Publication: 2014 by Shadow Mountain
Length: 32 pages
My Rating: *****--5 Stars
Source: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Description: Thomas S. Monson loved spending summers at his family's cabin in Utah's Vivian Park. One summer day, he and his best friend, Danny, decided to clear a field so they could gather with their friends and have a campfire that night. The tall, stubborn weeds would not pull out easily. So Tommy had the idea to burn them up instead.
He knew he shouldn't use matches without permission from his parents. But he ignored the feeling that warned him of the danger and raided the matchbox in the cabin. Back in the field, he lit one little match and prepared to set the parched June grass abaze...
Readers of all ages will resonate with this wonderful true story that demonstrates the blessings of obedience and "the dangers that can come from something as small as one little match."
My Review:
I remember listening to this story in General Conference and thinking of how many life experiences President Monson has had. Even the "bad" ones are such a great learning experience and have such great messages for me to pull out of them. This one is no exception. I read this one with my two youngest kids and even they remembered the story. This story gives me hope--I'm not perfect and neither are my kids, yet even our prophet made a bad choice way back when...and he's the prophet now! Every one of us can learn from our mistakes and set our course on the straight path because of them.
The pictures are amazing and beautiful! I love the way they portray the story so well--it's one my kids have asked to read over and over again.
The final message is one that has stuck with me: You have no idea what will result from one little seemingly harmless decision. It's so important to remain obedient and to receive those blessings.
About the Author:
PRESIDENT THOMAS S. MONSON has served as the sixteenth President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since 2008. He was called as an Apostle in 1963 at the age of thirty-six. After serving as second counselor to President Ezra Taft Benson and then President Howard W. Hunter, he served as first counselor to President Gordon B. Hinckley from 1995 to 2008.
Thomas Spencer Monson was born to G. Spencer and Gladys Condie Monson on August 21, 1927, in Salt Lake City. Following his service in the U.S. Navy near the close of World War II, he graduated cum laude from the University of Utah and earned an MBA from Brigham Young University. He had a distinguished career in the publishing industry.
He served as president of the Canadian Mission from 1959 to 1962 and was a member of several general Church committees before becoming an Apostle.
He married Frances Beverly Johnson in the Salt Lake Temple in 1948. They are the parents of two sons and one daughter. They have eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
About the Illustrator:
DAN BURR earned his bachelor of fine arts degree from Utah State University and a master’s degree in illustration from Syracuse University. He and his wife, Patti, are raising their two children and numerous farm animals on twelve acres of river-bottom land in Tetonia, Idaho. Dan is a well-known Christian illustrator who also specializes in wildlife renderings. A few of the books Dan has illustrated are The Miracle of the Wooden Shoes, I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, and The Mansion.
No comments:
Post a Comment