How precious are Your thoughts to me, O LORD ... how vast is the sum of them!

Monday, October 2, 2017

Five Fall Favorites Day One



Welcome to Day 1 of the Five Fall Favorites Party hosted by Rebekah Morris at Read Another Page! As fall brings its usual evening chill to the close of the day, it’s a treat to gather around the bonfire to talk about your favorite books. Or, if you’re able, you can use the tricky, flickering light to read your favorite passages aloud. 



The favorite books I’m going to tell you about are in a specific genre: historical fiction set in Bible times. I’m picky about my Biblical fiction (we probably all are in one way or another!); I want to read something that’s as historically accurate as possible and that doesn’t contradict the Biblical account. Imaginative filling-in is okay with me as long as it helps me understand the Bible instead of undermining it. Ancient times were hard and extremely different from our own, so although I know violence and mistreatment of women were common, the novels I prefer don’t dwell on those aspects.



So here’s my list!





Dahveed by Terri Fivash

This is the first book in a series about David. Fivash paid great attention to Biblical and historical detail, even spelling the names the way they are pronounced in Hebrew. This told the story of Dahveed’s youth, weaving together what we know about him from the Bible with plausible and exciting additions that flesh out his life. Check out my full review on Goodreads.


Joseph by Terri Fivash

Terri Fivash also wrote about Joseph, another young man who lived through adventures and hardships that molded him into a vessel fit for God’s use. This was a long book, but it moved quickly. As with Dahveed, the Biblical characters are developed into people we feel we know, and we’re brought to a deeper understanding of what’s behind the Biblical account. Find on Goodreads.





First Light by Bodie & Brock Thoene

Fiction during Jesus/Yeshua’s time on earth is especially tricky, but this book handled it extremely well. Yeshua is a side character, and from what I can recall, the only words He speaks are those recorded in Scripture. Something I don’t like in fiction about this period is that Jews are often misrepresented, but First Light depicted Jewish characters and their way of life with great accuracy and respect, showing just how beautiful their traditions are and how those beliefs work with faith in Yeshua. Find on Goodreads.





Within the Palace Gates by Anna P. Siviter

This is a children’s novel about how Nehemiah rebuilt Jerusalem’s wall. I read this book a long time ago, but I remember liking it a lot. It brought a somewhat obscure yet exciting Biblical story to life (Nehemiah isn’t one of the most famous books in the Bible!). I remember really liking the characters. It’s definitely time for a reread, though. Find on Goodreads.





Day of Atonement by David A. deSilva

This book depicted the inter-testament period and what led to the Maccabean revolt and eventually the events celebrated at Hanukkah. The author is a scholar, so the historical details are the focus and taught me quite a bit about an era that I was pretty unfamiliar with. This one, and, come to think of it, Dahveed, Joseph, and First Light, as well, are books for teens/adults (but there was nothing overly graphic in any of them). Read my full review on Goodreads.



What are your favorite novels set in Bible times?

Enter the giveaway where you can win fantastic prizes!


http://readanotherpage.com/2017/10/top-5-giveaway-blog-hop-bible-fiction.html

31 comments:

  1. I've read The King's Cupbearer, but none of the others. They sound good. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh cool! I don't know too many people who've even heard of it. :)

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Thanks for commenting! I've been perusing everyone's choices in this party and have been interested to find out how many are out there that sound good but that I haven't read yet. :)

      Delete
  3. Thanks for sharing. I'll definitely look into them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome! It can be difficult to find good Biblical-era fiction. :)

      Delete
    2. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
  4. Joseph is one of my favorite Bible story's so thank you for the book review.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My pleasure! Joseph is one of my favorites, too.

      Delete
  5. I am going to be adding these to my to-read list!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yay! I think you would like them. The one about the Maccabean revolt was especially fascinating because I haven't too much about that.

      Delete
  6. I read Within the Palace Gates and it was a great book. The history and mystery!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Joseph is one of my favorite Bible characters!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I haven't read any of these books because I don't read biblical stories except the actual Holy Bible and maybe some children's stories to the children at church or my granddaughters. However, I am open to reading a few of these titles sometime.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I completely understand. Sometimes I hesitate about reading Bible-era fiction, too, but I have found a few that I feel actually increased my understanding of the Bible.

      Delete
  9. Within the Palace Gates looks like one I'd like to read! I've added it to my list. One of my favorite Biblical stories is "Twice Freed", by Patricia St. John. It's a tale of Onesimus, the runaway slave. =)

    Thanks for the recommendations!

    Blessings,
    Liberty Bluebelle

    "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, neat! A tale about Onesimus would be very interesting because he is such an obscure yet important character in the Bible. We have the book of Philemon because of him!
      Thanks for your comment!

      Delete
  10. Wow, I'd love to read that book about Dahveed sometime. Thanks for the recommendation!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My pleasure! It really was an exciting and interesting book.

      Delete
  11. That looks like a good stack of books. I have not read any of them, but they look good

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! They were outstanding favorites among the other biblical fiction I've read.

      Delete
  12. Oh, the Theone's books are always so well written and researched! They're a great to read. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree!! I love their Zion Chronicles series. First Light is the first of a series of 12. Hopefully I'll get to read them all sometime.

      Delete
  13. Great list!! I've seen Bodie Thoene around and may have to try her/them someday.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Absolutely! I think you would like her. Bodie Thoene is the main writer and her husband, Brock, helps her because she is dyslexic. (If I remember the story correctly!)

      Delete
  14. Hi Kelsey. It's a rare day when I read biblical fiction (I'm extremely picky about it!) but it's interesting to see what's out there. Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi! I can understand being picky about biblical fiction. :) We have to be so careful not to read anything that will obscure the biblical account. Thanks for dropping in!

      Delete
  15. These look so good! Great list! Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! And it's my pleasure. It's been fun to see your favorites, too!

      Delete