Elsie Dinsmore - Book Review

Author: Martha Finley 

First Published: 1867
Genre: Christian Fiction

For Ages: 14+ (or really anyone who is a more advanced reader)
Mature Content: None
Questionable Language: None!

God-glorifyingness: 9/10
Ease of Reading: 4/10                       

Plot: 7/10

Overall Rating: 7 1/2/10

Ok, so... another review! I wanted to do a book this time that is easily accesible. It's frustating when you hear of a really good book but a) don't have the money to buy it or b) can't find it 'cause the libraries are closed *sniffles*.

So, this book is old, and hence, it's in the public domain - so it is free to download off sites like Project Gutenburg! Oh, and I will, God willing, be doing a post sometime on sourcing great books for free, as I'm going to aim at doing more accesible literature in the future. 

Elsie Dinsmore is the first in a 28 book series (yep, 28!) which tells the story of a young girl growing up before and around the American Civil War. It also details her children and grandchildren and possibly great grandchildren (but I haven't got that far yet). 

At the start, our heroine, Elsie, lives with her well-to-do extended family and stepfamily in a large plantation in the South. She is a gentle, loving, 9 year old girl who is sadly often mistreated by her harsh grandfather, his wife and and his spoilt children. She longs for her father, whom she has not seen since her mother died, which was shortly after Elsie was born. 

When her father comes home, Elsie is distraught by his stern and distant manner, as well as his carelessness towards the things of God. She must learn to lean on her Heavenly Father day by day.

Will her father learn to love her? Where will her loyalties lie when a matter of conscience comes up or when she must make a exciting and dangerous decision? Can she forgive her Arthur or will he do worse? Will his schemes be exposed or will Elsie suffer for his sins? Most importantly, will her father ever repent?

Ah ha! Suspense! ;D

You can download Elsie Dinsmore from a number of free sites, (again, I will be doing more on them later); I will link them at the bottom of this review.

I really enjoyed Elsie for it's godliness and the heroine's desire to glorify God. There were some pretty exciting chapters, and the tension between her and stepfamily was well played out. The only thing I disagreed with was Elsie's view of the "Sabbath". I don't judge anyone who has a different viewpoint; after all, it is a matter of prayer and conviction. I won't go into it too much, but I think the Bible teaches that the Sabbath was an old covenant symbol which was fulfilled when the new covenant was brought in in. It was a sign of the Mosaic covenant, just like circumcision was a sign of the covenant with Abraham. Exodus 31:13 says:

12And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 13Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you. 

And also, the law is a "shadow of things to come, but the body (substance in other translations) is of Christ." (Colossians 2:17). So, the law and therefore the Sabbath (the sign of the Mosaic Covenant/the law), were the shadow of the reality, which is that Christ is our sabbath rest. It says this is Hebrews 4:3; "for we which have believed do enter into rest". So, the Sabbath is not done away with, it is fulfilled in Christ, the perfect rest.

Anyway, that's it, folks! Have a blessed week and see you next post!

~ Jemima

Links for free download:

On Project Gutenburg 
On Amazon Kindle
On Manybooks