Maw Books

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My last book to review for the Christmas season is The Handmaid and the Carpenter by Elizabeth Berg. If you are looking for a lighthearted story about the courtship and love of Mary and Joseph than this is the book for you.

From the publisher:

We see Mary – young, strong, and inquisitive – as she first meets Joseph, a serious-minded young carpenter who is steadfastly devoted to the religious traditions of their people.  The two become betrothed but are soon faced with an unexpected pregnancy.  Aided by a great and abiding love, they endure challenges to their relationship as well as threats to their lives as they come to terms with the mysterious circumstances surrounding the birth of their child, Jesus.  For Mary, the pregnancy is a divine miracle and a privilege.  For Joseph, it is an ongoing test not only of his courage but of his faith – in his wife as well as in his God.

The Handmaid and the Carpenter is Elizabeth Berg’s fictionalized account of what may have happened those many years ago.  I enjoyed the love story between Mary and Joseph.  It showed them as two normal teenagers under extremely abnormal circumstances, as well as their reactions to delivering the son of God.  I do, however, believe that Elizabeth Berg showed them as more ignorant than they really were.  I believe that both Mary and Joseph understood their role in history.  They spoke with angels.  I wish that there was more divinity present.  It has it’s faults.  But that said, this story was about their courtship, marriage, and becoming young parents.  As long as you don’t nitpick it, you’ll probably enjoy it.  I thought it was a nice nativity story.

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