Also by this author: Gladys Aylward: The Little Woman with a Big Dream, Betty Greene: The Girl Who Longed to Fly, Fanny Crosby: The Girl Who Couldn't See But Helped The World To Sing, Susannah Spurgeon: The Pastor’s Wife Who Didn’t Let Sickness Stop Her
Series: Do Great Things for God #7
Published by Good Book Company on February 12, 2023
Genres: Children's, Children's Educational
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Read the true story of of Helen Roseveare, a missionary doctor in central Africa.
On the day of her eighth birthday, Helen sat in Sunday school cutting and sticking pictures of faraway countries and, in her heart, made a decision:
“When I grow up, I will travel the world and tell other boys and girls about Jesus.”
Follow her life story from medical student to missionary doctor in the heart of Africa. You'll learn all about the ups and downs she experienced, including being held as a prisoner for many months, and you'll discover how her faith kept her going.
This beautifully illustrated children's biography of Helen Roseveare (1925-2016) is part of a series designed to show kids that God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
This new installment in the Do Great Things for God series features Helen Roseveare, a medical missionary who served in the Congo for many years. This picture book biography introduces young children to key elements of her story, with simple text from Laura Caputo-Wickham and colorful illustrations from Cecilia Messina. The story mentions that when Roseveare struggled with anxiety and doubt in college, the Bible verse “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) encouraged her. Years later, during a time of civil unrest in the Congo, an army imprisoned her and other women and children. This verse encouraged her again through their five months of suffering. After their rescue, Roseveare went back to England for a time to recover, but she returned to the Congo as soon as she could to continue her life of service.
At the end, the book includes a timeline of Roseveare’s life. The timeline includes some additional details, and there is a photo of her as an elderly lady on the final page. Personally, I wish that this book had included more details about Roseveare’s life, since I found some of the transitions abrupt, but this is appropriately short and simple for parents to read this to young kids, and for elementary-aged children to read this to themselves. Also, even though parents of easily frightened children should know that war and imprisonment are part of this story, the book covers this briefly and vaguely, with just one mildly scary-looking page spread covering this before the rescue.
I would recommend this book to families, churches, and Christian schools. It shares an inspiring story of mission work and one woman’s faith, and even though I wish that the book had been a little bit longer and included more details, this can be a great jumping-off point for parents and teachers to do more research and open up discussions with kids about the briefly referenced themes in this book, such as doubt and fear, God’s providence, and endurance through challenging times.