The Incredible Discovery of Lindsey Renee

Teaching kids about giving is an important aspect of growing up. And 13-year-old Lindsey Renee is about to get the lesson of a lifetime in The Incredible Discovery of Lindsey Renee, written by Joni Eareckson Tada and illustrated by Irena Roman.

Lindsey is unhappy attending church with her family for a special missions night. Though she sits in the pew with her parents, her mind is at the mall where her friends are. In her pocket is a five-dollar bill from her allowance, which she's promised her parents will go to the missions, but she'd rather spend on a sweater at The GAP.

When the plates are passed, Lindsey abruptly gets up and leaves. As she wanders the church, she has an encounter with the intriguing Mr. Billingsley. He knows all about her, and shows Lindsey her Books of Life, surprising her with details she didn't know anyone else knew about her. At the end of their conversation, Mr. Billingsley shares how her decision on whether to give her five dollars could affect the ability of a missionary to fix an airplane, which the missionary uses to reach remote parts of the area he serves.

What I Like: I like how the book shows that even simple decisions can affect others we may not even know - even around the world.

What I Dislike: The ending of the book - where Lindsey gives her $5 and the missionary gets the spark plugs he needs - makes a good point, but it seems contrived from an adult's viewpoint, since the spark plugs were already being sent to the missionary. The missions people didn't have to have the $5 to send the parts since they were already on their way - however, that's the point kids are supposed to take away from this story.

Overall Rating: Very Good.

Age Appeal: 4 - 8, but due to the nature of the story, and the age of the main character, I'd say closer to 7 - 10.

Publisher Info: Crossway Books, 2001; ISBN: 1-58134-195-4; Hardback $15.99

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Special notes: This book was originally released under the title of "It's in God's Hands" in Tell Me the Truth in 1997. We've also reviewed other books by Joni Eareckson Tada. You can find them here.