Dobyns Chronicles ~ Shirley McLain

• File Size: 827 KB
• Print Length: 260 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1499024096
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Xlibris US (May 23, 2014)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00KNMM46S

Publication Date: May 23, 2014

"Dobyns Chronicles is a captivating celebration of the life of Charlie Dobyns. His life began in northeast Texas near Bonham, on the Red River. His Cherokee mother and cowboy father strove to survive on their river valley ranch. Tragedy ended this way of life for Charlie in 1888. Follow him through Chickasaw Territory and on to McAlester in eastern Oklahoma.
This is a story of a changing way of life and adaptations made to survive. Charlie's strong passion for life and dignity equipped him for survival as he raised his siblings with, likeability and dignity. It’s a story of loss, misfortune, hard times and heartbreak, but also love, determination, kindness, joy and spirituality.
Follow Charlie’s life through the adventures that shaped the man he became, and that of his family for generations." 

My take on this book:

Dobyns Chronicles is the story of Charlie Dobbins, and his family. A story that allows us to follow young Charlie who was born in 1872, living with his parents in Texas, and later brother David and sister Viola. Glimpsing the lives of the Dobyns family showed that the family was filled with love and lots of hard work, sadly though in 1888 the world changed forever when tragedy struck the Dobyn's family leaving sixteen year old Charlie in charge of his siblings. He is determined to hold his family together, and Dobyns Chronicles allows readers to follow along on his life's journey.

The written words of Dobyns Chronicles give readers a wonderful look at the changing times, that weren't always so easy that Charlie lived in. The characters literally jump off the pages of the story, I could feel the love and loss from new lives coming into the world to loss of beloved family members. Ms. McLain captures a simpler time with her writing,hardship is certainly a part of the story, but the strength of the characters allowed me to believe that they could overcome anything! This book truly plays out like a wonderful motion picture where I felt like I was watching the episodes of Charlie's life unfold. From the sting of early loss to the people who helped him along the way, I saw the many facets of Charlie's life and watched as the world around him changed, but the one constant was his love of family, and the fact that life always goes on. While the author claims Dobyns Chronicles is a work of fiction, the characters were so lifelike and realistic I couldn't help but wonder if they weren't loosely based on real people. Ms. McLain also captures the essence of what it must have been like to have lived during the span of the book, from the cattle drives, to the stock market crash, she expertly weaves the history of the time into the pages of the story.

Dobyns Chronicles by Shirley McLain is a story where the characters become embedded in the heart and won't turn loose. A book that I couldn't stop reading, and sadly hated to see end.

Reviewed for Readersfavorite.com