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Immanu'El #1
The Carpenter
Real people. Real history. No halos.
Hiding his belief that God is no more than the product of wishful thinking, Yosef manages to pass himself off as a respectable member of his community until he discovers that his bride-to-be, Maryam, is pregnant. His first instinct is to divorce her, but he changes his mind after a disturbing dream shakes the foundation of his life and convinces him to claim Maryam’s child as his own. A sinful man, Yosef is an unlikely choice for the most important parenting job in history; nevertheless, he rises to the challenge out of his love for Maryam and her child.
Yosef’s decision ultimately leads him on a journey across first-century Palestine—and beyond his unbelief—as he fights to protect his son from a world that seems determined to destroy him.
The Carpenter is the first "autobio-novel" in the Immanu'El series, historical fiction centered around the lives of people who walked with Jesus in 1st-century Palestine.
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Hiding his belief that God is no more than the product of wishful thinking, Yosef manages to pass himself off as a respectable member of his community until he discovers that his bride-to-be, Maryam, is pregnant. His first instinct is to divorce her, but he changes his mind after a disturbing dream shakes the foundation of his life and convinces him to claim Maryam’s child as his own. A sinful man, Yosef is an unlikely choice for the most important parenting job in history; nevertheless, he rises to the challenge out of his love for Maryam and her child.
Yosef’s decision ultimately leads him on a journey across first-century Palestine—and beyond his unbelief—as he fights to protect his son from a world that seems determined to destroy him.
The Carpenter is the first "autobio-novel" in the Immanu'El series, historical fiction centered around the lives of people who walked with Jesus in 1st-century Palestine.
Show more
Show less
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- GenresHistorical Fiction
294 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 14, 2011
21 people are currently reading
104 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
March 6, 2013
I loved this book. The author made it so visual as to actually take me on the journey with Josef and Maryam. It brilliantly filled in the gaps left out of the Bible. Even though this is fiction writing, it was written so well, that it made me believe that this is what truly could have taken place.
February 19, 2020
DISAPPOINTING
It is challenging to write a book about Jesus (Yeshua) because so many people have formed different understandings about His life and His relationship to the Father. We know the scriptures so well that any variations cause us to find the storyline unimaginable... Overall, I was not really enthralled with it.
It is challenging to write a book about Jesus (Yeshua) because so many people have formed different understandings about His life and His relationship to the Father. We know the scriptures so well that any variations cause us to find the storyline unimaginable... Overall, I was not really enthralled with it.
January 12, 2020
This is a remarkable book! I felt as if I was there and it gave me food for thought as I read my Bible.
December 16, 2013
I picked this book up on loan for the kindle when I was just looking for something to read. I am so glad I did. I really loved it. It is focused on Joseph, Jesus' father, as a boy until Jesus turns 12. Maynard did an excellent job of putting the historical aspects into perspective and giving voice to that era. As this is the Christmas season when I read it, it really helped me stay focused on the birth of our Savior and give extra meaning to his humble birth and the sacrifices that Joseph and Mary went through to bring forth this miracle baby and raise him to be the Savior of the world.
I have attended a couple of Bar Mitzvah's so I have heard Hebrew spoken, which really helped while reading the book as there were lots of scriptures and Hebrew phrases throughout. Reading how entrenched the scriptures were in their lives - the memorization of passages and reciting them as a family was inspiring and made me want to be a more devout parent. I listened to my 6 yr old telling me he was scared to be in his room upstairs while reading Jesus as a boy recite "Be strong and of great courage" and wished I had ingrained more of that into my son so he can face his own fears. Of course there is still time, and thanks to this book I hope to use my time more wisely to help my children prepare to face whatever challenges will come.
Another thing that touched me was how Maynard had those in the Davidian line learn their true heritage as a rite of passage and the need to safeguard that knowledge to protect their lives in light of Herod's enrapture with his throne. But because they knew their heritage and the prophecy that the Lord would send a king again, they were always looking forward to his arrival and held themselves to a higher standard on the chance that their son was 'the one'. I appreciated that kind of faith and devotion.
I don't know how I feel about the idea that Joseph was a doubter until his first vision when the angel tells him about Mary and her baby's true nature, but as it is historical fiction, I appreciated the depth that it gave the story.
Overall very well done. There are several other books in the series that are from the perspectives of others in Jesus' life. I am not sure I will read them, but I think Maynard is a great storyteller even if I don't.
I have attended a couple of Bar Mitzvah's so I have heard Hebrew spoken, which really helped while reading the book as there were lots of scriptures and Hebrew phrases throughout. Reading how entrenched the scriptures were in their lives - the memorization of passages and reciting them as a family was inspiring and made me want to be a more devout parent. I listened to my 6 yr old telling me he was scared to be in his room upstairs while reading Jesus as a boy recite "Be strong and of great courage" and wished I had ingrained more of that into my son so he can face his own fears. Of course there is still time, and thanks to this book I hope to use my time more wisely to help my children prepare to face whatever challenges will come.
Another thing that touched me was how Maynard had those in the Davidian line learn their true heritage as a rite of passage and the need to safeguard that knowledge to protect their lives in light of Herod's enrapture with his throne. But because they knew their heritage and the prophecy that the Lord would send a king again, they were always looking forward to his arrival and held themselves to a higher standard on the chance that their son was 'the one'. I appreciated that kind of faith and devotion.
I don't know how I feel about the idea that Joseph was a doubter until his first vision when the angel tells him about Mary and her baby's true nature, but as it is historical fiction, I appreciated the depth that it gave the story.
Overall very well done. There are several other books in the series that are from the perspectives of others in Jesus' life. I am not sure I will read them, but I think Maynard is a great storyteller even if I don't.
April 4, 2013
I'm always a bit leery of religious fiction. Too often, the religious message the author wants to convey gets in the way of good story-telling. Or, the story is so far-fetched, the foundations of the faith behind it get lost. D.L. Maynard undertook to tell the story of Jesus' early years from the point of view of the character in the story who is most often ignored. Joseph has always been my favorite figure of the Nativity, because he had the task of nurturing the Son of God as his earthly father. There is little Biblical material that involves Joseph, so the author needed to flesh the story out without being untrue to the biblical roots. I thoroughly enjoyed her interpretation and the character of Joseph she portrayed.One could quibble with some anachronistic idioms being voiced by the characters in the story, and some have found fault with the spiritual struggles attributed to Joseph, but I found him to be real and human and, ultimately, a man of faith and one who taught the child well. This author's portrayal of the world in which Jesus grew felt authentic and true. Her presentation of the experiences of the Holy Family was a pleasant surprise - good story-telling and solid faith foundations.
February 27, 2013
This was a fabulous book. Told from the perspective of Joseph, earthly father of Jesus, it gave wonderful insight into the history and culture of what life was like just before Jesus was born and during his younger years. While obviously much of the story of Jesus' childhood must be imagined since the Scriptures don't tell much, I think the author did a wonderful job of portraying what life must have been like for the family. I appreciated that nothing was in conflict with the Bible; in fact, she even made sure that Joseph and Mary had other children after Jesus was born--something other Christian authors are afraid to do for fear of offending some people. I look forward to reading other books in this series, Immanu'el.
May 27, 2015
Wonderful story
This book has a very good story and makes it easy to picture what might have happened back before, during, and after Jesus's birth. It was almost like you were right there with Joseph and were making the decisions with him. You could feel the love between Joseph and his son. If there was any weakness at all in the storyline, it was the relationship between Jesus and his mother. But that was not the focus of the book.
This book has a very good story and makes it easy to picture what might have happened back before, during, and after Jesus's birth. It was almost like you were right there with Joseph and were making the decisions with him. You could feel the love between Joseph and his son. If there was any weakness at all in the storyline, it was the relationship between Jesus and his mother. But that was not the focus of the book.
March 20, 2016
Let me begin by saying that I am a Catholic and so I disagree with the author's view that Mary had more children after Jesus. Having said that though, this is a terrific book. It is true to the Scriptures (the author just interprets them differently than I do). She does a tremendous job of putting flesh on the characters we are all so familiar with from the Bible and her imagination for creating a back story for the events is truly marvelous. I would highly recommend this book.
April 2, 2013
Historical, biblical, fictional biography of Joseph, human father of Jesus. Helps me think creatively about Bible where no explanation is given. Yosef was truly human. Imagine having the responsibility to rear God.
August 22, 2015
Beautiful
Though truly fiction, this is a lovely story. It was well written to hold the reader throughout the whole book. Historically it was very nice. I enjoye reading this book.
Though truly fiction, this is a lovely story. It was well written to hold the reader throughout the whole book. Historically it was very nice. I enjoye reading this book.
September 24, 2015
Highly recommend
Although clearly fiction, this is a wonderful story of how it might have been. Very well written and so believable.
Although clearly fiction, this is a wonderful story of how it might have been. Very well written and so believable.
July 31, 2016
Does anyone know why the author omitted the wise men from the nativity?
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews