The Hapless Hero

by Terdell Lee Johnson

Gideon is the wrong choice. He shouldn't have been chosen for anything, especially as the chosen warrior for his nation. He's a rabbit with no fighting skills or confidence. Gideon is betrayed by one of his friends and banished from his homeland. As a murderous army of leopards and a vengeful witch lay siege over his land, Gideon must find his courage; not only to save his country, but to prove to himself that he is the right choice.

190 pages, Paperback

Published September 28, 2020

Reviews

[Iseult Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fictionalized version of Gideon’s story from the biblical book of Judges, with Gideon cast as a rabbit in a land full of different types of animals.
The book is well written and easy to read. However, I am conflicted about rewriting the Bible with animals, and I also found the tone very uneven. When Gideon is in prison, his punishment is to get stale chocolate cake, yet later in the book there is a bloody massacre where none are left alive.
Gideon’s best friends are a cheetah and a fox. All the animals seem to be vegetarians, which is nice. I would have loved more world development about the animals and how they lived and came to co-exist. Most of all, I would have liked a better depiction of their belief and understanding of God. Gideon is appointed a judge of his people by God, yet he never prays or seems to think about God or know anything about God. I feel this is a disservice to the real Gideon, and a missed opportunity for this book, which seems to intend to teach its readers about the Holy One.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this four stars because it's imaginative and there are some really interesting characters in the story. I know the story of Gideon in the Bible pretty well and I like how the author incorporated the different pieces into this tale. What I didn't like so much was the audio. There were times when the sentences ran on, didn't pause where they should've. I'm guessing this is AI generated, but I don't know. The reader sounded so robotic at times. At places where there was obvious dialog which indicated frustration or surprise, you couldn't really tell that from the reader. It ruined the excitement of the story for me. I wouldn't buy this audio for my kids or grandkids, so I'm glad it was available to listen free on YouTube. I'd rather read the story to them myself, and I'm willing to purchase a copy. I did notice a few typos in the reading, which is, I guess, interesting. But overall, the story itself was something I think middle grade and upper elementary students would likely enjoy.

[S. Jeyran Main · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘The Judges Chronicles’ is a fictional story taken from the biblical book of Judges. Gideon is a rabbit chosen by the Holy One to be a general and manage and protect the county of Shavron. The interesting part about it all is that Gideon has no experience whatsoever in military strategy or even getting into a fight. For this reason, his character growth, thoughts, and demeanour were very enjoyable to read throughout the book.

This is an extremely well-written and put-together book. From the attractive cover design and understanding the purpose behind writing the book, you realize that you have a gem at hand.

I recommend this book to those who enjoy fictional books that embody important messages.

[Peter Lebron · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the concept is interesting, and the basic story telling is good, this edition reads like a high school sophomore wrote it. It is full of grammatical and spelling errors, such that I as a former language teacher could not go on.

Examples: Ch 9: "Jezerah stood next to her throne with one hand on her hips and the other planted firmly on the thorn’s armrest." Thorn's or throne's?
Ch 10 "Gideon spared with him" Context: sparred
Ch 17: "Leopold, takes us to this ropeway," This is a command - Leopold, take us...
"Being place back in chains" - being placed

There were many more, but these should suffice. I only got to Chapter 17 but could not bring myself to go on. Either there was no proofreader, or he/she needs a different job.

[A.y. Johlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I was given a free copy by the author in exchange for an honest review

Full review: https://ayjohlin.wixsite.com/mysite/p...

This book was a charming read with lovely characters! It had a few flaws and I think could've done with a little more editing. However, I found the second half of the book to be very compelling and think the author has a lot of potential. I'd recommend it to those looking for a fun fantasy adventure rooted in Christian faith during this Christmas season.

[Amy Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute. My 6 year old loved it even though she didn't understand all of it. It's probably meant for Jr. High readers.

My problem with it is the inordinate number of typos. Not misspelled words. Just straight-up wrong words.

Every book has a few, and they're easy to overlook. No big deal. This one is bad.

I'm pretty sure this book got a squiggly red line check for spelling, but surely never got a thorough editing. It was super distracting to me.