Escape to Masada (Left Behind: The Kids #31)

Rating:
Summary: One of the best in the series
Review: I love the Left Behind:The Kids series. I've read all of the books that have already come out and am waiting anxiously for the next ones. Just so you know a new two come out every three months and the last two (39 and 40) come out in September 2004. This is a great book in a great series by a great author (well authors). If you want more info on the series then go to
leftbehind.com

Rating:
Summary: "Escape to Masada" Keeps You Reading
Review: If you're kid or teen who's a fan of the series, I highly recommend this book to you. Once you start it, it's hard to put down. I'm 15, and I've been reading this series since 5th grade. I also enjoy the adult series, so if you're sick of reading kid books, then try those.

Rating:
Summary: Christian Propaganda
Review: This series of novels is inspired by "The Revelation to John", the last book in the New Testament, the third section of the Bible, the Christian holy book. "The Revelation to John" (which is often misnamed "The Book of Revelations") tells the Christian myth of what will happen at the end of the world. Basically, the authors took this story, which is barely 20 pages long, and turned it into a series of 12 novels plus a spin-off series that deals with kids. The Christian view is that only the people that believe that Jesus lived 2,000 years ago and died for their sins will be saved and receive an eternal reward in Heaven. What makes this worse is that individual merit based on good or evil deeds is not taken into consideration, because Christians believe that human beings cannot be put right with God except through Jesus. Christians believe that they are saved through faith alone; no amount of good works can win God's approval. So, all of the people that don't believe in Jesus will receive an eternal punishment in Hell, regardless of how many good deeds they do and how caring they are to other people. Meanwhile, the Christians will be saved no matter how evil they behave, because they've got Jesus on their side. "The Revelation to John" tells of an event known as the Rapture: all of the Christians are taken up to Heaven, and everyone else is left behind on Earth. After an event known as the Tribulation and world rule by someone known as the Anti-Christ, Jesus finally returns to Earth and defeats his enemies. Then the old Heaven and the old Earth go away, and a new Heaven and a new Earth are established - with God as King, of course. This took 20 pages in the Bible. Imagine reading the same story stretched over thousands of pages. As a non-Christian, I'm alarmed at what I consider to be an evil religion perpetuated by zealous idiots. Christians base their beliefs on documents that are close to 2,000 years old but don't quite date back to the time period that the events within allegedly occured. There is no physical evidence of the existence of Jesus. There are no non-Christian records of Jesus (not even in Roman execution records). There are no records by astrologists of the time period that describe such an event as that which supposedly occured during Jesus' crucifixion. I belief that the reason that Christianity has endured and grown as much as it has is because it's the only religion in the world that threatens the non-believer with an eternal punishment. Christianity is, at its core, a religion that rewards the "yes" people and punishes the nonconformists. The Bible itself orders Christians to spread the religion throughout the world. Christians feels that it's their duty to convert all non-Christians to Christianity. They pity non-Christians and "pray for their souls". They place themselves into a group of the elite - the saved. They start missions to convert the "heathen" non-Christians and "bring them over to Jesus". The Roman Catholic Church even has a division, called Propaganda, that specifically tries to establish churches in non-Christian nations. An example of a Christian mission is this book series. The authors are trying to bring readers to Jesus through these novels, which have, sadly, become best-sellers. I think that Christians should abort their missions and just leave people of other religions in peace. I'm so glad that there are billions of non-Christians in the world. It would be horrible if the Christians converted everyone. The world needs a balance of beliefs. Otherwise, it would lose its diversity. If you want to read a good book of a battle between good and evil, then read "The Stand: The Complete & Uncut Edition" by Stephen King. It tells a similar story, only better and in only 1,000 pages. The premise is that a superflu kills millions of people (we don't see what's going on in the whole world, just the United States), and those that are left band into two opposing camps of good and evil. The thing that makes King's book a lot better than this series is that no explanation is ever given for why these people are immune to the superflu. All types of people are left behind, both Christians and non-Christians. The authors of the "Left Behind" series make it seem like the world would fall into chaos if all of the Christians disappear, which is ludicrous. King wisely avoids this in his book. Buy it and enjoy it. Skip the "Left Behind" series. If you want to know what happens, take an hour to read "The Revelation to John".

Rating:
Summary: Impressed yet again!
Review: Yes! I have been anxiously awaiting the next installment of books 31 and 32 of the LBTK. I finally got them last night, and read Escape to Masada in the parking lot of a Home Depot, and couldn't put it down! This book was great! The plague of sores put on all who have taken the mark has come to its worse, and believers need a place for refudge! While Judd, Lionel, and Sam are helping in the flea to Masada and Petra, trouble is brewing in the West Coast. Manny, Mark, and Vicki go in search of an unbeliever, Claudia, that needs their help. However, a chase by the GC leads them to yet another detour. What's the story behind Manny? Can they really trust Claudia, even though she's GC? I urge any fan to go out and buy this book! I've just started 32, and only put it down to write this and tell you to go by them! I know the books have been a little slow lately, but they really seem to be speeding up! This series has it all, adventure, truth, drama, comedy, and dare I say a little romance??? Well, I won't give it all away! Go read it yourselves!

Rating:
Summary: Impressed yet again!
Review: Yes! I have been anxiously awaiting the next installment of books 31 and 32 of the LBTK. I finally got them last night, and read Escape to Masada in the parking lot of a Home Depot, and couldn't put it down! This book was great! The plague of sores put on all who have taken the mark has come to its worse, and believers need a place for refudge! While Judd, Lionel, and Sam are helping in the flea to Masada and Petra, trouble is brewing in the West Coast. Manny, Mark, and Vicki go in search of an unbeliever, Claudia, that needs their help. However, a chase by the GC leads them to yet another detour. What's the story behind Manny? Can they really trust Claudia, even though she's GC? I urge any fan to go out and buy this book! I've just started 32, and only put it down to write this and tell you to go by them! I know the books have been a little slow lately, but they really seem to be speeding up! This series has it all, adventure, truth, drama, comedy, and dare I say a little romance??? Well, I won't give it all away! Go read it yourselves!