Bruchko and the Motilone Miracle: How Bruce Olson Brought a Stone Age South American Tribe Into the 21st Century

Bruce Olson is a modern legend. If you are looking for a great autobiography and missionary story, this is it. I read a lot and there are very few books that I give a 5-star rating. This is one of my favorite books of all time. It will change your life. I think this man has had a great impact on the Motilone Indians in South America. Bruce, an American, has lived in the jungles of of Columbia and Venezuela for most of his life, giving up all the creature comforts of modern day culture. His story is remarkable. I recommend reading the first Bruchko book first, which tells about his early life and how he got to the jungle. This book gives a review of the first book in the first few chapters, and then picks up where the last one left off. You will not regret buying this book. It also makes a great gift. High school students and college students will also enjoy it, as well as those bound for seminary or the mission field. I guarantee you they will make a movie about this man one day. You simply can not make this stuff up.

Bruce Olson was a young man driven with a purpose. The purpose was to go to South America, live with a tribe of natives, civilize them and win them to Christ. He met with many obstacles upon arriving, he had bought a one way ticket, had no money, knew no one. With his faith in God, his determination, he did find the tribe, made friends with them, introduced them to a better way of life and won their confidence. He introduced raising cattle, chickens and goats, planting gardens, enriched their diet, taught them hygiene, and translated books of the Bible into their language. He suffered many physical dangers, injuries, his fiance was killed before their marriage, but through it all his faith in God never wavered. It is a fascinating story, don't start it until you can devote several hours to reading it.

Excellent book. Very impressed by his life, and how he was used of the Lord to proclaim the gospel to the Motilone tribe in an extraordinary way. Very impressed how he waited on the Holy Spirit to direct him in reaching this tribe.

The original Bruchko book is one of my favorite books of all time. So when I heard he had written a second book which updated his story into the present day, I purchased it quickly. It was like getting reacquainted with an old friend. You see Bruchko grappling with the losses of Gloria and Bobarishora. You see his spirit rekindled after hearing a couple of the younger Motilones speaking at a peace conference. You feel his joy as the nation of Columbia recognizes that 420 acres of jungle land belong to the Motilone people (truly known as the Bari people). The first 36 pages rehash the first Bruchko book, while the rest of the volume brings the story into the present day (with occasional looks back into the past). You get to read the details of Bruce's entanglements with terrorist groups and drug dealers. You get his first person account of his brutal 1988 abduction by the ENF and his mixed feelings about the current direction the Motilones are taking. You get the sense that the younger Motilones want to modernize more and to forego some of the tribal traditions that Bruce has been trying hardf to safeguard. Yet Bruce is confident in the Lord that God will continue to raise up Motilones who walk in our Lord's trail. If you love the first book, you'll definitely want this one, too. But this is also a good place to start even if you have never heard of Bruchko.