Christian Book Reviews: The Inheritance by Donna Sundblad

The Inheritance, written by Donna Sundblad, is a Christian allegory written along the lines of traditional allegories such as the Pilgrim’s Progress or Hinds’ Feet On High Places. (Note: Donna is also a HubPages writer.)

However, there is little similarity between these rather staid tomes and the action-packed pages of Sundblad's novel.

While it may sound trite and time-worn to say that “I couldn’t put it down,” the reality is that I had to make myself stop reading it long enough to do mundane tasks like eat, sleep and care for my family.

I could not wait to find out what kind of trouble Jejune would get into next and what would happen to him.

Don’t be fooled by the start of the novel, which introduces the orphan Jejune and his faithful companion Wigglewot. Orphaned when his parents never returned from a quest and consumed by questions he cannot answer in his home village, he sets out on a quest to find the truth about himself, his parents, and the Eternal City.

While this might seem like the tried and tested hero goes on quest, meets fair maiden, vanquishes some enemies, and lives happily ever after tale, it is much more. Keep reading for some more tantalizing tidbits...

The most compelling feature for me as I lived the adventure with Jejune was the skill with which Sundblad literally brought her characters to life on the printed page.

Jejune, just like the rest of us, made many poor choices.

Sometimes he learned from them and made better choices but all too often, he yielded to the temptation of the world or the flesh and made the same bad choices repeatedly.

I could empathize with him (I’ve made my own poor choices)!

I found myself trying to encourage him or exhort him mentally as I devoured the pages to find out what would happen next.

Jejune does meet a fair lady—in fact, he meets two of them, lucky boy!—and gets himself into a bit of difficulty.

I did find the name "Jejune" to be a little bewildering, but after I read the interview Lisa Binion did with Donna, I not only understand why Jejune was the perfect name for the main character, I also had a deeper understanding of the symbolism and names of the other characters.

I won't spoil the plot for you by telling you any of the revealing details, but I think you will find this subplot to be one of the better portions of the book.

Stay alert or you will miss the clues to the surprise ending of this side story.

The other thing I really liked was how Sundblad used allegory and symbolism to represent Christian concepts and principles without being “preachy” or trying to influence my thinking processes.

This excellent book would be perfect for a women’s study group or youth group looking for something besides the traditional Joyce Meyer and Beth Moore offerings (which are great study books, by the way!)

The two classic Christian allegories I mentioned earlier are both fine books in their own right, and they have places of honor on my bookshelf.

I am thrilled to add The Inheritance to my collection as well. If you would like to learn more about the exciting backstory of how Donna Sundblad got her inspiration for this book or the challenges she encountered in bringing it to press, I recommend that you read Lisa Binion's interview in its entirety.

Author's update: I recently had the pleasure of doing an interview with Donna Sundblad in which she reveals in-depth the meaning of the some of the key symbolism from The Inheritance. I hope you enjoy reading it.

If you are looking for other reading and audio visuals materials with a Christian worldview, you might want to check out the Bibleman series from Thomas Nelson as well. Bibleman, who is played by Willie Aames in some of the DVDs and Robert Schlipp in others, fights evil with the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Kids get a good dose of high-energy action packed adventure mixed with a healthy dose of scripture. What's not to like?

Disclosure: I was given a complimentary copy of this novel by the author, but I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonial in Advertising.”