It is incredibly hard in this day and age to find wholesome books that you and your children can enjoy. The Bible speaks of only taking in thoughts that are pure, good, and uplifting; it is getting harder and harder to do that with the types of newer books that are published. Daniel Mills, the founder of Salem Ridge Press thought about this too when creating his company. He was inspired early on with living books he read as a homeschool student that spurned him on to create a company that would republish older books. I love that Salem Ridge Press is a family run business by a newly married couple that were also homeschooled. For this review we were asked to read Margarethe a Tale of Luther and Zwingli. I have to admit that when I was picked for this review I didn't even know who Zwingli was or very much about Martin Luther and the Reformation.
Margarethe was written by Emma Leslie and is included in a series of books named The Emma Leslie Church History Series. Emma Leslie wrote over 100 books for children that brought a strong Christian emphasis in her writing.
What You Need To KnowRecommended Age: 12 - Adult
Type: Available in soft or hard cover, 280 pages
Setting: The story takes place in Germany and Switzerland, 1517 - 1522 A.D.
Notable People and Events: Martin Luther, Zwingli, German and Swiss Reformation
Sample Chapter: Margarethe - Sample Chapter
Price: Softcover 14.95
Hardcover 24.95
Sets of the church history series are also available at
discounted prices
How We Used the Product and What We Thought
Using living books as read alouds is probably my favorite part about homeschooling. I love learning right beside my daughter and I am finding that many things are all new to me. I was not taught church history as a child or even as an adult for that matter. Reviewing this book has inspired me to learn more and what better way than interweaving church history with a well written fictional story. We used Margarethe as a read aloud and read one chapter a day five days a week. This of course took us the entire review period and we actually just finished it yesterday. This book will interest both girls and boys because there are strong lead characters that are male and female. What boy wouldn't enjoy reading about castles and knights. Grace was struck most by what the church was like at that time in history and all the corruption that was going on. While reading this book it sparked many discussions about the early church and what has changed and what has stayed the same. My favorite character was Else and Grace's was Fritz. She admired his constant care and consideration for his sisters. I appreciated that vocabulary words were printed at the bottom of most pages because some of the words are not used in common day language anymore. I did have trouble with pronouncing some of the German towns and German names but it did not detract from reading the story. I am very excited about this company and what they are trying to accomplish. I am enthusiastically recommending my readers to check them out. Reading Margarethe has inspired me to learn more about church history and I am going to my computer now to order the first book in the Church History Series. I hope to read the entire series and share it with Grace along the way.
Please go visit a wonderful company, Salem Ridge Press, and check out all the wonderful book choices and especially Margarethe.
Also visit The TOS Review Crew to check out all the books that were reviewed from Salem Ridge Press.
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