There are some things in life that I learned a bit too late. One of those things is the fact that audio adventures should be embraced and enjoyed! The kids and I were ecstatic when we were chosen for the latest G. A. Henty audio adventure from Heirloom Audio Productions. The stirring retelling called With Lee in Virginia is by far our family’s favorite adventure!
The Product
The Audio Theater CD
We recieved this 2 disc audio CD from the company and with as much zeal as Christmas morning, the kids and I began our newest G. A. Henty audio adventure. We have really come to enjoy listening to these amazing productions!
The front cover of the CD case is so intriguing and colorful, I love it!
We began the CD and were rapidly transported into the 1860’s right before the Civil War broke out. As the story began we were introduced to the two main characters Vincent and Dan.
Vincent is a young man that is keen on educating his slaves, even though he knows that it is against the law. Dan is a witty slave, one of Vincent’s from the family estate, The Orangery. Vincent is a straight talking, opinionated, loyal young man of 15 yet he is determined to make others realize that slavery might not be the right thing to do.
The adventure begins to become more lively as both Vincent and Dan enlist in the Confederate Army, where they are destined to fight the Union Army. The story is full of ups and downs, gripping and harrowing moments as we follow Vincent and Dan into battle.
We meet General Lee numerous times and each time he is a man of duty, integrity, and honor. He is a man that fears the Lord more than man and proves his merit and worth in every moment of battle. He teaches Vincent that you should always do your best and never anything less. He prayed before battle and never seemed to show any fear.
General “Stonewall” Jackson is also one of our favorite characters, as he is a genius on the battlefield and is quoted as saying, “Duty is ours; consequences are God’s.” He was a God fearing man that prayed often and led his men with courage.
The inspiring story of courage, adventure, bravery, and honor all come to life in this extraordinary adventure in history, one we will enjoy over and over again!
The Study Guide with Questions
This 48 page PDF is one of the best study guides! The Heirloom Audio Productions company puts as much effort into their study guides as they do their audio theater productions. I love the depth of which they take everyone, guiding and encouraging a love of history.
The Study Guide has each section of the story broken down into a full page of information and questions.
- Listening Well – this is a portion that has guided questions to help the listeners remember what they have already heard.
- Thinking Further – is more in depth questions to get your listeners to dig deeper in the ideas and thoughts of what they have already listened to.
- Defining Words – a list of the (possibly) new words that are being used in the audio. Providing extra school if need be, if the listeners do not know the words, they can look them up.
At the back of the book there is a 2 page Bible Study provided. This Study Guide covers two very important things:
- Duty
- Loving Your Enemy
The Bible study entails numerous Bible verses to coincide with the area of discussion. A wonderful way to help instill what God thinks about these two points.
The last section in the Study guide is a More section that covers more in depth discussion of these two subjects:
- Sectionalism
- Slavery in the Bible
Also included with our CD review was extra goodies. They offered to us an MP3 download of the audio, the soundtrack download, a promo poster, the PDF of G.A. Henty’s With Lee in Virginia adventure, a printable quote from General Lee, and the Study Guide.
A wonderful and thoughtful addition to our review. Thanks Heirloom Audio Productions!
Our Thoughts and Feelings
Since we have reviewed Under Drake’s Flag and In Freedom’s Cause I would like to think that we are open minded about audio theater now. The kids and I have, hands down, voted this audio the best one yet from Heirloom Audio.
Here is our reasoning; the amazing battle scenes and intense sound effects wowed us like never before. The passion that filled this story rattled us and keep us completely focused. This CD was played on two separate occasions and we all sat spellbound and captivated as the story unfolded.
We laughed, we cheered, we were shellshocked, and we cried (well, I did anyway) as we were wrapped up in this thrilling adventure.
The kids learned more about slavery in this history lesson than any other discussion we have had before. This CD caused us to talk about deep things in regards to humans and living as God intends for us to live.
We loved Dan’s wit as he dealt with life as a slave. We had our world rattled with Vincent every time there was a battle, loss, or victory.
We were amazed at General Jackson’s battle tactics, and equally as impressed with his courage and bravery. General Lee made us proud of the way he stood for what he believed yet had to courage to know when to yield.
This was an impressive audio adventure that delighted yet educated us in the two plus hours we listened. We highly recommend this product to anyone that thinks that history is boring, our family would like to encourage you to find out otherwise.
See what my fellow Review Crew members thoughts are on this product:
Visit Heirloom Audio Productions around the web:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WithLeeInVirginia and https://www.facebook.com/heirloomaudio
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeirloomStories
Google+: https://plus.google.com/b/114534826166314080647/114534826166314080647/posts
I hope you enjoyed this latest review and visit again soon!
In His Grace.
Callie
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