2019
4.5 stars
It’s been a while since I read this book. I remembered being really frustrated at some of the characters the first time I read it, but this time they didn’t bother me as much. Perhaps it’s because I’ve grown older and have seen more of life.
This story ties the “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” and “King’s Daughter” books together into a story that deals with selfishness, honoring those in authority, trial, joy, and a delightful experiment on Dell’s part. Oh, I do wish I could have read more about Dell when she tried her hand at her pet scheme. There were a few times when it felt that Abbie was too perfect, but I’ve also known people with Abbie’s personality and realized that while she may be uncommon, there are people like her. I will admit I fully agreed with Mr. Sayles when he wished he could treat the minister like a naughty little boy. As for Mrs. Tresevant, at times she exasperated me, and other times I wanted to help her find what would satisfy her.
All together this was a wonderful book to tie up so many loose ends. I would recommend it.
It’s been a while since I read this book. I remembered being really frustrated at some of the characters the first time I read it, but this time they didn’t bother me as much. Perhaps it’s because I’ve grown older and have seen more of life.
This story ties the “Ester Ried,” “Julia Ried,” and “King’s Daughter” books together into a story that deals with selfishness, honoring those in authority, trial, joy, and a delightful experiment on Dell’s part. Oh, I do wish I could have read more about Dell when she tried her hand at her pet scheme. There were a few times when it felt that Abbie was too perfect, but I’ve also known people with Abbie’s personality and realized that while she may be uncommon, there are people like her. I will admit I fully agreed with Mr. Sayles when he wished he could treat the minister like a naughty little boy. As for Mrs. Tresevant, at times she exasperated me, and other times I wanted to help her find what would satisfy her.
All together this was a wonderful book to tie up so many loose ends. I would recommend it.
July 15, 2024
My personal favourite thus far in series.
November 25, 2021
Hooray! I was very happy to see so many characters from previous Ester Ried books make appearances in this installment in the series. It was great to see what happened next in each of their lives. In this book, Isabella Alden's master stroke is to make the minister the character in need of the most spiritual help. How she accomplishes that makes a thought-provoking as well as entertaining read. As always, I had several takeaways from this book: the vital importance of aligning values with the person you choose to marry, of putting Christ's teachings before physical comfort, and the importance of living a productive Christian life. Well worth the read. I can't say enough good things about this book!
November 10, 2020
Great sequel to "The Kings Daughter" or to be read by itself. Love!
July 22, 2011
I read this book when I was 16 years old.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews