Review Detail

Reader reviewed by L. Sellon

Mary of Nazareth, Pennsylvania is a love story the captures the readers emotions by taking us on a journey through the daily lives of two American teenagers confronted with a situation unlike any other. It accurately portrays todays teenagers and their culture while introducing an aspect of the miraculous into their lives. It isnt a mere mimic of the nativity story. It is a powerful, creative and relevant retelling of an ancient story of how God would enter the world today through the birth of a child.

Mary of Nazareth, Pennsylvania very eloquently details the anxiety that a teenage girl and boy must feel when dealing with an unexpected pregnancy; from the discovery of the pregnancy to the reactions of family and friends, to the doctors options the teen-mother is suggested to take, to dealing with the whispers of the church and doubts of a media-saturated society. You cant read this book without asking, What must it have been like for Mary and Joseph of 1st century Judea?

What we read in just a couple of pages in the Bible was a nine month journey for Mary and Joseph, which in-lines a daily story that Susan Eileen Walker provides a correlation to in Mary of Nazareth, Pennsylvania.

Trust in God becomes a reoccurring theme in this book that reminds us all of how two young teenagers found the faith to bring into the world the greatest story ever told. Do we have young women and young men of faith that would see this through? In Mary of Nazareth, Pennsylvania we find that faith is possible for even the most unlikely and unprepared.