I was hesitant to listen to the audio book In the Presence of My Enemies by Gracia Burnham. I didn’t know anything about the story of Gracia and Martin Burnham and I couldn’t imagine who might kidnap missionaries in the Philippines. I’m not generally a big fan of autobiographical prose.

However, Gracia tells the story of the capture of her husband and herself by Muslim radicals with abandon, holding back nothing including details that might put the couple in an unfavorable light by some. The story rings of candor and desperation, beautifully narrated by Pam Ward, other than her feigned male voice.

The story of the one-year captivity of this missionary family will keep you glued to your iPod as the Burnhams dodge in and out of firefight after firefight while enduring near starvation and living in constant fear of their violent and sadistic abductors who force female captives into Muslim marriages and lessons on the Koran while randomly executing males.

It’s a story of triumph against impossible odds and dealing with the rawest side of human existence. I give In the Presence of My Enemies 4 out of 5 stars.

This audio book was provided free of charge by Christian Audio through their Reviewers‘ program in exchange for this review. You can also follow Christian Audio on Twitter.

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