Customer Reviews

God King: A Story in the Days of King Hezekiah (Living History Library)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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"God King" is a very enjoyable and readable historical fiction account of the early reign of Taharka, Pharaoh of Egypt whose dynasty originated in the kingdom of Kush in present-day Sudan. Young Tarharka is one of the many sons of Shabaka, God King of Egypt. He is neither the eldest nor the most accomplished, but the succession falls to him nonetheless. However, there are schemers in Egypt keen to take advantage of a young king's inexperience. Worse, the mighty Assyrian Sennacherib is gathering his power to the north. Only the Hebrew king Hezekiah holds out against the Assyrians.

In Taharka, the unwilling Pharaoh, Joanne Williamson has created a very sympathetic character. He is naive and trusting at first, yet learns to be strong, resourceful, and merciful. The melding of the scant historical record of the time with the Biblical account of King Hezekiah is skillfully done and the reader truly does get a feel for the time and place.

Overall, this book is a good read for young folks (say, 10 and up) and adults as well. I particularly liked the fact that the book was set in a historical period that is not well studied by your typical 12 year old. Hopefully, it will spur some interest in ancient history among the young. The book is also notable because though Taharka is Black, race never becomes an issue as it often so tediously does in more contemporary fiction for young people. For this reason, I almost hesitate to bring up the subject at all. Let it suffice to say that if more fiction were written from this perspective--where a Black main character is portrayed positively and the other characters are good or evil not based on their race but on their actions--race relations in the real world might actually improve.

This is a very good book. It is informative and realistic. It starts out with a young, lesser prince of Kush named Taharka. Then in a dramatic turn of events he was made the King of Egypt - and a god. But his scheming brother, Shabataka, suddenly takes over the kingdom; and Taharka flees to Canaan. There he meets King Hezakiah who is hopelessly fighting Sennecharib and his vast host.
It is sometimes a bit rough, though. The ending, however, is unexpected and surprising. Taharka's mercy, and Sennacharib's might against Hezekiah's God add up to a powerful children's story, and an interesting young adult story.

God King is a wonderfully exciting and educational book. I and both my two children (a boy,12 and a girl, 10) enjoyed the plot-line. We have enjoyed several of Joanne Williamson's novels and have never been disappointed. Sometimes the history of the Old Testament can get a little dry, but Williamson really brought it to life. My children and I came away with a better context and knowledge of the times of Hezekiah and the culture of the Israelites.

This was a cool book. It is about an Egyptian prince who was'nt as special as the other princes. But then he becomes a Pharoh and a so called god. But then his brother take's over the kingdom. Then Taharka left for Canaan with his friend Amos. This was no vacation. Because if they were caught they would be killed. He also meets up with two kings, the first king is Sennacherib of Assyria, and the second one is Hezekiah the king of the Jews. He has to chose which of them to join. Later he joins the Jews and King Hezekiah. It was a great story that will thrill you from beginning to end.

My kids--ages 8 and 6--listened with rapt attention and begged for more. The story was not just fun but helped draw a picture in my children's minds of what life was like at the time and placed other historical facts in context. We were sad when it ended! Though the book is probably written for older readers (10 and up), I recommend it as a read-aloud for children as young as early elementary, if they are able to listen attentively to a long story line. We had a great experience with this and other historical fiction by Joanne Williamson.

An excellent resource for learning ancient history of Egypt, Israel and Assyria in the Old Testament context. My children of primary school age enjoyed this as a read-aloud.
Would be improved with a pronunciation guide.

Really great book to bring you into a fictional historical event! It was shipped quickly. My 6 &8 year old boys are loving this book.

Coming-of-age, coming-to-kingship, and a cast of African, Egyptian, Israeli, Corinthian, and Assyrian characters. Historical novel set in the time of Sennacherib's seige of Jerusalem.

Some scary stuff in the war -- they watch the fall of a beseiged city and the mayhem afterward, the impalement of the warriors (not gory at all, Moms), and the terrified captives being led away.

This book has a black Nubian king-Pharoah for a main hero -- plus, he's the child of a slave girl. It's great. My kids are pretty sheltered, but I have no qualms about reading this to them.

(Author's notes give the scripture references in II Kings, Chronicles, and Isaiah for further reading.)

How would you feel if you had been made an Egyptian god? Awesome, huh? Prince Taharka doesn't think so, though kind, compassionate prince he is. The main character of the book God King, Taharka only wants to heal, but now is being bowed down to, and has a lot of tabus. When Amos, a messanger from the Jewish king, Hezekiah, shows up, Taharka is confused. He gets even more confused when he discovers a plot to kill him. He has to flee for his life!

In God King, Joanne Williamson creates a great plot line, and many exciting scenes, like when Taharkah and Amos wade through Hezekiah's Tunnel. She also paints vivid characters like Shepnuset, Taharkah's wife and cousin, who after he escapes, locks herself in the Holy of Holies.

I would highly recommend this book for people who love lots of action and adventure, with a touch of romance to sweeten the tale. The characters in this book come alive. You will lose yourself in this book.

I Think this was a wonderful story. It was full of adventure and action. I love this story. My favorite book ever!