The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls Book #3 and #4 Review

The Great Escape and Journey to Jericho

I have some fun books to tell you about from WorthyKids, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls - more specifically The Great Escape (Book #3) and Journey to Jericho (Book #4).  These books are Christian chapter books by MJ Thomas geared to ages 6-9.  Both E (age 7) and D (age 9) read them independently and really enjoyed them.  We had good discussions about both books when they were finished.  Both of these books are short, just over 100 pages and they are great for younger readers.

D reading Book #3.

 D's Book Report for The Great Escape

I loved reading D's book report.  I will share it with you!  She is pretty short and sweet when it comes to writing book reports.

Story Summary:  Mary and Peter were exploring pyramids when Princess Shephara found them, took them to her palace, redressed them, and they stayed there.  In class they learned of so many Gods but there is only one true God!

Main Events:  Mary and Peter explore pyramids.  Mary and Peter go to Egypt.  Plagues come.  Mary and Peter crack the code!  God is powerful and will set you free!

Story Conclusion:  Pharaoh let the people go and God protected his people.  But Pharaoh had changed his mind.  He chased them down and God protected his people!

1 Fact and 1 Opinion:  I like this book because it is based on a Bible story!  This book has 12 chapters and 120 pages.

E with Book #3

With E I decided to let her dictate her report to me.  I asked her about the book and here is her response.  She tends to give more detail than D.

     "The book was good.  I really like it.  Peter and Mary were home.  Then, they went into a Bible story through a scroll.  In the Bible story, they met Princess Shephara, the daughter of Pharaoh.  They rode camels back to the palace (although, Peter didn't want to because the camel spit in his face - laugh).  When they got to the palace, Shephara's slaves dressed them in the nicest clothes in Egypt.  And then Moses and his brother Aaron came and asked Pharaoh to let God's people go (God's people were the slaves).  Pharaoh said no.  Aaron dropped his staff and it turned into a snake.  But the evil magician came (Satan) and did the same thing.  Aaron put his staff in the water, the Nile river, and the water turned to blood.  Pharaoh still said no.  Aaron and Moses went away.  Peter and Mary were trying to figure out what the scroll said so they could go back home.  Basically this book is the Bible story of Moses.  There is the frog plague.  Pharaoh still said no.  Then a swarm of bugs came and bite the people of Egypt.  Boils come next.  Oh I forgot to tell you, Mary and Peter have an angel named Michael that protects them when they are in Egypt.  The last plague is that every 1st born son in Egypt will die; God will strike at midnight.  He will skip the houses if they killed a lamb and put the lamb's blood on the doorway.  Pharaoh said to take the people and go after that.  When God's people are crossing the Red Sea God parts the water.  Pharaoh changed his mind and sends the Egyptian army after them.  When God's people get across the Egyptians are trying to follow them but God closes the water while the Egyptians are still in the water.  Mary and Peter solve the scroll after that and go home!  I really want to read book 1 now".

E with Book #4

D's Book Report for Journey to Jericho

After reading book 3, D was ready to dive into book 4 right away.  Here is D's book report for Book #4.  Again, she is short and sweet.

Story summary:  Mary and Peter travel to Jericho with a scroll.  God tells them, "March around Jericho six days, on the seventh day, march around seven times, the wall will fall and my people will overtake this land!"

Main Events:  Mary and Peter travel to Jericho.  The wall of Jericho falls down.  Mary and Peter figure out the secret of the scroll.

Story Conclusion:  Mary and Peter figure out the secret of the scroll!  It is:  God always keeps his promises!

1 Fact and 1 Opinion:  I like this book because it is a Bible story!  This book has 13 chapters and 120 pages.

My thoughts:  These books are fun and I would recommend them.  The main characters are Peter, his sister, Mary, and their dog, Hank along with their archaeologist Great-Uncle Solomon.  If you haven't guessed it yet from the girls reviews, this is a time-traveling, adventure series that brings Bible stories to life.  Peter and Mary must solve the "secret of the scroll" in each book or else they will be stuck in the past forever.  The angel, Michael guides them in their adventure and helps them when in danger.  I really like the discussions you can have about the books.  You can compare the adventures within the books with the Bible.  They really can make for great discussions!  The girls had no problem reading these and I read one aloud to the younger boys.  They appreciated the black and white illustrations every few pages.

D and E are both asking to read the first two books in this series - The Beginning (Book #1) and Race to the Ark (Book #2).  While it was no problem for them to read these books without having read the first two books in the series, they are like me and want to read them in order!  And exciting upcoming news, The Shepherd's Stone (Book #5) releases this December.

Be sure to click on the banner below to visit the Homeschool Review Crew blog to read more reviews of The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls from WorthyKids.

I haven't decided if I am going to get the other books in this series soon or wait for Christmas.