Disclaimer: I read a free pre-release copy of Ashlyn’s book. However, I self-purchased plenty of copies of it, so my review is 100% objective!
I have always been a fan of Hot Springs local author Ashlyn Ohm. She has written numerous works in which she majestically blends Christian writing with her passionate enjoyment of the outdoors and mountains. I am re-reading through her devotional “A Year in the Woods”, and I have read all three of her “Climbing Higher” fiction series.
“High Country Hymnal” is Ashlyn’s first attempt at publishing a poetry book. Like the rest of her writings, she provides another first-class hit to readers. It was also fun to see Ashlyn venture into a new genre as if she was venturing into an unexplored new hiking trail.
“High Country Hymnal” is not a typical poetry book. Not all the poems are all the same style (there is plenty of variety of poetic styles in this work), they all do not have to 100% rhyme each time (there is a blend in some that rhyme, others that do not), and even those who are “bored” by most typical poetry books will not be bored reading “High Country Hymnal!”. She artfully blends her passion for the outdoors and the mountains and her love for the Lord in a work that is truly a hymnal of praise to the Lord and for His creation. Readers of her other works will get to read some glimpses of “journal pages” and get a close up of Ashlyn sharing her writings and herself in even a deeper level than her other writings, as if we are getting a inside glimpse at the spirit in which Ashlyn delivers her writings we have all come to enjoy. New readers of her work will find “High Country Hymnal” to be a great starting point to whet one’s appetite to want to read her devotional and fiction series!
“High Country Hymnal” is another excellent work by Ashlyn Ohm and one I highly recommend reading (and for those who have not read her other works yet, grab those when buying “High County Hymnal”). Readers will be blessed by encountering her work that leads them closer to the Lord and reminds them of the majesty of God’s creation.