the Hiding Place

Corrie Ten Boom.

The Hiding Place.

Published by Bantam Books.

Published 1974 in the U.S.

I learned many things in this book about the times during WWII in Germany and Holland. The concentration camps were very brutal places where disease and death spread like fire. The Nazi regtime was often merciless towards the old, the feeble, and the Jews. The regtime took everything from Betsie and Corrie Ten Boom... their house and everything in it, their father, friends, even the clothes on their backs. But despite this and the many trials Betsie and Corrie went through, God proved to be stronger and more powerful than their conditions and used them in great ways.

One of my favorite parts in this book was just seeing the faith that these two women had. Many times, they had compassion for the other prisoners they were with, but even more than that... the guards and soldiers that beat them. Many times we see the younger as stronger, but in this case, Corrie and Betsie would spiritually outrun, out-lift, and outfight me every time. Another part I liked in this book was the ministry that Betsie and Corrie did in their home (the Beje) that should model for us what all Christian homes should look like. And even when they were taken from their home, their ministry did not stop, it only continued in a different way.

And although this book was fantastic, it did have some parts where, if I were the author, would have changed. A sizable part of the book was about Corrie's earlier life, and although that does give us more of a perspective on the main character and setting, I felt like it was a bit too much, and ended up making the book a bit longer than it could have been. There were also some detailed areas that could have been cut to make the book a bit thinner and more enjoyable to read.

The title (The Hiding Place) relates to the place where Corrie Ten Boom found her strength, hope, safety: in God.

I believe that the book is factual. It is told as a true account and first person.

-Kade