Too Long a Stranger — Janette Oke

Only the thinnest strand of the past holds the mother and daughter together... The sudden death of her husband had left Sarah Perry and her baby Rebecca alone in their small frontier town. The question from a kind neighbor woman, What do you plan to do?, seemed impossible to answer. All that remained was their home and the freight-hauling business - if sold, it would be at a loss. Sarah was not trained for any job, and she had nowhere to turn.

But Sarah resolved for Rebecca's sake to put her life back together and go on. And to everyone's surprise, Sarah finds a way. But the choices forced upon her by life on the frontier are very hard, especially the question of how to care for Rebecca. The most difficult decision comes when Sarah determines that the best thing for her little daughter's future is to send her away to boarding school.

But the distance that separates them over the years cannot be measured in miles. When the day finally arrives that Rebecca comes home, both mother and daughter find themselves viewing each other from two different worlds. What hope is there of restoring the bond that once was between them? Too Long a Stranger