Book Review – Ten Boys Who Made A Difference by Irene Howat

Ten Boys Who Made A Difference

Ten Boys Who Made A Difference In by Irene Howat

Synopsis:

Would you like to make a difference? These ten boys grew up to do just that – but first they had to change the church. How did God change them?

Augustine discovered the love of God and changed the way we think; Knox focused on God’s word and told his country the truth; Luther rediscovered God’s truth and gave it to ordinary people; Calvin realised that salvation was a gift from God and not a reward for what he did; Tyndale longed to print the Bible in a language that everyone would understand; Latimer urged people to read the Bible for themselves and made enemies as a result; Hus taught that God is in charge of the church and the world; Zwingli challenged people to obey God’s word in every area of their lives; Chalmers called the church to show Christ’s compassion to the poor and Shaftesbury pushed the church into making Christ’s love a living reality for everyone. (Taken from Goodreads page)

Review

This is the final boys’ book in the series of ten (five involving boys and five involving girls). I went into the series really liking the format, layout, and subject material. The ending, while kind of focusing on one theme is still a valuable tool for young people to learn about our Church history.

In this volume, ten boys which include Augustine of Hippo, Jan Hus, Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, William Tyndale, Hugh Latimer, John Calvin, John Knox, Lord Shaftesbury, and Thomas Chalmers follow a similar story pattern of about 15 pages each. The sections starts off with a childhood and family setting and move to either some early important events or through to teenage and college-age and then into adulthood of what they’re known for. The stories include mostly fictional conversations so as to give young readers more than just facts to remember. The conversation are in the spirit of learning about the person. Each person also has a focus on their Christian faith and it usually inspires the conclusion of the story as a way to glorify God. At the end there is a “FACT” of the story expanded upon, a “KEYNOTE” that focuses on the aspect of the story to think about God, a “THINK” area in which a challenge question is presented for discussion, and a “PRAYER” section.

What a collection of men to go out on! Some of the biggest Reformers over the period really risked a lot and really did make a difference in returning the Church back to its first love, the Gospel of grace. While eight of the boys covered focus on the Reformation and the breakaway from the Roman Catholic Church and a return to orthodoxy, it’s odd that two other boys were different. Throughout the history of the Reformation and the different countries and flavors, there are many names to choose from. Yet, the two boys covered were quite interesting to learn about and lives showed the series as true to form. I always enjoyed when the subjects or difficulties the author covers in their childhood are brought out in the main part of their stories.

I would highly recommend this book and the series. The teaching of Church history is something that I’ve found has only strengthened and informed my faith. And having this format is perfect for young readers to start their journey into making a difference in Church history.

Final Grade

A-