This book may be the closest most people will ever get to the wild freedom and early responsibility of growing up on a family ranch in the 1950s. Eve carries us there on the wings of her childhood imagination, and her book puts us in a beautifully different place and time that we all need to visit today.
-Richard Eyre, NYTimes #1 bestselling author
My Seventh Summer
is a beautifully crafted tale of the challenges of surviving on a family farm.... This realistic portrayal of relationships facing collective realities is touching, humorous, and at times difficult. Eve Dayton's book adds to a better understanding of the Intermountain West and its rich rural heritage.
--F. Ross Peterson, professor, author, university president, Bear Lake native "There are a lot of stories in the world, but none better than the ones that help us see the world in a different way.
does that, and its characters, from real to imaginary, live on in our minds long after the story is read." --Linda Jacobson Eyre, co-creator, Joy Schools and GrandParenting 101 Eve and I both grew up loving Bennington, Idaho. Through her seven-year-old eyes she transports me back to our childhood days. If I were still teaching I would delight in sharing this story with my students!
-Polly June Crane Willardson, retired 4th grade teacher "In addition to a brilliant portrayal of life on a family ranch in mid-20th century, Eve Dayton has cleverly contrived an intriguing mystery that will keep you guessing until the very end " --Sharon Rowsell Warner
chronicles a tale crafted by the author based on some true life characters, others fictitious. Dayton's creative storyline mirrors her 7-year-old imagination against the backdrop of a loving family working their sheep farm in the 1950s. -Probitas Press
"This is a heartfelt book that will bring a longing for bygone days to the depths of your soul. The wonders of childhood are brought to life in this book." --Lana Tippetts Foy
"Children become responsible adults by learning to work. Eve Crane and her nine siblings did chores from a young age and were guided around the dinner table. Every evening their father called upon each child to share something on their mind. My Seventh Summer is a primer on how to raise children, all the while telling a clever and touching story.
-Lee Roderick, author, journalist, former President, National Press Club
"As a child I knew 'Evie' Crane and her incredible family. Her parents were every bit 'the good shepherds' along with a lot of other good shepherds you will find in this book." -Margaret Payne Broadbent
"Within these pages Evie's mom and dad teach us what true parenting is all about-nurturing the human soul." -Yvonne Maddox Roderick, former Mother of the Year, American Mother's Inc.