St. Bartholomew's Eve (A Homeschool Review Crew Post)

One of our favorite vendors to review has to be Heirloom Audio. Thanks to being on the Crew we are proud owners of hours and hours of fabulous audio dramas based on the popular book series of The Extraordinary Adventures of G.A. Henty. Once again, Heirloom Audio has put out a great adventure….St. Bartholomew’s Eve.

 If you aren’t familiar with G.A. Henty you need to be. He was a famous war correspondent and author back in the day. His books are filled with all of the virtues we hold dear…courage, integrity, and faith. Heirloom Audio has produced outstanding adventure after adventure. We have listened to these historical tales on long trips, on the way to Co-op, lounging in the living room…pretty much everywhere we can.

Before I talk about the audio production itself, I want to tell you about this era in history. The French Religious Wars happened between 1562-1598. The wars happened between Roman Catholics and a group called the Huguenots. The Huguenots were Protestants. Just a fun fact. According to my family history, some of my French ancestors were Huguenots. They eventually settled on the island of Manhattan, which at that time was not much more than a forest.

The events of St. Bartholomew’s Eve lead up to the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre. The hero of our story is a young man from England named Philip. His mother is French-born and he has come to France to visit family and aid in the battle to help the Huguenots escape persecution. Along the way, Philip meets a young Huguenot, Argento. He also happens to have a fetching older sister. The story isn’t all love and sunshine. There are some truly intense moments. Being persecuted for one’s faith and the dreadful events of the massacre kept up riveted. How fortunate we are to live in a country where we can worship how we chose.

One of the most poignant moments included the singing of “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” It was beautiful. And so very inspiring. For the purposes of this review, we received a 2-CD set. You can also purchase a digital download. The ages for all of Heirloom Audio’s adventures is generally 6 and up. You, of course, will have to decide what is appropriate for your family. We LOVE every bit of the productions No matter how uncomfortable they might make us feel. Persecution isn’t comfortable.

 I just want to make a quick comment about the quality of St. Bartholomew’s Eve. It is EXCELLENT. Brain Blessed, as usual, plays G.A. Henty himself and narrates the story. I have said this before in some of my other reviews, Brian Blessed is a treasure. His voice is wrapped in gold. In fact, all the actors voicing the characters are tremendous. Heirloom Audio never disappoints with the musical scores, acting quality….pretty much all of it. This is one we will enjoy for years to come.

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