The book is the author’s autobiography of a period of her work as a missionary in the Congo during the late 1950’s. After nearly 8 years of working as a surgeon, psychiatrist, pharmacist and physician she was caught up in the Samba rebellion. All her colleagues were massacred, and the book takes you on her journey of the 8 month long ordeal of being a prisoner of the Samba rebels. Some of them were only children, and they behaved very erratically because of the drugs they were taking.

I found the book to be very well written and very informative, but it is the most horrific book I have ever read, and one I will never forget and not recommended for the faint hearted. It will make you cry, and then it will also make you cry.

I would recommend this book to men as well as women, and especially anyone who is preparing to become a missionary. After reading this book it made me realise how much some people do for our God, putting their lives into His hands, knowing He will be there for them every step of the way, when they are doing His will. What really came over to me when I was reading the book was the power of prayer. From start to finish, she never did anything without praying about it first, and God blessed her by answering her prayers in His time, from providing a bar of soap to setting her free.

 

There is also a sequel called

A Reluctant Missionary

This book is a biography of how she became a missionary right up to the time she was taken prisoner, again a very good read, and also very informative. She retired in 1997 at the age of 68 having received the MBE in 1987.