Those familiar with the Book of Mormon will also be familiar with the story of Ammon. One of the sons of King Mosiah, he with Alma the Younger and several others sought to destroy the church of God, until the fateful day that Alma was visited by an angel and he was brought to repentance. Later, rather than inherit and rule over the kingdom of their father, Ammon and his brothers brought the gospel to the Lamanites.
In the land of Ishmael, Ammon quickly gained favor with King Lamoni. You may recall the verses in Alma 17 in which Ammon declared his intention to dwell with Lamoni’s people. In fact, in verses 24 and 25 we read that Lamoni “would that Ammon should take one of his daughters to wife. But Ammon said unto him: Nay, but I will be thy servant.”
It is here that the Sariah S. Wilson’s novel Servant to a King begins, with a different perspective than most of us may have considered before. Isabel is the eldest daughter of King Lamoni, and it is she who is ceremonially offered to this Nephite to be his wife. We see her anxiety over her father promising her to a stranger—a Nephite, albeit a handsome one—and then we see her indignation as this man turns her down in order to work as a common servant. Does he really think that life as a servant would be preferable to life with her? (I mean, think about it. No matter how much you didn't want to be married off to a stranger, wouldn't you feel insulted if he decided he'd rather be a servant than married to you?)
At first Isabel is convinced that Ammon must be a spy, and tries to catch him at his own game. However, despite the fact that Ammon turned down Lamoni’s original offer of marriage to Isabel, the attraction between Ammon and Isabel quickly becomes undeniable. (I told you she thought he was good-looking.) But in the meantime, Isabel’s evil cousin Mahlon has received the blessing of her grandfather, King Laman—Lamoni’s father—to ask for (or Mahlon’s interpretation: demand) Isabel’s hand in marriage as a part of his grand scheme to take over Lamoni’s kingdom. With the help of her handmaid and confidante Abish (maybe you see where this is going now, if you didn’t already), Isabel works her way through her emotions and the necessities of her circumstances—and is still taken by surprise during the events that follow.
Servant to a King is a fun story with a unique perspective. It manages not to take itself too seriously, yet still conveys the spirituality of the amazing events that occurred at the waters of Sebus and beyond. It is more of a light romantic novel than a it is a historical or didactic piece. There are of course historical elements (the whole thing is set in ancient America, for starters), but it's not one of those heavy books that are intended more to teach the reader about the people involved than to tell them a good story. And it’s great to see these familiar characters portrayed as normal people with insecurities and senses of humor, rather than the almost godlike heroes we often see in our historical fiction. The older I get (and I'm not that old yet), the more I think that these great people we read about in the scriptures who showed such faith and obedience must have been more like us than we realize. They just managed to rise above their weaknesses. And despite the fact that this book doesn't seem like one that was particularly meant to teach us anything, I really did come away from it with a new appreciation for Ammon, his brothers, and for King Lamoni and his family and those other things (whatever they were) that must have gone on that went unrecorded in our scriptures.
While the work does not appear to be a scholarly one, and there aren’t any citations or sources listed, it is clear that Sariah Wilson has researched the cultures of the area of that time period. And she ties the familiar Book of Mormon events together and fills in the missing information in interesting and logical ways. Readers who enjoy faith-promoting LDS romances will enjoy this one, particularly those who are looking for something just a little different. There are many inspirational stories in the LDS canon, but few as awe-inspiring as the conversion of the Lamanites.
Servant to a King was published in 2008 by Covenant Communications. A version of this review appeared on AML-List.
Well, I finished it. I had to. (Actually, it kind of bugs me when I get to the point in a story where I can't put the book down, because that means I'm useless until I finish.)
I'm impressed with many aspects of this book. It's fun, yet serious issues are confronted. One thing that stood out to me was how dysfunctional Beth's childhood situation was, yet it's all a "given" throughout the book. She doesn't consider herself particularly different from any other Latter-day Saint just because she didn't grow up in a happy happy "Love At Home" family with roses blooming beneath their feet. This is just how she is. Given the varieties of family situations in the Church and in the world today, I'm sure many readers will find this view refreshing.
Some "straight and narrow"-type readers may not appreciate this hilarious depiction of adjusting to marriage. If you're looking for traditional romance, this isn't it. If you're looking for a spiritual uplifting story about how marriage in the temple will conquer all of life's problems, you won't find that here, either. But I sure recognized myself in this one. All those first-year-of-marriage memories came flooding back as I read--those negotiations of what kind of cereal we would buy, what our roles were in our new family, ground rules for marital squabbles...it was all so familiar, and still so funny.
The First Year is published by Bonneville Books, 2006.
Out of all the books I've reviewed, I don't think I've run across one that had as many great lines as this one. When I write my standard reviews, I usually write a paragraph or so that explains the characters and situation of the story. Then I'll include a quote or two that illuminate these elements somehow, and show the abilities of the author. And I'll give my evaluation of the book and make recommendations to potential readers.
But as I've read The First Year I catch myself thinking, "This is a good quote. I should use this one." Then on the next page I'll think, "Oh, this is a good quote, too." I finally decided that I really can't share all my favorite quotes in this story, or there wouldn't be anything left unquoted.
Here's the gist of the story. There are three girls that have been friends for years. They are now in their very early twenties and have all gotten married within a few months of each other. Beth, the narrator of the story, seems to be the ringleader of the group. She's the one the others come to for advice when their lives go awry. Her older sister, of all people, also frequently comes to her as well.
But Beth's own life and marriage aren't really on the high road, either. Her husband occasionally comes across as adorable, but most often she sees him as the fixture on her couch who is always watching sports on TV. He often fades into the background, though, as Beth attempts to help her friends with their own marriages: Angel's mother-in-law apparently doesn't appreciate her the way she is and wants to coax her into becoming something else, and JoJo has all but disappeared since her wedding. Beth's sister hasn't married, but seems to be doing a good job of messing up her life as well.
And then Beth's ex-boyfriend Charlie appears on the scene. Okay, I'll drop in one quote right here. Just one:
"Wow. What did you say?" I asked, congratulating myself on not dwelling on Charlie. Charlie, Charlie, Charlie. Charlie. Charlie... (62)
Well, maybe you have to read the whole thing to get the full effect.
I'm a little under halfway through the book, and I'm finding it a lot of fun. There are also some serious undertones to the whole thing that I'm hoping will come out more as the story progresses. Basically, marriage is a really big thing. And just because you're old enough and worthy enough to make commitments in the temple doesn't mean that you know what you're doing the moment you walk out of it.
Okay, I've written my thoughts. Now I can go read some more. ;-)
We're winding up our study of the Doctrine and Covenants in seminary this year. Even though I have gained a much deeper love for this book of scripture, the Savior, and the prophet Joseph Smith through my studies this year, I feel like if I have to prepare and present one more lesson on the Second Coming I'll...I'll...well, I'll do something drastic.
And, of course, this section does focus on the Second Coming. It's a neat summary of things to come, and through reading it you can gain perspective on why this work is important. Our work is just a part of a much larger plan.
I'd heard good things about this book, and it just seemed like the kind of fun relationship-based read I'd be interested in. So I picked it up today at the LDStorymakers Writers Conference.
I haven't read much yet, but here are a couple of quotes that look really promising to me. Here's the one from the back cover:
There has been a lot of debate over the centuries as to what really took place that day in the Garden of Eden. But I know the truth. Adam left the toilet seat up for the millionth time, and Eve decided it was payback time--eternal damnation style.
And here's one from page 2:
I hated her perfect hair. I wanted to blow my nose in it.
With lines like this, I think I'm in for a fun read indeed. I'll have to let you all know how it goes.
