The Vow

I just finished reading a novel called The Vow by Kim and Krickett Carpenter with Dana Wilkerson. This book was based on a true story about the authors and contained 180 pgs. In this book, Kim and Krickett have to face a huge, life changing challenge that will eventually bring them closer than ever. I chose to read this book because my mom said it was a good movie, so i wanted to read the story.

In this novel Kim and Krickett put their love to the test, and against all odds survive a major tragedy! When Kim Carpenter called Jammin Sportswear in 1992, he expected to hear a blah voice on the other end of the phone, but instead was greeted with an upbeat, beautiful voice that he later found out belonged to Krickett. When he got done ordering his jacket designs, he didn't want to hang up the phone, he wanted to talk to Krickett some more. Kim just couldn't stop thinking about her all day, and it felt like his whole day got better just from talking to her. He wanted to find out more about Krickett so he called a few days later and from then on, they just kept talking to each other. She gave him her home phone number one day because she said she wouldn't be working tomorrow, and eventually they started conversing on the phone for hours every week. Although Kim's phone bill shot through the roof, he just couldn't stop! They soon started sending letters, and photos and they turned out to have feelings for each other. Before he knew it, Krickett was on a plane coming to see him for the whole weekend! He discovered she was very religious, and he admired that. She had also been a gymnast, and was in very good shape! They read and discussed the bible, and one night they just stayed up talking till the morning. Soon more visits were arranged and he met her parents. They kept with this long distance friendship for a long time, and finally, Kim asked for Krickett's hand in marriage! They got married, and fell in love deeper and deeper with each other.

Thanksgiving was just around the corner, so Kim and Krickett packed their things and went to Krickett's parents house for the holiday. On the way there, they had to pick up a passenger(one of their friends) who would ride with them until they reached the airport in Phoenix. Soon after they turned onto I-40, Kim started coming down with a cold, and Krickett took the wheel. All of a sudden Kim was roused from the backseat by a "watch out". Their white For Escort was slammed into by a pick-up truck behind them and then they clipped the back of a red flatbed truck, and lost control. The pick-up truck then hit the driver's side of the Escort and the impact sent the car flying into the air. By the time the car was done rolling, it ended up upside down with Krickett dangling by her seat belt dripping blood. Kim's back was cut up by glass from the broken sunroof, and his face was mangled. The other passenger had only the injury of his shoulder being separated, and there was already people flooding to the scene. Krickett was cut out of the car and airlifted to a hospital(not the same one as Kim). Kim was desperate to see his dying wife, and he might have been close to death too! He got a ride to her hospital and found out that she could die because of serious brain damage.

Recovery was the next step that they had to take. Krickett would have to go through a lot of therapy to recover, and the only reason that she lived was because she was strong, and had so many people praying to God for her(all the way to Russia). Kim would not leave her side, and he pushed her in therapy because he knew she was capable, and for this, Krickett often shouted at him:"Leave me alone! I hate you!" The doctors told Kim that mood swings were normal in people with brain damage, and that she had short term memory loss, so she could not remember anything about Kim or the relationship she had with him. He would not give up on her though, he was determined to have his wife back, and he asked God to guide him, and He did. It was because of God, and Kim and Krickett's love and determination that they can be together, and love each other till death do them part. After all, they made a Vow didn't they?

What I liked about this book was that it was a true story, and it was very compelling, and showed me that if you ask God for help in your journey's, he will help you! There isn't one thing that I disliked about this book, and I would definitely recommend this book to a friend. People that are ages 10 and up could read this book, and people that would really enjoy this book are individuals that like love stories, religious stories, and based on true story novels. This book, overall was a great choice to read!