Road to Kilimanjaro

by Ruth T. Shaffer

Hardback

248 pages, Paperback

First published September 28, 1992

Reviews

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ruth Shaffer tells stories of her family and the Maasai people in a way that gives a snapshot of Kenya during the mid-1900s. As a young family with two small children, Moody Bible Institute graduates Roy and Ruth Shaffer answered the call to mission work among the Maasai with Africa Inland Mission. They went to Kenya with very little information, but a willingness to work hard, try new things, and love people with God's love. In the end, they spent over 35 years among the Maasai, building churches and school, discipling new Christians, raising their family of six children, and helping to translate the Bible into Maasai.

While at times the book devolves to a recitation of names and places, even that can be encouraging because it brings to the forefront that these are stories about real people, in a real place in history.

One thing that I found fun about this book is a brief mention of Ernest Hemingway and his wife. I am currently also reading Hemingway's "Green Hills of Africa" and Julia Child's "My Life in France." To have him make an appearance in each of the three books I'm reading right now was amusing.

[John Benson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was hoping I would like this book, as I borrowed it from the author's granddaughter, who I am staying with at the moment. Her sister and my sister-in-law is also her granddaughter. I found that I really enjoyed this family history of the work of Roy and Ruth Shaffer among the Maasai in Kenya from 1923 to 1958. This book tells the story of a missionary family with the African Inland Mission does it in a way that is non-preachy and could be read by anyone. Their faith underlay their work. The book gives a good history of the Maasai at that point in time and a good family history. I read about Roy Shaffer, their son's birth, while watching Roy's grandson was playing near me. While reading it, I was visiting a family who was working among the Maasai in northern Tanzania so it was interesting to hear how she described the Maasai in the 1920s, '30's, '40s, and '50s, and how much remains true about these people still to this day. A worthwhile read about the Maasai and early mission history.