A Warrior Prince for God

A Warrior Prince for God, written by Kelly Chapman, features short, fully-illustrated chapters and introduces young boys to the "Warrior Prince Academy, a training ground for becoming soldiers of God.

It begins with Luke at bat. While his best friends, Harris and Tomas, are on his baseball team, so are two bullies called Double and Trouble. When Luke strikes out, Coach Britmore encourages the whole team with a reminder of King David and his mighty men.

That night Luke, Harris and Tomas have a backyard camp out. After pizza and laughs, they all fall asleep and Luke begins to dream about knights and castles and an invitation to Warrior Prince Academy. As Sir Britmore begins training the boys, he warns them fiercely about Drakon, a cunning snake and enemy of the King, and tells them the story of David and Goliath.

Double and Trouble, of course, aren't afraid and embark on an after-dark hunt for Drakon. Luke tries to warn them, but gets lost in the woods. That's where he meets Drakon himself. Even though he's afraid, Luke remembers Sir Britmore's instructions "When you face your enemy, stand strong in the Lord." Luke prays and speaks truth to Drakon's lies. Finally he finds Double and Trouble who have fallen into a pit and can't get out. Drakon tries to convince Luke to leave them there as payback for all the times they've been mean to him. Luke stands strong, resisting all the temptations and finally speaks the name of Jesus. At that, Drakon slithers quickly away.

The boys are met with cheers when they return to camp. Double and Trouble shout praises for Luke who just defeated Drakon, but Luke gives credit where it's due: "All I did was pray. God did the rest! With His strength, I had the courage to stand up to Drakon."

Luke awakes confident that he can be a noble and brave warrior with God's help.

The back of the book offers a Q&A section about the plan of salvation. It also provides a "Royal Prince Prayer" (a sample sinner's prayer) and a certificate for readers to fill out professing their belief.

The illustrations by Jeff Ebbeler are a bit sketchy, but filled with style and character. He employs a wonderful use of color and dimensional lighting.

What I Like: The illustrations are fantastic, the text is expertly written and the message is clear and strong. Both my kids really like this book (though my daughter persistently reminds us that she's not a "son" or a "prince"). I appreciate the back-matter. The Gospel message is clear and fully supported by Scripture. These sections do well to reinforce the truths behind the book's story. My favorite part, however, is Luke's humility. He explicitly gives God credit for defeating his enemies, just like King David did. This is a perfect example for believers to follow.

What I Dislike: I'm not a fan of "dream" stories. This one shows "reality" only in the first chapter and the very last paragraph of the book. I kept waiting for Luke to wake up at chapter breaks, but he didn't. The dream just kept going. I think the story would have been just as effective if told without that added dimension. Or if it alternated more frequently between "reality" and the continuing dream. Also, Drakon's dialog uses a lot of extended ssss's. It's not a huge problem, but I did find it excessive and a bit cumbersome to read aloud.

Overall Rating: Even with my "dislikes" above, this is an Excellent choice for young boys.

Age Appeal: 3-8

Publisher Info: Harvest House, 2010; ISBN: 0736928952; Hardback; 32 pages; $15.99

Buy it Now at Christianbook.com for $8.99!OR Buy it at Amazon.com for $12.47.

Special Info: This book is just one of many resources available from Royal Purpose Ministries. They also offer activity books, CDs, DVDs, curriculum, and even camp programs suitable for your church's VBS program. Their goal is "to teach, equip, and encourage others about their true identity in Christ so they can walk in freedom as they seek to live out God's purpose for their lives." Learn more at http://www.royalpurpose.com/.

See our review of a similar title for girls: Princess with a Purpose, also by Kelly Chapman.