The Jelly Tree (ePub)

            Born the eighth child in a family of twelve children, Dan Barnwell is a native son of Jacksonville, Alabama. His father died when he was seven years old, leaving his mother with ten boys and two girls. Although they had a small farm, the family struggled for years to survive together.

            The Barnwell home, however, was full of happiness and hope. Every child believed a better day was coming, because their mother, Alice Barnwell, made them believe. Dan was a dependable source of stories and poems for his brothers and sisters. Each tale carried a positive message. “Keep trying. You will find greatness soon.”

            Dan still lives in Jacksonville on a section of the property where he was raised. He has written many church plays and gospel songs, as well as some wonderful short stories.

            In his first book, “The Owls of Thunder Hollow”, he escorted his readers through the childhood of a misfit who finally found his talent and became great. The birds in that story became personal friends of the readers.

In this book, Dan uses his amazing storytelling talent to create a family around the reader. This is not an emotional roller-coaster. A person knows that there is no pain at the end of a roller-coaster ride. Not so, this ride. Dan has exposed the pain of love, faithfulness, honesty, and loneliness. He has also created a very real adventure full of great struggle and amazing accomplishment.

Dan doesn’t tell this story. He grabs the readers by their minds and jerks them into the middle of it.