Title: Monday Nights in Zarahemla
Author: Janet Burningham
Publisher: Cedar Fort
Genre: Non-Fiction/Family Home Evening Manual
Year Published: 2007
Number of Pages: 139
Binding: Soft
ISBN: 978-1-59955-127-2
Price: 14.99

Reviewed by Andrew Hamilton

“Monday Nights in Zarahemla” contains 32 lessons and 32 games designed for use in Family Home Evenings.

The lessons are basic and easy to follow. Each lesson starts with a title which presents its general theme. Some examples are: “The Tree of Life,” “The Liahona,” “The Importance of Prayer,” and “Gaining a Testimony.” This is followed by an objective, for example, “To help children understand the importance of having faith and courage when the Lord asks us to do things that might seem difficult.” This is followed by a section of background information on the Book of Mormon story being studied. Suitable pictures for the lesson, if available, are recommended from the “Gospel Art Kit” produced by the LDS Church .

Then comes the body of the lesson, which is presented in a grid format, and is generally two to three pages in length. The grid has three columns. The first presents the blocks of scripture to be studied. The second column contains sample questions you can ask your family about the block of scripture. These questions are short and easy for children to answer. Some of the questions have answers that can be found by simply reading the block of scripture, such as, “What did God say would happen if Laman and Lemuel rebelled?” Others are more philosophical or introspective, like, “What do these verses teach us about how we should respond to difficult challenges,” or “What can I do to be better?”

The last column of the grid is called “Treasures of Knowledge.” This section contains definitions of hard to understand terms or phrases and the occasional quote from a General Authority or a Book of Mormon commentary.

At the end of the book is an appendix with additional helps. Its contents include: a possible map of Lehi’s journey, a chart of Nephite leaders, a list of Book of Mormon cities and occupants, a “Who’s Who in the Book of Mormon,” section, “scripture strips” (names of scripture stories you can cut out and draw out of a hat as a way of choosing what to study), a “word quest glossary” (words for children to look up so they can learn their meanings), and games

The games are all fairly common games with “Mormon twists” to help them fit in with your FHE lesson. For example, instead of pinning the tail on the donkey you are picking the fruit from Lehi’s tree. Other games include Book of Mormon charades, matching games, twenty questions, and “Book of Mormon Draw.” With 32 game ideas there is quite a variety of games good for young ages thru early teen, but most seem to be aimed at about the 6 to 12 age group.

This book would be best for those with young children who are just starting out scripture reading or having Family Home Evenings. Its format especially lends itself to those who might be having trouble getting started with the practice because it has some good, basic ideas. For those families with older children, more experience with scripture study or FHE, I would recommend getting a different book. As I compared this book to other similar books and manuals on the market I found that there were others that were bigger and had more pictures, graphics, games, and more to do for a lower price, but they usually were a little more complex. So before you buy I would recommend looking at several to find the one that most suits your family.