A Passion for the Impossible: The Life of Lilias Trotter

"A Passion for the Impossible" is a biography of Lilias Trotter (1853-1928) who did outreach work to women in England and then went to Algeria as a missionary. The book used primary sources as much as possible and often quoted diaries, journals, and letters written by Lilias and those who knew her. I liked that the author showed how Lilias Trotter was influenced by the events and society of her day and how she influenced them. Thus, the reader also learns about D.L. Moody, the YWCA, John Ruskin, and others who touched her life. The writing style was easy to understand and read, though a bit formal in tone (which matched the material). The book described the barriers Lilias Trotter faced and the methods she used to reach Muslims with the gospel. I especially liked Lilias' descriptions of Algeria (of both the setting and the culture). There were several pages of black and white photos of Lilias Trotter with a few also showing her colleagues or the places she worked. There were charming sketches by Lilias at the bottom of many pages or at the ends of chapters. The black and white map of missionary stations in Algeria in 1924 wasn't easy to read or use. I would have enjoyed another map that clearly showed the places she visited on various trips. I'd highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about history or anyone who enjoys reading missionary biographies. In fact, if a person was only going to read one missionary biography, I think I'd recommend this one since it gives a broader view than just Lilias' work. --Reviewed by Debbie from Different Time, Different Place book reviews.

I just finished reading this book and was so impressed with the astonishing results this woman achieved because of her total surrender to God's plans. An accomplished young artist from an upper class Victorian family, she left the comforts of England and went into Algeria, a country inhabitated by Arabs who were mostly Muslim. It was a slow but steady start, because of language problems, government interference (because of suspicions about missionaries motives), and just the differences in the different ways of thinking and lifestyles of the Algerian people. Lilias spent several decades of her life doing the "basics" in securing the beginnings of a life long ministry among a people hungry for deep spiritual lessons, but finding ways to do this required much patience, thought and forgiveness. And on top of all this, she is dealing with a new language, both spoken and written. The majority of this book is taken from Lilias's copius journals, letters and writings where she kept records of what she was involved in day by day. I learned a lot about what the foreign missionary effort entails, and especially when you're the first to go into an area with some brand new ideas where life is so different. But she won them over slowly with her love. As time went on, she had much help from other women and men who worked with her in this cause. The last couple of decades her health was not good, but she just kept on plugging away, even writing from her bed the last two years. She wrote some beautiful booklets that have profound lessons of faith and obedience in them. "Parables of the Cross" and "Parables of the Christ Life" are just two of them. She gleaned such meaningful lessons from nature, things that the ordinary person would hardly think of. She could see great lessons from a grain of wheat, a peach, a bee, etc. She looked deeply into the whys and wherefores of the lessons that nature has to teach us. Lilias really had a heart for these people and she felt that God gave her that heart and she was to do what she could as well as she could for as long as she could. She was true to that effort. One thing I wished this book had was a map of the area that showed all the little towns and outposts that were mentioned in the book, and were developed over many years and many travels. This book is a good read, even though you are dealing with some new words and another way of thinking. You will learn a lot and wish you had known this woman who was totally devoted to God.

There are few things that inspire me more than a true story of a child of God who is faithful in the face of success and apparent failure. I see the reality of this woman's walk with God to be the challenge and encouragement. The accounts of her passion, travels, and encounters challenge my perspective on missions. I don't believe I had a real grasp on missions until I read this book. The quotations of her own journals and other writings bring a special feeling of knowing Lilias by the end of the book. This is a book I highly encourage all believers to read.

I am a voracious reader of non-fiction (particularly Christian non-fiction), but out of thousands of books I have read, this biography captivated me like no other. Perhaps because I am a writer and artist, I could identify with Lilias and her passions. Ultimately, however, this is a story of adventure, sacrifice, surrender and uncompromising dedication to Jesus Christ, all set against the exotic backdrop of Algeria. I can't wait to meet Lilias in heaven and tell her how she inspired me. Of course, I also look forward to meeting the authors someday because they brought Lilias to life. The narrative is as lovely as Lilias' art!

This book does indeed weave a challenging and interesting tale of a pioneeer missionary, who for the sake of the gospel left a comfortable and gracious victorian life for a life of sacrifice in the northern deserts of Africa, among Muslim tribemen.It is carefully crafted and includes some prints of Lilias' own artwork, which from what can be seen, is lovely.I wish a book could be devoted to more prints and more about Lilias' travels!