Written in 1955, but still of relevance today, this dystopian novel packs quite a punch. Climate change, strange astronomical manifestations, crop failures, a plague of thistles and scorpion-like insects - all lead to wide-spread famine and sickness. The only solution, according to the author's beliefs, is to repent and turn back to God. Only once everyone asks for forgiveness will the world be safe again. Of course this simplistic message sits uncomfortably for many readers today, as does the Cold War attitude to the evils of Communism (this was, after all the era of McCarthyism) but if you can ignore the heavy moral message it’s still a good entertaining read. Caldwell is a great story-teller, and if, as an atheist I can’t relate to her Christian message, I can nevertheless relate to her message of peace and her warnings about our current moral bankruptcy. It may not be our lack of faith that is causing the world’s ills, but our greed, selfishness and lack of empathy are indeed major factors. A thought-provoking read.

The world is changing- and not for the better. Drought is creeping across the surface of the planet, and with it come poisonous thorny weeds that blot out every sign of life. The only creatures thriving in this toxic new environment are monstrous scorpion-like insects with a sting that kills. Farmers are growing desperate, but the people in the cities are even more so. Pressured into action, the government intervenes- but foolishness and thoughtlessness makes a desperate situation worse yet. And in the middle of everything, one small family has found a moment of hope. Now they must re-discover what brought it about, or the whole earth will be lost.



Taylor Caldwell has written a thought-provoking story that brings to mind the era of the cold war and Communism. This short novel is both a warning against the short-sighted evil of Communism and a call for people to turn back to God in repentance from their sins. I found this an enjoyable read. Your Sins and Mine calls on readers to acknowledge the importance of farming and hard work, but most of all faith. The style and topic of writing is perhaps slightly dated, but it is still a well-written story. I rate it a four out of five stars. I received a complimentary copy of Your Sins and Mine from Open Road Integrated Media in order to give an unbiased review.

This book was pretty good, just rather dated. It was first published in 1955, so that right there can tell you it's not going to have the internet, computers, cell phones or more modern thinking re: women and the disabled. I mention those two groups specifically, because those are the specific groups that were treated as less than when shown in the book. There was a rather nice speech about equality among all further on in the book, but it didn't quite ring true when a blind man and the ladies of the house were discussed.

This book is HEAVY on Christianity, in a positive way and HEAVY on Communism being evil/stupid/wrong, so if you don't agree with either of the above POVs, you are probably going to not like this book very much. It is a product of the times, and I do agree with the thesis behind how mankind is really, really good at killing one another for greedy/stupid reasons and that it needs to stop. I wasn't bothered by the pro-Christian, anti-Communist stance, so was able to read past it and see the basic idea that we need peace. We need to stop killing one another. It's a very positive message and I appreciated it.

I also enjoyed the farmer POV, as I am not a farmer, have a brown thumb and live in a suburban community. I really enjoyed seeing how the farmers all banded together to help each other out. The book was rather negative towards city-dwellers, but considering the government wasn't telling the truth so the city people didn't have all of the information (shocker) and the book was from a farmer POV, it made sense.

One thing that DID bug me, how the pestilence was finally made to go away. The troubles went on for a good YEAR before anybody thought to pray in that specific way? And the pacifist communities, those who were anti-fighting and war, were they affected too? I just read a book about a Mennonite community where it was driven home that they didn't fight, not even in self-defense. So what about them?

Also, I can't believe that religious communities didn't have at least ONE person who prayed in that specific way before a year was up. Maybe religion was less of a thing in the 1950s, or the author was commenting on the "phoned-in" Christian, who went to church, but didn't feel it or act on it outside of that one hour on Sunday. I just couldn't see that being the case today, with it taking so long to understand what was needed and why it was all happening in the first place. So a huge plot issue for me. One star deducted for that.

The second star was deducted because the book was so dated, I was brought out of the book multiple times. It's a great time capsule for that time and place and it has some important things to say that don't fade with time, but I can't see any government in a free country controlling the spread of news so that no regular citizen really knew that the noxious weeds were ALL over the world and that nothing would grow and people were dying like flies. Not with the internet, smart phones, etc. It would be ALL over the internet in moments. It would be interesting to see this book written with instant communication in mind. How would the response of the city people be different, if at all? Would North Korea take the place of Russia in this book? Would it have still been written from a farmer's POV and how would that POV have changed in 60 years time? I would LOVE to see this book re-visited for the modern time!

All in all, not a bad book, but it leaves this particular reader wanting more. It might offend those not of the Christian faith and those who are PC, but it has a strong message at it's backbone of peace and stop fighting and killing each other. I can stand by that. Three, not perfect, but entertaining and made this reader think, stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and Open Road Integrated Media for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

This book is a chilling indictment on the nature of man, and the state of the world that we are living in. We have chosen to abuse the planet and hate each other; putting materialism and self interest over community and love. The world in this books is given a second chance, when it turns its face to God again and begs for a second chance. Are we already too far removed from our humility and faith to recognise that we ourselves may need to do the same thing? A small, terrified part of myself thinks so.

While this book is technically an 'easy read', and is quite short, the ideas and images brought up within it are anything but easy to read, and the ideas have stayed with me. While 'God' is a central theme here, it could be read in a more metaphorical sense and the lessons would still be relevant for those who have chosen not to follow a particular faith path.

A depressing tale about the loss of faith, against the hatred and wars in our world and about the need of repentance.
Although there's hope in the end the feeling after reading this book isn't hopeful. This book shows only God's wrath, not his love.
The sudden repentance of all nations (with Russia as the last of course) is not believable and the communists as those who (of course) start the riots is too stereotypical even if we consider the era the book was first published.

First sentence: My father was no different from other men; he had the wisdom of hindsight. He was also a countryman, and had never been far from the place where he was born, and had always lived close to the earth. So when he told us later of what he had seen in early January—a few months before the strange and awful things had come to pass—we discounted it as superstition, for he was what used to be called a “fundamentalist.”

Premise/plot: Love science fiction? Love apocalyptic fiction? Love dystopias? Ready to read about the end of the world…if the end of the world had happened in the 1950s? Taylor Caldwell's Your Sins and Mine is a must read in my opinion.

Set in a farming community, readers meet Pete and his family. George has two grown sons--both veterans. Edward fought in World War II and came home blind. Pete fought in Korea. Both "boys" are married now with children of their own. They all live on the farmstead. One January evening, George is out late stargazing and notices something eery and ominous in the sky. He doesn't instantly know that the end has come. But. It makes him uncomfortable--increasingly uncomfortable as the drought lengthens month by month. By spring, he fears the worst: no crops. Lest you think he's panicking much too much, you should know: this drought is world-wide effecting every country, every nation. And starvation may be the least of their problems...

My thoughts: I loved this one. I absolutely loved it. This one would pair really well with Pat Frank's Alas, Babylon. It has a lot to say about war, about nuclear weapons, about society, about governments, about the environment.

Favorite quote:
My father spoke louder, moving in his chair indignantly. “I’ve heard you talk about the Sermon on the Mount as if it was just another Declaration of Independence. When you pray, you speak to God politely, and remind Him that we’d like to have a little peace on this earth. You mentioned once that the parables of Jesus are excellent examples of profound human psychology. That was the Sunday when you devoted your whole lecture to the ‘science of psychiatry,’ and what it can do for disturbed minds.” His voice became even louder and was touched with anger. “You mentioned God in passing, but there was a hell of a lot more of Freud in your lecture! Disturbed minds! You’re damned right we’ve got disturbed minds. And why? Because our parsons think it primitive to talk about an ever-present God in the affairs of men. It never occurs to them that a human soul is thirsting for the living God, and hungering to know He is there for the asking.” His voice softened and deepened. “They come to you in grief and bewilderment and pain and you quote textbooks at them, and deny them the bread of life.” “George,” said my mother gently.

The first 5 chapters of this book were almost unbearably scary. I then read some reviews to remind me why I was reading the book and carried on as the book started to get a little lighter.
It is the story of a noxious weed and 'scorpions' that have taken over the world. This has been caused by God as there are no people of faith. The local pastor is more likely to give a lecture on philosophy than a Christian sermon.
After the first few chapters it does get a little easier to read!

Your Sins and Mine begins with a strong premise: earth seems to be under a curse, with crops failing and poisonous weeds taking their place all around the globe. The narrator's father is certain that this is God's final judgment.

While this setup could have launched a classic Twilight Zone episode, Caldwell instead squanders her momentum. Characters are flat, plot points unreasonable (even inside a speculative fiction framework), and finally the book devolves into shallow piety and preachiness.

I would not recommend this book to anyone, including science fiction fans.