Book Review: Ten P's in a Pod

One thing I love about Vision Forum is that they find and publish wonderful books from the past so Christian families today can enjoy them. One such title I recently read was Ten P's in a Pod, by Arnold Pent, III. He was the third of eight children in the Pent family. The book is taken from his journals from when he was 17-19, while the family traveled around the continent preaching the gospel and encouraging other Christians. It was originally published in 1965 and Vision Forum republished it in 2004.

The Pent family home schooled before home education was really even heard of. In Chapter 12 of the book, Dr. Pent's decision to home school is recorded. When Mrs. Pent asked why he was going to pull them out of the government schools, he replied, "...I just don't think it's right to let an atheist or non-believer have our children the best part of every day, teaching them many things that we will have to turn right around and tell them are not true."  Despite some trouble from local government, they persevered in raising their children as the Lord requires and He blessed their faithfulness.

Throughout the book, what is emphasized more than anything is the importance of reading the Bible as a family. Training their children up to serve the Lord is the most important task given Christian parents, and the fruit of Dr.and Mrs. Pent's efforts is clearly shown in the pages of the book. Once a child was able to read, they required 15 minutes of private Bible reading in the morning before breakfast. As the child got older, the required time increased until they were 13 when a full hour was required. Additionally, as a family they read for 30 minutes after each meal. The result of this effort was children who had large portions (even entire books) of the Bible memorized at early ages. One even had the entire New Testament memorized by age 20. And, these children not only memorized the Bible, but relied on God's grace to live in obedience to it.

This book was a light and enjoyable read, combining humor and seriousness. I was very encouraged by it in my efforts in raising Katie, and hope to read this book again with her in a few years when she can understand it. I would definitely recommend it and encourage you to pick up a copy from Vision Forum as soon as you're able!