Robinson, Marilynne
Lila homeless and alone steps inside a small-town Iowa church and ignites a romance and a debate that will reshape her life. She becomes the wife of a minister John Ames and begins a new existence. Neglected as a toddler Lila was rescued by Doll a young drifter and brought up by her in a hardscrabble childhood. When Lila arrives in Gilead she struggles to reconcile their days of hardship with the gentle Christian worldview of her husband which paradoxically judges those she loves.