It's Christmas 1942, and the world is at war when word comes from the front that Mary Helen's father is presumed killed in action. While her devastated mother, Frances, struggles with grief and questions her faith, Mary Helen surprisingly does the opposite. An off-handed comment her mother has long forgotten plants a seed in the young girl's heart. "God can do anything," she says, "even make it snow in Miami." Well, if God can do that, surely he can bring her daddy home.
Here is an innocent tale of a young girl, her school buddies, and their carefree life set against a backdrop of much more serious issues. The war notwithstanding, Mary Helen and her mother also find themselves the object of town gossip because of William Smith's German ancestry. Then as now, bullying, prejudice, and gossip have deep, hurtful roots.
The main characters, however, are not perfect themselves. Mary Helen is a high-spirited storyteller who is not afraid to stretch the truth. Meanwhile, Frances struggles as a war-time single parent to get things right, often falling short.
Though When It Snows in Miami is a faith-based novel, it is a subtle one. After all, discerning God's presence means opening our hearts to the ways he is at work in everyday people and events in our lives. God's angels take many forms, and in this story, we meet some of them. Each character emphasizes the importance of relationship as a source of God's strength in the midst of life's difficulties.
Adapted from a successful stage play, When It Snows in Miami speaks through historical events into the contemporary world. Through it, the reader will be moved, surprised, and inspired by what it reveals.
