A Glimpse at “Down the Valley” by Edith M. Humphrey

Professor Edith Humphrey has once again woven a beautiful tale for children, incorporating her own grandchildren as the main characters, and allowing them to time-travel and meet their very own saints! Fans of her Beyond the White Fence (Ancient Faith, 2021) will be overjoyed to learn that she has written a sequel, Down the Valley, which has been published by Cascade Books (an imprint of Wipf and Stock).

It’s been two years since some of the cousins found themselves beyond Gramgon’s (what they call their grandmother) white fence, and wondrously transported back in time to meet their saints. Many of the other cousins wished for a turn, but two years have passed with no opportunities. Until now. This time cousins James, Isaiah, Allie, and Kevin, and their friend from Gramgon’s neighborhood, TJ, each have their own adventure down in the valley beyond the fence. (Most of the adventures include several other cousins, as well.) Every trip across time introduces a cousin/friend to their saint and allows them to experience part of their saint’s life. 

How do some of the cousins cause a distraction that keeps one of Christ’s disciples’ homes from being searched? Will some of the boys make it all the way through the dark to Bethany (and find the right house there) in time to deliver something important to an early Christian leader? Who accidentally meets their saint inside the Jewish temple at night? Which of the children find themselves in another time and place alone? Who winds up in jail with their saint? Whose saint had an otter and a cow as their friends? Who was almost too late to this saint-meeting party, but arrives in time to find themselves on a beautiful beach in India, where they learn that their saint knows all about lateness and has learned to see the gifts in it? And why do the cousins keep snitching Gramgon’s giant book (that they almost can’t handle because of its size) off of her shelf? 

Find answers to these questions, and a great deal of adventure, with these real-life friends when you read Down the Valley. The book stands on its own, and will make sense to readers who have not read Beyond the White Fence, the first book in the series. Having read the first one, however, will give the reader deeper insights into these children and their escapades. Readers of both will meet many different saints, in the context of their time and culture. There is so much to learn about the saints and how the world looked during their lifetime, and these books are an adventurous way to do so without taking a single class.

This book will be a fun read-aloud for younger children, it is sure to be devoured by older children, and adults will also enjoy reading it (this one certainly did!). Purchase your copy of Down the Valley to begin your own learning adventure here: https://wipfandstock.com/9781666772067/down-the-valley/ 

Enjoy Kristina’s review of Humphrey’s first book in the series, Beyond the White Fence, in an earlier post on this site: https://orthodoxchristianparenting.wordpress.com/2021/10/26/a-glimpse-at-beyond-the-white-fence-by-edith-m-humphrey/

The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Education Ministry thanks Cascade Books for providing a copy of this book for us to review and share.      

Reviewed by Kristina Wenger, educator, podcaster, co-author of Tending the Garden of Our Hearts.