The Legend of the Monk and the Merchant

When you discover that the forward of The Legend of the Monk and the Merchant by Terry Felber is written by Dave Ramsey, you immediately know some of the "twelve keys of successful living" are going to entail -- many of the same things you will hear in the Ramsey Financial Peace University (FPU) series.  With that stated, I was disappointed in the book due to its repackaging of those FPU pieces into an allegory.  Maybe, if I had not already been through FPU, I would have found this book more palatable. 

Felber sets the story during the construction and completion phase of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.  He does take significant historical liberties at times in his story by merging modern language and/or practices into the setting of this story in the 1500s.  While that may not weaken the work for others, I have multiple degrees in history and that detracted from the overall effectiveness.

The book is short and easily accessible -- I read it in less than 30 minutes.  All of the twelve principles are without question (especially in our modern world that is racked with debt and the dependence upon others).  In fact, I needed to read this book for one simple reason:  chapter 6 or the 3rd meeting which dealt with difficulty.  That chapter was appropriately timed with many of the things I was going through professionally at work.  Philippians 4:6-7 is a passage that has been comforting to me during this period:  "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."  In jumping back to this specific section of Felber's book, I loved the statement on page 68:  "Many men have robbed themselves of their destiny because they have allowed discouragement to rob them of their dreams."  How true!

The book does have personal and study group questions that will push further study.   One strength of the book is on page 119, which matches the overall story, and here are the words:  "Just as Antonio passed on the twelve keys to successful living, it is now up to you to share The Journal of a King with others."  I am going to write my name and date of book read on that page before passing it along to someone else (and will ask them to do likewise).

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”