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In the late 600s to early 700s AD, Islam, just born and always militant, exploded out of Arabia and conquered 2/3 of the Roman Empire, whose capital was Constantinople and which was completely Christian. These lands, except for Spain, never became majority Christian again. Islam tried to spread northwards into Europe but was stopped at Vienna, Austria and in the Pyrenees Mountains between Spain and France. After conquering North Africa and the Middle East, Islam spread southward through Niger as far as the latitude of Togo. In about the last 150 years, Christian missionaries have penetrated into these African lands to bring the gospel to black African Muslim people.
Tim and Sue Eckert and their children ministered in Niger for 15 years to some of the Muslim Fulani people, who are mainly nomadic herders. Currently in the news, an unrelated branch of the Muslim Fulani people, who wander over a number of countries, have been responsible for many kidnappings and murders of Christians in Nigeria. We met the Eckerts after their first term in Niger in the early 1990s and became friends and supporters of their work. Tim and Sue saw much fruit among the people they worked with, both in new salvations and growth in knowledge of the Bible. Sue wrote a children’s book, entitled Mamane’s Journey: An African Muslim Youth Learns of Christ which told in detail the story of one boy’s coming to Christ, followed by his mother and young siblings. The book is based on the true story, since Tim and Sue were friends of this family. The story of Mamane is touching and gives a good view of life in that Muslim-majority culture, along with the misinformation about Christians spread among the Fulani people. The book shows the persecution and family rejection faced by those who choose to follow the truth of Jesus Christ rather than the untruths of Mohammed, along with the dreams of the Savior that God is using to call the Muslim Fulani people to Himself.
The illustrations are pencil drawings by Tabitha Eckert, Tim and Sue’s daughter, which fit the story nicely. There is a short list of definitions in the back of the book, keyed to footnotes, which explains the small number of Fulani or Arabic words that are used in the book to give the reader a flavor of the speech patterns of Mamane and his relatives and friends. Since Mamane’s Journey is well-written, it would be a good read-aloud book for the family. I would say that the reading level is upper elementary school. Whether they hear it or read it for themselves, children will learn that following Jesus Christ is a great adventure!