Ink on His Fingers

Religious Heritage

by Louise A. Vernon, Allan Eitzen (Illustrator)

Johann Gutenberg is working on printing the first Bible with type. Twelve-year-old Hans Dunne works in Gutenberg's shop as an apprentice printer. Soon, Hans finds himself in the middle of a type-stealing mystery. Will Hans, and the other pressmen be able to keep Herr Fust from getting the type? Will they be able to finish the Bible so many people will be able to read and learn from it?

Genres: Historical Fiction, School, Fiction, Historical, Childrens, Read For School, Religion

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Born in Coquille, Oregon, on March 6, 1914, Vernon later graduated from Willamette University. An author of children's books about religious heritage and historical fiction, Vernon has seen numerous books published in series form. After traveling abroad to research her subjects, Vernon has penned novels about John Wesley, William Tyndale, John Wycliffe, and Johann Gutenberg, to name a few. Several of her older books have been reprinted, showing their continued popularity, and in 2003, Vernon wrote Doctor in Rags. She lives in California.

Reviews

[Bo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I wanted to. I though the historical aspect and the storyline were both good, although I did find it a bit hard to follow and to keep all the characters straight. I was disappointed in the fact that the Gospel was obscure, and Roman Catholic dogma and behaviour prominent, with no caveats. Possibly a read-aloud to your children, so you can give explanations along the way.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Flat narrative of a somewhat deep story

I had high expectations, but seeing some mispelled word, missing “ on character’s lines and unemotional storytelling make me feel my money is wasted. This story focused on the debt problem that Gutenberg had. And mainly talking about how his apprentice, our main character try to find a way to give money to his master. This story lack of the emotion. No awe in description of the bible. This story is flat. I felt bad, really. The ending of the story is full of hope. But 99% of the book is depressing. The concept of God’s work will always continue, no matter what is the plus side of the book. But I really am disappointed.

[Zoey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't really like this book. It was kind of depressing and mostly sad. The only thing I really liked about it was the persistence of Johann Gutenberg, how he was calm in chaos, and how he let God take the wheel. Yes, the book showed what it was probably like at the time of the Reformation, but I would prefer to read something more lighthearted and leaves me feeling happy. The ending was somewhat abrupt and I would have liked to read a little more of Gutenberg's success. The beginning was boring, but it did make the middle/end more exciting. I also felt like I didn't really get connected with the characters like I do in other books. Overall, I wouldn't read this book again.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book for my historical fiction book club. I really enjoyed it. It was a fast read. I read it in just a couple of hours. It tells the story of a young boy who becomes the apprentice to Johann Gutenberg. Through the eyes of the 12 year old boy we see what hardships Gutenberg has to go through to get his Bible printed. This book is suitable for any age, but there are a couple of theological considerations, like at one point the book says that God gives new revelation apart from Scripture.

[Kai · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not my favorite, my mom/teacher made me read it to study the reformation. It was somewhat depressing and it felt really long. On the other hand, the author made Johann Gutenburg's perseverance quite admirable, and made the middle/end more exciting than the boring start of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of the printing press or just simply the time period of the reformation. In conclusion to this review, let's just say that I liked it, but would never read it again in my free-time.

[Elizabeth Reid · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book aloud to my kids (kindergarten through 7th grade) and we all loved it. This book really helped us understand the stamina and work that Gutenberg, and others like him, must have gone through in getting printing presses off the ground. We learned about historical Germany, its customs, some of the religious beliefs of the people and church during the time, the work of scribes, and a host of other things.

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this to my kids ages 10-14 per the recommendation of The Good and the Beautiful homeschool history course. This is probably the 10th of their history recommendations I have read with my kids and the first one they dreaded listening to. Despite being short, it felt long. The characters were underdeveloped and confusing. Plus the story jumped around. If I were going back I would skip this one. There don’t seem to be many wonderful choices of Reformation based novels though.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical aspect: great! Narrative: boring. (Many of these vintage books are that way, haha…) But this was a good look at Gutenberg’s story and struggles with prejudice and debt, among other hardships, just to print the first Bibles for civilian/non-clergy use. The story follows a boy who wants to become a monastery scribe to handwrite Bibles as a profession, until he sees what a printing press is and starts to help in Gutenberg’s workshop.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

The storyline was interesting, and it served to give life to an important historical event, but the narrative was jumpy and sometimes hard to follow. My son thoroughly enjoyed the story and will probably never forget who Gutenberg was or what he accomplished, so although this isn’t a great work of literature, I consider it to have accomplished its purpose.

[Katelyn Kuipers · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was interesting to read about some of the struggles Gutenberg may have faced while working to print the first Bible. I had a hard time following the story in certain places. I still don't really understand why Herr Fust was so set on destroying Gutenberg.

[Lacey · Rating 3 out of 5]

My kids and I read this book for history during our unit on the Reformation. Reading historical fiction helps us to understand and remember the period we're studying. We enjoyed getting to know about Gutenberg's invention and the part it played in the Reformation.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This did not lend itself well to read aloud. It may be fine for independent reading. It wasn't uninteresting as much as very hard to keep track of who or what was happening. Also, not much happens in the story. It was a bit of a let down overall.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book to have read with my son. A great insight into what Johann Gutenberg’s experience in printing the Bible may have likely been like.

[Israël Egan Haines · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok book 📖 really short quick read a little boring about the Bible which was cool 😎

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fun perspective on Gutenberg from a 12yr old point of view

[Richard Worden · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written and thougthful story.

[Caroline Stephenson Hardesty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and uplifting book.

It was a fun and easy read. It would be a good educational book for a kid, but I also enjoyed it as an adult.

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting historical fiction read aloud about Johann Gutenberg and the first printed Bible.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short Juvenile, historical fiction. A good introduction to the invention of the printing press.

[Phoebe Hinkle · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting at first, but after Hans became an apprentice to Gutenberg it felt a bit disjointed, and I didn't entirely get the ending.

[Jemimah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story was definitely a challenging story for the main character, who was helping print the Bible. It was challenging for him because where he worked was struggling with payments and how people viewed about the Bible being printed. I liked it very much.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

When twelve-year-old Hans Dunne’s father dies suddenly, it looks like he will be forced to drop out of the monastery Latin school. As it turns out, his father was in debt, so now his mother cannot pay the tuition for school. Hans feels he should learn a trade in order to help his family. But his secret ambition is to one day make copies of the Bible, and if he doesn’t become a monk, how will he ever be able to achieve his goal?One day Hans and his mother discover that his father went into debt because he had loaned a large sum of money to support a project he believed was very important. Hans’s mother tells him, “I remember now that your father kept talking about some man who was doing important work for the glory of God…He kept saying this man was being blessed and inspired by God to perfect his art.” When he heard this, Hans thought to himself, “God is inspiring me, too. Copying the Bible is important work – maybe the most important work in the world.”

When the opportunity arises for Hans to become an apprentice to Johann Gutenberg, a thought suddenly occurs to him: “God had not withheld the means by which he could copy the Bible but instead had provided an entirely new way. Even Father’s death, so painfully hard to understand, had its place in God’s greater plan.” As Hans becomes more involved with Gutenberg and his work, he sees how much the man is willing to sacrifice to turn years of effort into a reality.

I liked the emphasis this story placed on the value of God's Word, as for example is expressed in this quote:

"Hans recalled with painful intensity his vow to make the man who had borrowed Father’s money return it all. Here it was – but now he did not want the money, and he knew Mother would not want it either. The printing of the Bible must come first."

Today, we take our copies of the Bible for granted. In many homes, multiple copies in various versions can be found. The Bible is readily available in stores and online, in many choices of format and color, to buy or download, and for a reasonable price. Most people don’t ever stop to think about how the Bible has come into our hands.

[Tracy Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read this aloud together and learned about the printing press before visiting a Bible Museum together. (Ages 6, 8, 11, 13) Everyone enjoyed it!

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nat Culver is the son of one of the translators King James has appointed, working on a Bible to replace the Geneva Bible. As we follow Nat during the period of the translation, we read some of the discussions this work provoked. Nat’s personal drama brings up the persecution of Catholics in England at the time, and his friend from the court brings us up to date on little tidbits of period history. Being well educated, as one might expect from the son of one of the translators, Nat became the tutor to a son of one of the other translators. As the men who worked on the King James Bible were not paid, Nat was also unpaid for his tutoring, but he was glad to receive food and a place in the family of his employer. As we read along with Nat and his adventures, we learn along with him much about the Bible as it was held in that time, interpretation, and views on the translation work. Even though King James commissioned this Bible, Nat finally declares that it “is not the king’s book” but “the King of Kings’ Book.”

I thought this a well researched book, and great for children. They will easily learn some of the period history, as well as the origins of the King James Version.

[Danny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ink on His Fingers is about a boy named Hans Dune, though I don't know if he actually existed. He wanted to translate the Bible, but his parents couldn't pay for school for him. So he ended up sweeping the floors in a printing shop instead, Johann Gutenberg's shop.

It really wasn't a well put together book. At one point it's telling you how he's going to make a Bible, but it never finishes telling you if he did it. Next thing you know, there's a kid named Rusty, and you never hear about him again.

[Steve Hemmeke · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short and sensational tale about Johann Gutenburg's struggle to successfully market the printing press and print an aesthetically pleasing Bible. I'm not a fan of Vernon's style. A bit clipped, the time jumps can be jarring, and too much psychological focus on side characters rubbing shoulders with the historical character. Still, it brings to life the difficulty of bringing a new invention like this into the public eye.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this with my children as a supplement to learning about the beginning of the Reformation and the Renaissance in homeschool. This book tells the story of Joanne Gutenberg and the printing of the first 100 bibles with the printing press. And it tells the story through the eyes of a young boy who becomes his apprentice. This makes it interesting and understandable for children. We enjoyed reading it together, and would like to read more of Louise Vernon's books about Christian history.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ink On His Fingers is an 128 page book by Louise A. Vernon. It was the best book I've read in 2016, but it probably won't stay that way. It is mainly about a boy named Hans Dunne, and the other main characters are Ulrich Zell, (Herr) Johan Gutenberg, and (Herr) Muller. In this book you'll learn about how Johan Gutenberg started using the printing press to make Bibles. If you like history, you will probably at least like this book.

[Kimbrely · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book I found to read aloud while we were in Germany - a little history lesson while on vacation. I liked the writer's style pretty much and the story is good - some suspense but fairly predictable. We are going to try some of her other books ie about Tyndale and others.