"Father to Nobody's Children" by David E. Fessenden is a short book about the life and work of Thomas J. Barnardo among the homeless boys in London.
With plenty of direct quotes and first-hand accounts, this book pulled together the threads of comments and themes in others I have read.
Readers of "Anne of Green Gables" by Lucy Maud Montgomery may remember how Marilla had declared she would only adopt a Canadian born boy. "At first Matthew suggested getting a Barnado boy. But I said ‘no’ flat to that. ‘They may be all right—I’m not saying they’re not—but no London street Arabs for me."
And "Dusty Diamonds, Cut and Polished" by R. M. Ballantyne highlights a couple of street boys who ended up taking the opportunity to move to Canada, which Barnardo gave to the boys he saw would do well building a new life out of the city.
Overlapping the latter half of the life of the famed father to orphans, George Muller, you can notice some similarities in Barnardo's work, as well as some clear differences. God leads each of His children to do His work in unique ways!
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~ Hannah
