The Sign Above the Door

by William W. Canfield

Eight plagues have come upon the land of Egypt and the nation is gripped with fear. The Egyptian nobles watch in dismay as their aging Pharaoh stubbornly refuses to listen to the demands of the Hebrew God. Young Prince Martiesen is adon of the most prosperous region in Lower Egypt, which includes the land of Goshen where the Hebrews live. He has been forced by Pharaoh to further increase the burden of the Hebrews yet Martiesen himself is in love with the beautiful Hebrew maiden, Elisheba, whom he is forbidden by Egyptian law to marry. In his own household, unbeknownst to Martiesen, his new scribe, Peshala, is plotting evil against him. As the nation despairs, the nobles turn to Martiesen for leadership, but before he can decide what to do, Elisheba is kidnapped by Peshala and terrifying darkness falls over the land.

328 pages, Paperback

First published February 16, 2006

Reviews

[M.K. Laffin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m still not sure how accurately I rated this book, because it’s one of those where I’m not sure whether to rate it by how much I enjoyed it or by whether I think it’s a good book or not. Truly, I didn’t enjoy the book all that much. The storyline wasn’t very interesting to me, as it revolved around the kidnapping of a girl by a guy who likes her with the background of the plagues in Egypt. Even though it actually sounds pretty interesting here, the romance was just too, for lack of a better term, bleh.
However, the style was very pleasing to read. Descriptions and actions were perfectly mingled, not interrupting each other or being forgotten. Most of the male characters were very 3D and realistic, but the girls were boring and simple! That really bothered me. Elishiba’s sister, Abigail, in particular could have been given a little more attention to detail. All that said, though, Abigail was one of the only parts that was not described well enough.

[Amy Wathen · Rating 4 out of 5]

We read this book aloud for homeschool. It was a good story but super wordy. Could have been a lot shorter!

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

*HOD World Geography* I really wanted to love this book. The basic premise is excellent: the story takes place during the plagues of Egypt and gives the reader insight into both the Egyptian and Hebrew mindset and response to the plagues. I did enjoy how the book made me think more deeply about the Biblical account and recognize that many things I assume are not actually stated in the Bible. For example, we are not told how quickly the plagues occurred. I have generally assumed that they came one after the other in very quick fashion; however, the book argues that they occurred very slowly in order to allow the Egyptians to truly think about and experience the power of the one true God. Sounds thought-provoking and interesting, right? Unfortunately, Canfield's writing style is unnecessarily awkward, stilted, formal, and difficult. I found myself tuning out quite often, only have to re-read entire pages. This is the first book from the HOD curriculum that left me feeling "meh" or even "ugh."

[Suzannah Rowntree · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a quick read, a fun adventure story lightly spiced with romance, set during the last two plagues of Egypt and the Exodus, no doubt with the aim of being mildly edifying. And indeed, it was not without merit, containing generally unobjectionable morals, as much historical detail as the author could weave into the eddying plot, and a rather good imagining of the ninth plague, the darkness.

Read the rest of my review of this goofily entertaining book at my blog, In Which I Read Vintage Novels

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Things I liked about this book:
The new light Mr. Canfield shone on the Exodus. This was the first ever book I have read that was from the Egyptians view during the plagues, and it gave me a whole new perspective. The characters had hearts, they had desires, and they acted on these things. The descriptions were very well done, and the plot, though pretty simple, had a nice flow.

Things I did not like:
I thought the antagonistic characters were a bit cliché. Also the darkness scene was a bit longer than it needed to be. And I mean, I would've loved an epilogue or just a kiss at the end. ;)

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this aloud for homeschool. Written in 1912, this book had a lot of exciting twists and turns. It is set during the time of the plagues of Egypt. The main character Prince Martiesen is an Egyptian ruler who strives to treat his subjects fairly, including the Hebrews. He has feelings for Elishiba, a wise and beautiful Hebrew maiden. Unfortunately his traitorous scribe does as well and disaster ensues. The setting was very skillfully depicted and I was lost in this adventurous story. I would recommend it for older children due to the reading level and the occasional violence.