From Deseret News archives:

'Sunshine' explores family's major trauma

Published: Thursday, Oct. 18, 2007 12:03 a.m. MDT

By Sharon Haddock, For the Deseret News

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PLEASANT GROVE — It happens so often in Utah — an adult backs out of a driveway, runs over and kills a toddler.

First-time novelist Christy R. Stevenson of Pleasant Grove captures the emotional trauma in gripping detail that a fictional family would go through after the father backs over his daughter, 2-year-old Gracie, in the paperback, "Sunshine, a novel."

Although the story isn't set in Utah, it is about a Latter-day Saint family, and it is a religious novel.

Each chapter leads off with a passage from LDS scripture from the Pearl of Great Price, the Book of Mormon or the Doctrine and Covenants.

Self-published by Outskirts Press Inc. of Denver, the book follows the family from the tragic loss of the little girl through repentance, forgiveness and healing.

It's not an easy read because "Sunshine" is a powerfully emotional story meant to soothe the troubled soul.

The novel explores the question: How can a family and a marriage survive such a tragedy?

"I put myself in that situation. I had a 2-year-old daughter at the time," said Stevenson.

A former junior high school English teacher, she looked at how she would feel about her husband and marriage if it happened to her. A recurring theme emerged during the process: With God in control, are there really any accidents?

"That's an age-old question — how much of life is meant to be and how much is left to chance? I don't know if we'll ever really solve it," she said.

Stevenson turned to self-publishing the novel after she challenged the LDS market with the unhappy book and was rejected.

"They liked the writing, but I don't think they were ready for it," she said.

The story itself came from the trauma one of her students suffered after witnessing a neighbor run over and kill a child while backing out of a driveway.

Though a tragedy, the novel's title, "Sunshine," becomes a metaphor for happiness. It is available through online booksellers, www.amazon.com and others.

SUNSHINE, A NOVEL