Written in 1929 by Honore Willsie Morrow, the book opens as Judson and his young wife, Ann, arrive in Burma.  I was captivated immediately by the cruel reality of that world.  By the 3rd paragraph, death had already affected this young couple (he was 25, she was 21) as they lost their unborn baby while on board a boat with no cabins at all (a tent was pitched on the deck for Ann who was still very sick).  Only the captain spoke English.  They were truly alone with God in a very hostile place.

Thus began Judson's 37 years of service to God in Burma - a country devoted to Buddhist teachings.  Their life is filled with danger and difficulty, life and loss, struggle and sacrifice.  But God's protection surrounds them in so many ways.  It took him three years to learn the language and three more before even one came to Christ.  By the end of 10 years service, Judson had translated the entire New Testament into Burmese.  But he was soon to be arrested and held captive in a death prison for over a year.  I was continually impressed with the devotion of Adoniram and Ann to each other.  She was truly a heroine during his time in prison as she continually found ways to ease the discomfort of the prisoners and to lesson the death penalty that was held over their heads.   She had a baby during this time and soon after his release, she and the baby died of a fever - common in that part of the world.  He sank into a deep depression.  It was a long recovery for him, but he returned to his work - preaching and translating the Old Testament.  He later remarried a missionary widow, Sarah Boardman.  Unfortunately, that is where this book ends.  I was compelled to do a little research and learn . . . .the rest of the story . . .

They continued their work in Burma until she became ill in 1845.  For the first time in 33 years, Adoniram Judson left Burma to return to America with his ailing wife.  She died on board the ship.  He remarried one last time before returning to Burma the next year.  He continued to serve for 4 more years before becoming sick with a lung disease.  A sea voyage was prescribed, but he died on board at the age of 61.

WOW!  What a life!  What devotion!  He translated the entire Bible into Burmese - it is the one still used today.  He published a Burmese-English Dictionary.  And he published A Burmese Grammar that is still used to teach that difficult language.  More importantly, and maybe because of his devotion to precise communication of the gospel, he left 100 churches and over 8000 believers in Burma at the time of his death.  God blessed the work of this man in a remarkable way.

So back to the book . . . it was gripping and well written.  The main characters were well developed and I quickly grew to love them.  I cried at different points throughout the book.  I laughed sometimes, too.  It was filled with tragic reality.  More than anything, I was left with a longing to know more about this man and his work . . . and to better know the God that he served, the God that could inspire such devotion, and direct such amazing miracles.