"Throughout this book is the metaphor to archery. Arrows fly; arrows land; arrows miss; arrows hit. The aim isn't merely metaphoric. It's a missed opportunity: a mother to know her son, a father to be the protector... the boy.

As the author targets the past and present in a series of well-paced vignettes, we are not left wondering about the destruction of child abuse and the scars it leaves. Text credited to The Wounded Storyteller gives the author a chance to share his questions of faith and existence, a search for meaning.

The Day the Sky Broke Open is an engaging read into hurt. Hoerner weaves dialog with honesty and poetic verse. His sense of emotional timing puts the reader in the front row of a house of dysfunction.

For those who are self-reflective, have questions of their own—or some experience with abuse, read this book. Lovingly attentive to the complications of the family heart, The Day the Sky Broke Open hits the bull's-eye." —LitStack