I Saw the Angel in the Marble

by Chris Davis, Ellyn Davis, John Taylor Gatto (Foreword)

You can set your children free to be the individuals God created them to be. But, first, you must rediscover what it means to be-not homeschoolers-but parents. This, "The Best of 15 years of Elijah Company Articles," will help you find that "ancient path."

Genres: Education

196 pages, Paperback

First published April 30, 2004

Reviews

[FJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of essays written by those who got the conviction to keep their children home for education (and/or just growing up) a few decades ago. They are usually referred to as “homeschoolers” by the general public but the authors even challenged what that actually means for them.

It’s recommended by my best friend who has been homeschooling her children for over a decade. Though I don’t homeschool, I find the book a great read on “education” in general - the vision and purpose of a good education (and how to measure the quality of an education, which can be very different from popular views, mind you!). The authors, who are strong in their Christian faith, are clearly great thinkers and presented very strong arguments, along with their personal stories.

You don’t have to be a fellow believer or advocates of homeschooling to benefit from reading the book. You don’t have to agree with everything the author presents to be able to appreciate the depths of their thoughts. So long as you are a caring parent who would like to raise your kid(s) to be loving, caring and responsible citizens with a clear vision about their life along with a never ending curiosity about the wonder of this world, I think you would find this book thought-provoking. If you are homeschooling your children, I think you would find a lot of wisdom and guidance in this book.

If you are a fellow follower of Jesus, this book is extra helpful in that it greatly challenges me to think about the uniqueness of my child and my family, the role of parents in raising the next generation, our family’s role in God’s kingdom, etc.

[Rita G · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book came to me via the recommendation of a veteran homeschool mom. It was a good read. Even though it was written in 2004, the wisdom within is still quite relevant. I would say I appreciated the last third of the book most, but there was lots of little nuggets throughout. Lots of practical ideas. A good portion of it is actually directed to or written by homeschool dad's. So, this would be a good one to offer your husband if he has an interest. It is a collection of essays, so you could literally open it to whatever chapter caught your eye and read without feeling like you missed something from earlier in the book.

[Laura Lane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collection of essays from The Elijah Company.
It reminded me much of why I chose to homeschool.

[Staciel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is highly regarded within my extremely socially conservative/ evangelical homeschool group. If you are not a social conservative (like myself) it is still a beneficial read--I really enjoyed their focus on doing your best to bring out the gifts in your child, and just regarded their focus on 'the man is the head of the home/homeschool'/ biblical gender roles' as another persons perspective to be respected.

[Ginny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book I will read again. When I first started to research homeschooling, the Elijah Company was one of my favorite resources. I'm so glad I can find a collection of their articles all in one place. I'm looking forward to reading their next book.

[Jenifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been homeschooling for 10 years and I was loosing the point. This book is a great refresher course. I enjoyed the bible verses and the homeschooling history background. I would recommend it to anyone interested in home study.