Ishtar's Odyssey: A Family Story for Advent (Storybooks for Advent)

Short chapters end with cliff-hangers and simple, meaningful devotions that tie into the story. One chapter for each day of Advent.

My kids (ages 1-14) love love love these books. Ishtar’s Odyssey wasn’t our favorite of the series, but even so, the kids never wanted to skip a reading. It took us about 12-15 minutes every day to do the reading. Ishtar is smart and mischievous and fun-loving. The devotion section is short and to the point. Everything points to Jesus. Hoping more of these books will come out!

My boys and I enjoyed reading this for advent this year (we read Jotham's Journey last year and plan to read the other two in the coming years). The book provided plenty of interesting historical context for the story. The plot was gripping and had us wanting to read more than one chapter every evening. My one criticism would be that we know from the Biblical story that the wise men could not have visited Jesus on the night of his birth (Scripture specifically says that they visited him in a house, and that Joseph, Mary, and Jesus fled right afterward from Herod, but by that time Jesus would have been circumcised and presented at the temple for a firstborn-son sacrifice--when he was seen by Simeon and Anna). I know the author wanted to have everything neatly line up with the other books, but this was disappointing. I wish he could have creatively done it in a more Biblical way rather than prioritizing his artistic vision.

I enjoyed this book the most out of the series so far. I have read them all but Tabitha's story. I felt that this story really transported me to the desert and had different subject matter than most other books I have read. (Astronomy study, caravan travel...) I felt like I was learning a lot as I read.

Gripping from the start, meet Ishtar, a privileged (some may call him spoiled) prince of Persia, the son of Salamar. During a 'boring' astronomy lesson, it is Ishtar who discovers the new star. Great excitement ensues for all the leaders but for Ishtar it only brings fears. He doesn't like leaving the palace under normal circumstances but now he has to travel with the caravan which includes 'stinky' camels. What about all the plush food he has been used to? Does he really have to eat a cup of millet gruel for most meals now? Ishtar has a lot of learn as they travel across the desert. Who is wanting Ishtar dead? What happens when he comes face to face with a king cobra? What about the quicksand?In this story we see 11 year old Ishtar grow up a LOT during his months of traveling. Great example for kids. Although this is the fourth book in the series and is an independent story, you will meet the characters Nathan, Decha, Jotham, Bartholomew and Tabitha from the other stories. I love the fact that the author intertwines some historical facts and traditions as well as food suggestions. Great addition to the series. No matter what day Advent starts you can know exactly when to start all the way up to 2081 by accessing the chart on the back page.

My whole family really loves these books. We've done all four now and are looking forward to starting over with Jotham's Journey next year! These are so good at bringing an awareness of Christ to the forefront of the season, and each day leaves you with something to meditate on and discuss as a family. The stories are compelling (I've choked up at least once in each one) and really paints a vivid picture of what life might have been like for the earliest worshippers of Christ. My three kids take turns lighting (and blowing out) the Advent candles, and we all really enjoy our tradition of reading the stories at dinner. "Ishtar" has an extra cool bonus of including some recipes to really get you into the spirit!

We've done other Advent books in this series, but this one was best yet. It kept my kids engaged, and they often asked if we could read ahead. The 4 stars instead of 5 is that the book really takes a lot of liberty with re-imagining the Christmas story, and some of the "reflections" are a bit of a stretch. I'd like more scripture-based lessons. But, overall, it's a good and easy way to engage young kids in Advent.

Love this book except for the fact that the bible is VERY clear that the wise men do not visit Jesus while he is an infant in Bethlehem. The book makes it sound like that is a not a fact when it is. The story is really good and exciting, it's my favorite of the Jathom journey series, it's very well written. If it were more historically accurate I'd give it 5 stars.

We've loved all of the Arnold Ytreeide advent books but I think this one might be my favourite. Every evening during advent, my children and I love sitting infront of the Christmas tree reading the next installment in the adventures of Ishtar. The pattern is similar to the others advent books written by Ytreeide: a child encounters various challenges and adventures while enroute to Bethlehem. Ishtar is travelling with the Wise Men, following the Star and ends up encountering Jesus at the end of the book (along with some of the characters from the other books along the way!). Highly recommended

This is a fantastic story which is designed to be read one chapter per day throughout advent. We follow Ishtar, a boy prince from Persia who discovers the star that the Magi (his father and uncles) follow. The end of each chapter points to how its elements remind us of God, and often contain a relevant Bible verse. The beginning of the book contains a plan to fully integrate the story into your advent activities, including food ideas etc.My boys are five and six and a half and have been really engaging with the tale - I believe they see much of themselves in Ishtar.We're looking forward to trying the other books on the series - Jotham's Journey and Tabitha's Travels in the coming years.

Arrived promptly. We have started reading this for Advent and so far it promises to be as gripping a story as the first three. Really good series

This series is amazing! So grateful for it and the lead up to Christmas that it brings. What a blessing!

These books are amazing in EVERY WAY! They stick closely to scripture, are engaging and every chapter ends with a clip hanger. They are PERFECT for classroom read aloud!