Vendor Name: Raising Real Men
Vendor Contact: Contact Us (scroll to the bottom)
Name of Product: A Cry from Egypt by Hope Auer
Price: $12.50 for an advanced reader’s copy (ARC)
Age/Grade Range: 8 years and up
About the Book:
His face was pale, but his eyes kindled with indignation as he stood in front of the girls protectively. Ezra dropped the pitchers in the sand and his hand ashed to a dagger, concealed under his tunic. Jarah’s eyes grew wide. He could be killed for carrying a dagger!
Jarah was a slave in Egypt. It was a dangerous place to be.Her work was exhausting and her family was torn between the gods of the Egyptians and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And her brother… would his Ada be given in marriage to an Egyptian in the palace? Would they ever be free?
Adventure, excitement, love, and faith come together when Jarah and her family fi nd themselves at the culmination of four hundred years of history.
About Hope Auer:
Hope Auer has been writing stories and plays actively since she was very young. Through her schooling years she developed a passion for history and telling stories which eventually culminated in the writing of “The Promised Land Series.” In addition to writing, Hope loves the Lord, life, church, family, and children. She was homeschooled and works and learns alongside her family, who are the first people to read her books. Hope has a heart for children that is evident as she helps in youth theater, teaches piano, and writes stories. Hope also has a little Shih Tzu named Sophie who often sits on her lap and helps her write.
My Opinion:
Step back in time and travel with me to Ancient Egypt to the time of the Hebrews being slaves. Written from a Christian worldview this will be unlike any fictional book that you’ve read based in Egypt. Having a child who is very interested in anything Ancient Egypt, it’s hard to find books and items that come from a Christian worldview and satiate her desire to learn about the Egyptians of old. In fact, it’s near impossible, since so much focus on is their fake gods and goddesses and other non Christian beliefs – so when I saw this new book was being offered to members of the TOS Crew, I jumped on it knowing my daughter and all three of my children would enjoy it.
I used this as a read aloud to all three of my children, even though it’s geared for ages 8 years old and up, my 6 year old found himself engrossed in the story line as well. One caution, if your children are sensitive to ‘bad’ things you may want to pre-read it first – personally, I use these things as a teachable moment and we discuss it. There is mention of the brutality that was common place among the Hebrew slaves and their position as non-people – such as whippings. Again, this could be a teachable moment and since it’s written with a Christian worldview in mind it’s easier to read and use than something written specifically for a secular audience.
The themes of faith, family, and forgiveness are woven through out the book and are easy for children to grasp, even with the sometimes deep plot. Even as a mom reading this some of it has spoke to me, such as the relationship between Jarah and her mother – it’s rocky and her mother is often not nice to anyone especially her family. This would be an excellent living book to use within your studies of Ancient history, Egypt or of the Hebrew captivity or just as a family book to enjoy aloud with one another. I appreciate that it’s written by a homeschool graduate, who understands the unique needs and wants of good literature for families when it’s so lacking today. There are illustrations at the beginning of each chapter which my children enjoyed looking at and these too are done by another homeschool graduate.
If you want to see what other homeschool parents thought of this book visit the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.
**Disclaimer: As a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, I received this product, at no cost to me, in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are mine.
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