Rebecca Davis

AFA Journal staff writer

March 2015 – Joy Lucius, an elementary reading teacher in rural Mississippi and freelance journalist for AFA Journal, recently authored her first novel. Titled Dandelion Trail and published by American Family Publishing, the book is inspired by the 2014 American Family Studios film Summer Snow in which an eight-year-old girl named Hallie Benson is challenged to change the world after the loss of her mother.

Dandelion Trailis a stand-alone novel that tells the backstory of Hallie and her family. It extends the story via a creative literary device that features the work of Hallie’s mom and grandparents as missionaries in Central America.

Below, Lucius tells AFA Journal more about her novel and the impact Summer Snow had on her life and her writing.

AFA Journal: Since you are a teacher who claims to be a reader first and then a writer, what inspired you to write this book?
Joy Lucius: In addition to being inspired by the film Summer Snow, I was inspired by my students as I wrote Dandelion Trail. I love teaching them to read and write; they have such vivid imaginations and pure hearts. I still marvel at the seemingly everyday, mundane circumstances that God used to give me this writing opportunity.

AFAJ: How were you personally impacted by the film Summer Snow?
JL: Summer Snowimpacted me profoundly! Like countless other viewers, I found my family and myself right there in the middle of Hallie’s story. It’s not just the Benson family who has faced humanly insurmountable trials and hardships; we all have.

AFAJ: How do you identify with Hallie?
JL:  When God gave me the chance to tell more of Hallie’s story, I was able to trace His loving hand of mercy and grace throughout her story and my own. One part of my own story involves a little girl whose daddy still loves her enough after all these years to pick the first daffodil of the season (no matter where he spots it) to bring to his Joy. If that isn’t a testimony to God’s unending love, then what is?

AFAJ: Without spoiling the plot, what is Dandelion Trail about?
JL:In Dandelion Trail, readers get a quick recap of Summer Snow before a gigantic twist in the plot takes them to a small village in Nicaragua during the country’s politically troubled days. Hallie learns more than she bargained for about the trials and tribulations of a dedicated missionary family and the precious people they serve. In the process, Hallie also discovers that she is not alone in her suffering and her loss. God is there every step of the way, teaching her and guiding her along a dandelion trail. At the end of the trail, readers learn what happens to Hallie, the Benson family, and their friends after the final scene in Summer Snow.

AFAJ: What is the overarching theme of the book and how does it point to Christ?
JL:  The major theme of this book is very similar to the overall theme of the movie – every decision and every deed is a seed, like the small but powerful seed of a dandelion. Though she is only one small child in a very troubled environment, Hallie tries to live out that truth on a daily basis. She impacts the world around her, which is exactly what God calls each of us to do on a daily basis. He is, after all, the Lord of the Harvest. So when we plant His love and kindness into the lives of others, God uses the small and insignificant seeds to produce a harvest of salvation and souls for His kingdom.

AFAJ: Did any of your personal experiences impact the novel’s storyline?
JL:  I cannot imagine trying to write this story without my own experiences impacting it. It just would not work without who I am being intertwined with who Hallie is. Like Hallie, I learned to love the people of Nicaragua. On the several mission trips I made there, the Nica people ministered to me much more than I ever did to them.

Also, the Bible verse game that Hallie plays with her mom throughout this book is a very similar version of the game I used to play with my own sons. I hesitated to share such a personal part of our lives, but I finally decided that perhaps other families might want to play their own version of the game. For both Hallie and my boys, this game became one of the most treasured memories of their childhood. It also helped prepare Hallie and my sons for things they had to face later in life.

AFAJ: What is your favorite part of the book?
JL:  My favorite scene in the book is the moment when Hallie and her grandfather travel up a Nicaraguan mountain to witness a very special miracle. In my heart, I think that scene will be very similar to that monumental moment when I enter heaven and finally get to look back at my life through the eyes of my heavenly Father. Then, and only then, life – the good, the bad, the tragedies, the triumphs, the heartbreaks, the hurts, every single moment – will finally all make sense.

AFAJ: What do you hope readers take away from the book?
JL:  My prayer is that readers finish this book with a deeper sense of hope and faith in the knowledge that God is guiding each of us along this trail of life. We are not alone, and God leaves nothing to chance. His plans for us are perfect, even in the deepest, darkest valleys of life. All we have to do is keep walking, day by day, and follow that trail, planting seeds of His love along the way. Then, one day, we can look behind us and see the outstanding beauty of His dandelion trail.  

American Family Studios film impact grows

Summer Snow, the American Family Studios movie, which inspired Joy Lucius’s novel Dandelion Trail, continues to gather recognition and impact lives. The film ranked number one on the 2014 list of favorite movies on Christian Film Database, a website that reviews Christian films. Another AFS short film, Accidental Activist, placed number eight. Both films are available at afastore.net.

On a more personal level, Kendra White and her brother Jeremy, co-writers/co-directors of Summer Snow, receive frequent phone calls or emails from those who have been touched by the movie. One recent email came from the leader of a women’s Bible study in a Kentucky correctional facility. She told the Whites that after watching Summer Snow, four women came to faith in Christ, seven requested prayer for broken relationships, and five who had had abortions asked for help in seeking God’s forgiveness.
— Randall Murphree