Twelve Youthful Martyrs

by Esther E. Enock
Available from Keepers of the Faith and Amazon
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I read this book aloud to my husband in the car, and we both marveled at the constancy which these martyrs held to the Lord Jesus. Most of the characters were under 20, and the sweet simplicity with which they refused to deny their Lord touched our hearts and made us wonder if we would be as faithful. We have the same wonderful Savior, and we may one day be called to suffer for His sake. These held Him precious, and as He had saved them and given them new life, they could not turn from Him, whatever the consequences. Their witness proclaimed that they knew Someone worth more than life, and that their lives would be far richer with Him than on this earth. The eternal glow of their lives and deaths puts so many things of this world into their proper perspectives.

This book was well researched, and the author gives detailed names, places and dates in these short accounts. Each story is just a couple pages, and the whole book only numbers 63 pages. Although this was obviously written for children, adults will also be glad to read the testimonies of these young martyrs who “loved not their lives unto death."

Tirzah

by Lucille Travis
Available from Amazon
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Tirzah is a fictional young girl, an Israelite in Egyptian bondage. We follow her out of the hated Egypt, and see what the trek through the wilderness might have been to a young girl. She witnessed the plagues of Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea, feared during the creation and rebellion of the golden calf and the giving of the law, and wondered what would happen when there was nothing to drink. She gathered manna, worried over the sickness from the many quail, and speculated – like a typical teen – about who the matchmakers would think to put together. Tirzah’s relations are involved in the common rebellions, and she hears their reasonings and justifications for their positions. The theme of racial prejudice is brought up concerning another young girl, an Egyptian maiden who turned to Yahweh and journeyed with the children of Israel. The final scenes of the book occur when the twelve spies have returned from Canaan. Because of the Israelites’ unbelief in Yahweh, they are cursed to wander 40 years in the wilderness until those who did not believe were dead. Tirzah struggles with fear and rebellion throughout the book, but by the end she comes to understand a little of the ways of Yahweh, and learns to hope in Him.

Obviously written to appeal to teens, I thought the characters could have displayed a little more maturity. Other than that, Travis has an easy reading style. This won’t be anyone’s favorite book of the year, but you might check it out for a perspective on what it might have been like for the Israelite children. It's interesting to read about the places and events in Exodus in a work of fiction, and many details from the Scriptures are woven throughout it.