Skip to content ↓

Book Review – Hostage

Book Reviews Collection cover image

Hostage tells the story of the kidnapping of three American missionaries from a tiny village in the Panamanian jungle. The book is written by Nancy Mankins, wife of Dave Mankins, who along with Mark Rich and Rick Tenenoff was kidnapped by Colombian rebels.

The book continually alternates between the day of the kidnapping and the years of preparation that led the Mankins family to become missionaries to the Kuna tribe. We learn about their call to mission work, the decision to leave their life in America and move to the jungles of South America, and the life they built there. We learn about the trials and challenges they faced in trying to adapt to a culture vastly different from their own. The story culminates, of course, in the events of January 31, 1993 when rebels burst into the tiny village and kidnapped the three missionaries.

As with most missionary stories, it is inspiring to read about Christians who are so dedicated to God’s work that they will leave all the comforts of society to bring the gospel to those who have never had opportunity to hear it. In my view missionaries, God’s most humble and unseen disciples, are the true heroes of Christianity – far above the public figures we love to praise.

My only real disappointment with the book is that it really isn’t a book about hostages at all. The back-story and the story of the day the men went missing fills almost the entire book, leaving just a few pages to tell the little bit their wives know about what happened to the men. Other than that small complaint, I enjoyed Hostage and would recommend it.


  • The Art of Disagreeing

    Keep Calm and Stay Friends

    It is hard to disagree with someone you love. It is harder still to disagree well—to retain genuine respect and true friendship despite differing opinions or convictions. And, as we all know by experience, there is just so much to disagree about.

  • A La Carte Friday 2

    A La Carte (February 14)

    A La Carte: John Piper on whether baptism saves us / The peril of “He Gets Us” / Send them to seminary / An Inside-out world / Pray for protection / Love is patient / Kindle deals / and more.

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (February 13)

    A La Carte: The conundrum of celebrity Christians / The Luka trade / Dopamine media / The best place to hide an idol / Overcoming blind spots in parenting and leadership / and more.

  • Dreams

    What Becomes Of All Our Dreams?

    My dad loved to cook. This was a passion that began relatively late in his life after the kids had moved out. With an empty nest, my parents were able to live a slower-paced life and my dad began to dabble in cooking. He soon found that he loved it and that my mother was…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (February 12)

    A La Carte: A young Christian reading John Mark Comer / Being inconvenient / Breaking gender stereotypes to the glory of God / Gluten-free and non-alcoholic / AI-Pocalypse Now / and more.