The Shoe Box 25th Anniversary Edition

by Francine Rivers

Overview

In this beloved holiday classic, New York Times bestselling author Francine Rivers shares a poignant story about the simple yet inspiring faith of a child.

Special features include

• A five-part Advent devotional
• The Christmas story—selected scenes from Matthew and Luke
• Francine’s favorite recipes
• Gold foil accents on the interior artwork

This tender Christmas novella tells the story of Timmy O’Neil, a foster child with a very mysterious shoe box. At first glance, it’s nothing special—just an ordinary box with a red lid and the words Running Shoes printed on the side.

But Timmy carries it with him wherever he goes, and when people ask him what’s inside, he smiles and says, “Just things.”

As Timmy settles into his new, loving home, he remains unwilling to share the secrets of his shoe box . . . until the beauty of the church Nativity pageant inspires him to open his heart and give the most precious gift of all.

This beautifully designed hardcover book makes a lovely gift.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781496409126
Publisher:	Tyndale House Publishers
Publication date:	09/03/2019
Edition description:	Anniversar
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	459,936
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.10(h) x (d)

About the Author

From 1976 to 1985, Francine Rivers had a successful writing career in the general market, and her books were awarded or nominated for numerous awards and prizes. Although raised in a religious home, Francine did not truly encounter Christ until later in life, when she was already a wife, mother of three, and an established romance novelist. Shortly after becoming a born-again Christian in 1986, Francine wrote Redeeming Love as her statement of faith. This retelling of the biblical story of Gomer and Hosea set during the time of the California Gold Rush is now considered by many to be a classic work of Christian fiction. Redeeming Love continues to be one of the Christian Booksellers Association’s top-selling titles, and it has held a spot on the Christian bestsellers list for nearly a decade.

Since Redeeming Love, Francine has published numerous novels with Christian themes--all bestsellers--and she has continued to win both industry acclaim and reader loyalty around the globe. Her Christian novels have also been awarded or nominated for numerous awards, including the Christy Award and the ECPA Gold Medallion. Francine’s novels have been translated into over twenty different languages, and she enjoys bestseller status in many foreign countries including Germany, The Netherlands, and South Africa.

Francine and her husband, Rick, live in Northern California and enjoy the time spent with their three grown children and every opportunity to spoil their four grandchildren. She uses her writing to draw closer to the Lord, and that through her work she might worship and praise Jesus for all He has done and is doing in her life.

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

Timmy O'Neil came to live with Mary and David Holmes on a cloudy day in the middle of September, two weeks after school started. He was a quiet little six-year-old boy with sorrowful eyes. Not very long afterward, they wondered about the box he carried with him all the time. It was an ordinary shoe box with a red lid and the words Running Shoes printed on one side.

Timmy carried it everywhere he went. When he put it down, it was always where he could see it.

"Should we ask him about it?" Mary said to her husband.

"No. He'll talk to us about it when he's ready," David said, but he was as curious as she was.

Even Mrs. Iverson, the social worker, was curious about the shoe box. She told Mary and David that Timmy had the box when the policeman brought him to the Youth Authority offices. Timmy's dad was put in prison. His mom had a job, but she didn't make enough to take proper care of Timmy. A lady in the apartment house where he lived found out he was by himself all day and reported it to the police.

"They brought him to me with one small suitcase of clothes and that shoe box," Mrs. Iverson said. "I asked him what was inside it, and he said, 'Things.' But what things he wouldn't tell me."

Even the children at Timmy's new school were curious about the box. He didn't put it in his cubbyhole like things the other children brought. He would put it on top of his desk while he did his work.

His first-grade teacher, Mrs. King, was curious, too. "What do you have there, Timmy?"

"My box," he said.

"What's in your box?"

"Things," he said and went on with his arithmetic.

Mrs. King didn't ask him about the box again. She liked Timmy, and she didn't want to pry. She told Mary and David that Timmy was a good student. He wasn't the brightest by far, but he always did his best work. Mrs. King admired that about Timmy. She wrote a note to him about it on one of his math papers. Other students will learn by your example, the note said, and she drew a big smiling face on his paper and gave him a pretty, sparkly star sticker.

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "The Shoe Box"
by .
Copyright © 2019 Francine Rivers.
Excerpted by permission of Tyndale House Publishers.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

How This Story Came to Be, VII,
The Shoe Box, 1,
Advent Devotional, 39,
The Christmas Story (Selected from Matthew 1-2 and Luke 1-2), 83,
Francine's Favorite Recipes, 99,