One of my favorite Macomber books. She is an amazing author. Highly recommended.
FROM AMAZON: They were sisters once. Almost forty years ago, in a more innocent time, two girls enter the convent. Angelina and Joanna come from vastly different backgrounds, but they have one thing in common, a desire to serve, to join in the community of sisters.
Despite the relative seclusion of the convent house in Minneapolis, they're not immune to what's happening in the world around them. In 1972, Angie's involvement with a pregnant teenager triggers a crisis of faith. At the same time, Joanna's relationship with a Vietnam veteran brings her face-to-face with the choices she made, and didn't make, in her own life.

Then, Angie and Joanna leave the sisterhood, abandoning the convent for the exciting and confusing world outside. The world of choices to be made, of risks to be taken. Of men and romantic love. The world of ordinary women. ( )

(Warning: Spoilers May Be Included In This Review. Read At Your Own Discretion)

I struggled with how to rate this book which follows three women (Angelina, Kathleen, and Joanna) as they choose to join, then leave the convent. Part of my struggle with how to rate the book falls on the author and some of her choices. I have commented before that I don't like how far Macomber allows her characters to go in their sexual attraction/sexual scenes. Usually, she reigns them in before the sex act itself, but in this book there seems to be no such restraint--and it's not between the people you'd expect it to be between (a husband and wife) but instead between two teens and even a rape scene! I might forgive the scenes between the two teens since, even though I'd prefer they weren't there, they did have a purpose in the plot--but the rape scene comes out of left field for me and the only purposes I can see for it plot-wise are 1) to show us how naive and sheltered former nuns are when they're out in the world and 2) to provide a reason for Kathleen to contact Father Doyle--and honestly, for #2, I think the author could have found another way for that to happen without having to resort to a graphic sex scene.

I found the details about this particular group of nuns and how the girls trained to be nuns interesting. I don't think I'd have been able to do some of what was expected of them: silence for 12 hours a day, a whole year of mostly silence (the 2nd year of training), not being able to see family, not being able to eat a meal with others who aren't sisters or family. But, that said, as much as I disagree personally with some Catholic teaching, I do admire that these three women felt a calling to serve God and seemed to connect with him on a level that I struggle to find.

I also didn't know that nuns could ask for a leave of absence from their order. (Of course, today's environment might be totally different than the years in which this book were set.)

Angelina is an only child whose mother passes away. Her father owns a restaurant named after her, and Angelina enjoys spending time with him there and learning how to tell what spices various dishes need. Angelina's father made a promise to her mother to raise her as a good Catholic, but he's always thought she'd take over the restaurant from him. He's not overjoyed when she decides to become a nun instead. Angelina end up being a parochial teacher. She forms a bond with one of her students, Corinne, who questions Catholic teachings when she falls in love with a Protestant boy. (There's an odd mix of trying to live out some Catholic beliefs while also trying to be a feminist.) This causes Angelina to start questioning her decisions.

Kathleen's family seemed to decide she was going to be "their nun" when she was 6 years old. I'm not sure Kathleen ever thought about doing anything else as a vocation. She became a parochial teacher also and did bookkeeping/administrative work for the church school. A supposed fill-in job keeping the parish books leads to her discovering discrepancies and seeing flaws behind the veil. Eventually she's accused of doctoring the books (which she did but at a priest's direction) and stealing from the church (which she didn't do). When her order doesn't stick up for her as she expects, she starts to question decisions she's made.

Joanna thought about being a nun in ninth grade but meeting Greg made her rethink that career choice. She and Greg get engaged just before he is shipped off to the war in Vietnam. Greg comes home with a pregnant wife. Joanna takes this as confirmation that life in the convent is for her. She trains as a nurse, but lives in the same convent with Kathleen and Angelina. Joanna falls in love with a doctor at the hospital where she works.

The novel touches on the church hiding certain aspects of its priests--such as having priests who were alcoholics or priests who were homosexual. In both cases presented in this novel, the bishop, when told of the problems, chose to transfer a priest elsewhere rather than getting him the help he needed or confront the problem or remove him from the priesthood. In one case, it seemed like the priest who was trying to ask for help in dealing with a colleague was punished for bringing the problem to the bishop's attention.

The novel also touches on the fact that not as many people (men or women) choose the priesthood or being a nun as used to--and the changes that have resulted from that realization. Some priests from other nations are asked to come to staff American churches to help alleviate the shortages. Nuns have had their clothing requirements changed (habits becoming less severe or eliminated altogether) and don't have such strict silence requirements during training--their living quarters aren't cells like they were in this book's time. ( )

You will be as surprised as I was. This was a great book. ( )

I really enjoyed this book. I am a Catholic and it was interesting to see what the life of nun was like previously. I had a nun as my Kindergarten teacher and she was the most wonderful (she still is) woman. She in no longer a nun but didn't leave until the last 90's. She is still very involved in the Catholic Church and school.

Joanna, Kathleen, and Angelina were very unique and interesting characters. Their families encouragement and discouragement of their decision to become a nun was surprising. I just assume if you have a daughter that wants to be a nun you would be thrilled(I have all boys) Especially during the years these three were joining the convent. ( )

Changing Habits. Debbie Macomber. 2003. As I expected, this was a typical modern romance novel, and Maccomber is a master of these “happily ever after” novels. What I didn’t expect was the trashing of the Catholic Church. Three girls enter a convent in the late 50s, and the novel follows their lives from the decisions to enter, through their training and final vows, the reasons they decide to leave, Vatican II reforms, birth control and women’s liberation, and their lives after they leave the convent. The Church is the villain; all of the priests, except the one who decides to leave the Church are corrupt or mentally ill, The Church is not without its faults, but this is a one-sided picture. ( )