NIGERIAN PIONEER: The Story of Mary Slessor

by Ronald Syme ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 19, 1964

When Mary Slessor left Scotland for a Presbyterian mission in Nigeria in 1876, she was going where few Europeans dared to go. She had been tempered in the tough factory system of Dundee and she needed all her courage in Africa. The natives were being victimized by traders who sold them alcohol. Some were one step removed from cannibal practices and occasionally backslid. Her church had maintained a mission in Nigeria for over 30 years with small results. 39 years after Mary arrived, they had made great strides. She started by healing bodies while trying to save souls; in teaching the love of God, she practiced and taught justice. Her courage was based in a reckless faith and both became respected by the natives. For instance, when a hippo tried to tip her canoe, she crocked him with a tin-pan; when a tribal chieftain turned up drunk at her door, she didn't hesitate to cuff him. She was ""Ma"" to her people long before she was old and she succeeded where British civil servants fled. This is excellent biography at any level and combines good storytelling with careful research, in the way that readers have come to expect of Mr. Syme. ""Ma"" is a natural for tomboys and reaches, without overdoing it, toward the idealists who have made Schweitzer their own.

Pub Date: Aug. 19, 1964

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Morrow

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1964

Categories: NONFICTION