Ready or not

After Gracie Malone’s parents die, Gam, the citified grandmother she barely remembers, comes to collect her. Gam wants Gracie and her brother to get a proper education and to be civilized.

But Gracie wants to live on the farm. On Malone land, where she belongs. The old ways were good enough for Mama and Daddy and they are good enough for Gracie, too.

Gracie is as stubborn as the big boulder sitting in the south pasture--the one Daddy’s old tractor never could budge. But she soon finds out Gam is also stuck on her getting her own way.

Finally, Gam suggests a three-month trial run, and Gracie grudgingly gets in the car.

She makes up her mind to show Gam how mature she is. She’ll prove that she’s ready to live alone at the farm. If all goes according to plan, when her three-month trial period is over, Gam will let her move back home.

At Gam’s modern, city home, Gracie immediately finds plenty of things she can do to prove her worth. Gam’s house is barely livable. She doesn’t even have a root cellar, for crying out loud. The poor woman keeps all her food is in a closet in the kitchen. It’s by God’s grace the woman hasn’t died of food poisoning already.

And there is no wood chopped for winter. None!

Getting Gam fitted out for winter is going to be a big job, but if anyone is up to the task it’s Gracie Malone. Daddy always said there wasn’t nothing going stop her once her mind was set. And right now, her mind is set on one thing: helping Gam survive. She only has ninety days to get Gam’s house in order. After that she’ll be back on the farm.