If your family enjoys listening to Audio Books, they will love Audio Dramas. We have been very blessed to review several Audio Dramas from Heirloom Audio and were very excited to have a chance to review their newest production, St. Bartholomew's Eve.
St. Bartholomew's Eve from Heirloom Audio was adapted from the book of the same name by G.A. Henty. George Alfred Henty was a novelist and is best known for his many historical adventure stories that were written in the late 1800's. Heirloom Audio brings these stories to life with an amazing cast, awesome sound effects, and beautiful music, making the listener feel as though they are living the adventure.
At the beginning of the story, Ned and Sebastien are skipping church and run into Mr. George who tells them of the importance of freedom to worship through the story of St. Bartholomew's Eve. The story is set in the 1500's in France. The Huguenots (French protestants) were being persecuted by the Catholics. 16 year old Philip Fletcher from England goes to France to stay with his cousin Francois to fight with the Huguenots for their right to worship as they see fit. Through many battles and obstacles, they fought on with courage, bravery, and faith even when the odds were not on their side. Philip stays true to his beliefs in Jesus Christ and follows the King of Kings rather then the King of France. At one point they (the Huguenots) are trapped and believe all is lost until a young boy leads them in singing A Mighty Fortress is our God and an amazing idea comes from God to the Huguenots on how they can survive. Later on, the mother of King Charles IX encourages an assassination attempt on Admiral Coligny, the leader of the Huguenots. Two days later, the king orders the killing of a group of Huguenots including the admiral and the killings spread first through Paris and then to other areas of France.
St. Bartholomew's Eve stars familiar names such as Brian Blessed (Star Wars), Elizabeth Counsel (The Chronicles of Narnia), David Shaw-Parker (The Muppet Christmas Carol), Brian Deacon (Bonhoeffer), Andy Harrison (The Secret Garden), and Hugo Docking (Oliver Twist.) Listening to the adventure takes a little over 2 hours. It is recommended for ages 6-adult.
As you can tell from reading the synopsis of the story, this is a war story with many battles and people dying and you should keep that in mind when deciding whether or not this is appropriate for t your children, especially if they are young or very sensitive. It is a very well done story and though intense is not at all gory. We have enjoyed all of the Audio Dramas we have listened to from Heirloom Audio and this was no different. I did read a bit of the background of St. Bartholomew's Eve before listening as I was not that familiar with what took place. Why is it important for our children to listen to this story? Because we take for granted every day our right to worship freely as we see fit and many, many people have suffered and died over the years including the Huguenots because they were persecuted for their beliefs. We need to remember, learn from history, and not take it for granted. I loved Philip's character in the story. He did not even live in France but chose to go and fight for what he believed in. He was humble, always put Jesus first, and did right to the best of his ability. As always, the sound effects and the music was amazing. I absolutely adore Brian Blessed as G.A. Henty. He has an amazing voice.
I recommend St. Bartholomew's Eve and other Audio Dramas from Heirloom Audio. They are a great way to bring history to life for your family.
Other members of the Crew reviewed St. Bartholomew's Eve. To see what my Crew Mates had to say, stop by the Crew Blog!
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