{"id":5562,"date":"2015-11-20T16:01:33","date_gmt":"2015-11-20T22:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/?p=5562"},"modified":"2020-09-10T15:06:12","modified_gmt":"2020-09-10T21:06:12","slug":"ishtars-odyssey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/20\/ishtars-odyssey\/","title":{"rendered":"Ishtar’s Odyssey: What to Do with Your Family This Advent"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ishtar hung his head again, and Salamar patted him on the shoulder. \u201cAnd consider this,\u201d he said softly. \u201cThis journey will bring many adventures and many new things to learn, and you and I will get to share them together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like adventures. I like knowing exactly what\u2019s going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I know, and that may be the best reason to have<\/u> a few adventures. You\u2019ll meet many new people and make new friends. If we are fortunate, you will even meet my old friend Nathan from my youth. He once did fifty cartwheels in a row!\u201d\u00a0(Ishtar’s Odyssey, p. 41)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Ishtar's<\/a>Ishtar’s Odyssey<\/em> is the newest in a series of Advent (and one Lenten) devotionals by\u00a0Arnold Ytreeide.<\/p>\n

We’ve been reading these books aloud as a family for years so I was excited to receive a copy in the mail in exchange for an honest review.<\/p>\n

A friend suggested the first,\u00a0Jotham\u2019s Journey<\/a><\/em>, in 2010 and we’ve been hooked ever since.<\/p>\n

Now our sons are middle schoolers and they’re still excited about diving\u00a0into Ishtar\u2019s Odyssey<\/em> this Advent.<\/p>\n

The story<\/h2>\n

Ishtar is the\u00a0son of Salamar, one of the three wise men who follow the Star to find Jesus as a babe. Like Jotham, Ishtar is 10. Unlike Jotham, Ishtar is a prince, a privileged member of Persian society.\u00a0He dreams of becoming King of Persia and adored by his subjects.<\/p>\n

His world revolves around his studies, but his interest lies\u00a0in comfort and passion for good food. In a word, he’s a spoiled brat.\u00a0Salamar dearly loves Ishtar, but good father that he is, he also sees Ishtar\u2019s weaknesses.<\/p>\n

When Ishtar discovers a brand new star in the sky, prompting praise and accolades from the Persian Sheik Konarak, Salamar decides this is where the rubber (or camel hoof) meets the road. His little boy needs to grow up. Ishtar must come with the caravan to follow the star.<\/p>\n

Ishtar, unaccustomed to even being outside much, is reluctant to say the least. He wants to stay at the castle, even if that means separation from his father. Sadly, his comfort\u00a0at the castle without his father, far outweighs being\u00a0uncomfortable on the caravan with him.<\/p>\n

Salamar\u00a0insists, and their adventures begin.<\/p>\n

The storytelling<\/h2>\n

Like all of Ytreeide\u2019s devotionals, there is historical fiction which mingles mystery and suspense with theology and good old-fashioned fun and foolery.<\/p>\n

I love Ytreeide’s masterful use of characters. We’ve actually met Ishtar before…in Jotham’s Journey<\/em>. Then it was a brief encounter in the course of Jotham’s story. In fact, all the characters from all the books are interwoven in each other’s stories.<\/p>\n

Ishtar and his father\u00a0do<\/em> meet up with Nathan\u2026 and Jotham, and Tabitha, and Bartholomew, and even the despicable villain, Decha of Megiddo. These were all characters from previous books. Now we get Ishtar’s story, which we’re eager to know because he’s an old friend.<\/p>\n

The lessons<\/h2>\n

Ishtar does grow up on his journey. His first lesson comes the\u00a0hard way before the journey even begins. But, this painful experience\u00a0opens him to other powerful lessons along the way.<\/p>\n

Ishtar learns to put others before himself and honor the beauty in others. He’s loyal to Jotham, kind to Bartholomew, and impressed from afar with Tabitha\u2019s bravery.<\/p>\n

He’s brave when threatened by Decha and humbled before the simple faith and goodness of Simeon. He’s amazed by Nathan and repulsed by Herod.<\/p>\n

Every year, we enjoy how Ytreeide’s historical fiction draws our family toward the Christmas celebration. Through an engaging and entertaining story,\u00a0we reflect on\u00a0the events leading to Jesus’ birth and\u00a0get fresh insights.<\/p>\n

There’s no better way to appreciate Christmas than a meaningful Advent journey. This Advent, take your family on that journey with\u00a0Ishtar\u2019s Odyssey<\/em>.<\/p>\n

What are you doing with your family for Advent this year?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ishtar hung his head again, and Salamar patted him on the shoulder. \u201cAnd consider this,\u201d he said softly. \u201cThis journey will bring many adventures and many new things to learn, and you and I will get to share them together.\u201d \u201cI don\u2019t like adventures. I like knowing exactly what\u2019s going to happen.\u201d \u201cYes, I know, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5562","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","post-wrapper","thrv_wrapper"],"yoast_head":"\nIshtar's Odyssey: What to Do with Your Family This Advent - Marc Cardaronella<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/marccardaronella.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/20\/ishtars-odyssey\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ishtar's Odyssey: What to Do with Your Family This Advent - Marc Cardaronella\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ishtar hung his head again, and Salamar patted him on the shoulder. \u201cAnd consider this,\u201d he said softly. \u201cThis journey will bring many adventures and many new things to learn, and you and I will get to share them together.\u201d \u201cI don\u2019t like adventures. 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